Hand Stretches

Why do these?

Releases tension in the elbow muscles and hands. Soft elbows and hands translate to a soft mouth, jaw, neck and head in your horse.

What hand stretches do for me:

The joints in my hands are very tight for a variety of reasons such as broken and shattered fingers, arthritis, over gripping and fiddling with the reins, etc. This series of hand stretches definitely unlock and release the muscles and joints in my hands and, as a result, my elbow muscles are beginning to open up as well. I have a very long way to go here but I can tell you that my horse loves even the slightest softening of my elbows and hands. The softer my elbows and hands, the more gorgeous his frame, no matter what we are doing.

Prayer Stretch

Sitting or standing,
Bring palms of your hands together, elbows parallel and in the same plane as your hands, without raising your shoulders.
Hold for 15 – 20 seconds.
Flip your palms over so the back of your hands are together making sure your elbows remain in the same plane with your hands and that your shoulders are down.
Hold for 15 – 20 seconds
With your arms in front of you and your elbows straight, flex one palm up as if stopping traffic and use the opposite hand to hold and stretch the fingertips up and back.
Hold for 15 – 20 seconds.
Now, in the same position with your arms and elbows straight in front of you, hold that same palm down by using the opposite hand to hold and stretch the straight fingertips down.
Hold for 15 – 20 seconds.
Switch to the other arm and stretch that palm up and then down for 15 – 20 seconds in each direction by using the now stretched, respectively opposite hand.

Bye Bye Stretches

For this and the following stretches, keep your elbows bent at your sides in riding position.

1. With your knuckles bent and your fingers together and straight, wave bye bye 10 – 20
times with each hand. The motion occurs at the knuckles.


2. With your knuckles and finger tip joints straight and your fingers together, wave bye bye bringing your fingers down to the base of your palm 10 – 20 times with each hand.

3. With your knuckles straight and fingers straight and together, wave bye bye curling
your finger tips down to the top pads of your palm without bending your knuckles 10 – 20
times with each hand.

4. With your fist closed, open your hand, straighten and spread apart your fingers. Open
and close 10 – 20 times with each hand.


Hand Rolls

Other ways to loosen up your elbows and hands include rolling around a tennis or racquetball in your hands, rolling around putty and rolling around wet sand or warmed beans in a bowl. Widen and stretch your hands and fingers as much as you can while doing any of these rolls in order to get as much extension as possible in these muscles and joints.