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Many of you may already be onto this... but I don't recall hearing much talk of it here.
Exercising, stretching, and messaging of the hands, wrists, and forearms. The benefits?

The obvious reason is that I want to excel at picking locks and spinning dials. Isn't that what we're all after?!
I'll admit it, lol, I have high hopes of someday, somehow, going beyond normal to enter the freak-zone. lol
There's a few people around here that I consider phenomenal... what I see as almost unbelievable skills.
If I have even the slightest chance in hell of ever reaching such a feat, it only makes sense that I will
first have to develope complete and absolute control over my hands. On a micro-level even.

Strength & Stamina: Micro-motor skills go to shit as soon as fatigue sets in. I want to avoid this.

Longevity: Around here we're all in the business of very small & insanely repetitive movements.
So just as with a gamer or typist, there is a very real potential for RSI (repetitive stress injury).
My hope is that I'm able to maintain strong, flexible, and pain-free hands late into my years.
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Couple years ago I did quite a bit of research on this, but was not all too pleased with what
I came up with... so I didn't stick with it. I recently started searching again and happened to
come across Dr. Levi Harrison, an Orthopedic Surgeon based out of Los Angeles, California.
He's known as "The Gamers & eSports Doctor". I really trusted what I seen on his channel
and got right to it.

I also watched several long videos detailing the dissection of the forearm & hand.
Yeah, kinda creepy at first, lol..... but it gave me a great deal of insight. Really, you
can't help but appreciate it! The hand is truly a marvelous piece of human machinery.

Many of the exercises I do now are of my own making, geared more specifically for
what I do. But Dr. Levi's routines remain a constant foundation for me. I've now been
at it for about 5 or 6 months and the results are there. I was spinning on a lock last wk
for literally 8 hours straight (well, minus a snack an a few smoke breaks). I put in the
same hours the following day. My arm, elbow, wrist, hand - were NO worse for wear.
In fact I wouldn't have even known I did it other than my legs & back were a wreck, lol.

If you're interested in any of this: Dissection vids & Dr. Levi's utube channel are easily found.
If you're not up for sifting through all his vids, visit my channel. I've created a playlist entitled
"Hand Health" where I've compiled the videos I found most useful. My only caution is to take
it slow at first. The hands are much different from any other part of the body. You can actually
create problems you didn't have to start with. Take it slow, build up to it.

Thanks for your concern Oldfast. This is something I had never given much thought to until recently. For the past few weeks I have developed a numbness in my hand. Some quick research from tpark shows that the probable culprit is an encapsulated nerve (pinched nerve). Though I don't have any pain, it is seriously distracting, as my little finger no longer responds when I call on it. This may be the good Lords way of telling me to pay attention. The last 15 years or so I have become more and more sloth-like . I guess this is my opportunity to start correcting that! And New Years resolutions are right around the corner, talk about timing!

You bring up a good point, Oldfast. When we are younger all we can think about is work hard and play hard and never consider the ramifications of wear and tear on the body. I am a poster child for when ligaments and joints are abused. Five fused vertebra, three in the low back and two in the neck, carpel tunnel surgery x 2, ulner nerve transposition, and two failing knees. Some of us are predisposed genetically for early problems but with some knowledge the wear and tear process can be slowed if not prevented. Call me... smart too late.

Now in retirement physical therapies like you mention are required just to keep moving!

Mastersmith! Yeah, that would definitely be distracting and irritating if it were me! I really hope you're able to narrow down the exact cause and get it taken care of (be it something like we're talking about here, or surgery, or a bit of both maybe? I dunno). At the very least, it's good to hear this post gotcha thinkin' about it a little more. Definitely address it though. And, if ya think about it, I'd be interested to hear what you find out too.

I myself have had some trauma to both hands over the years. A drunken boxer's punch many years ago smashed the ring & pinky knuckles of my right hand, which also jammed a lot of shit up into my wrist. Also on my right hand I smashed my pinky in a log splitter pretty bad (lucky I didn't lose it completely). On my left hand I've broken two fingers on separate occasions, ring & pinky fingers. The pinky is still a bit crooked. All in all I'm grateful to still have all my digits, and they all (more or less) still have range of motion.

00247... Holy hell man! Here I thought I felt like shit sometimes - but you make me feel like a million bucks! I have nothin' to be complaining about. Yeah, ya can't turn back time. Ya just do what ya can today. I wish you all the best. I'm sure you have some good days... and some bad ones?

Definitely important to keep up the physical fitness and mobility, and I've fallen into some seriously slothful habits over the past year as well. Will be making some resolutions about health for sure.

Mastersmith: that sounds like it might be cubital tunnel syndrome, which is something I've started noticing after leaning my elbow on a desk for years while at work.

Oldfast, thanks so much for bringing this up.I type a LOT at work and I've actually got pretty bad carpal tunnel syndrome now. It wakes me up several times every night and my hands reliably go to sleep if I'm picking for more than 6-8 minutes at a time. I'm constantly taking breaks and doing little stretches, etc, but they really don't have a lasting benefit. Ultimately I am going to need surgery, but I'm going to take a look at your playlist to see if the info can help me in the meantime. One thing that has helped me a lot is a vice that allows me to have the optimum angle on a lock, and my wife reminding me to take breaks. Thanks again, this looks like great info!

oh wow. thanks oldfast. definitely going to check the videos out.

Tumbl3r.... my mother had carpal tunnel as well. Bad. She was a secretary of sorts for many years. Then, when she and my father started their own business the typing continued - maybe even more so than her previous job. I remember she would always put wrist braces on when she'd go to bed, hoping to get some relief. At one point, she barely slept for 2 months straight. It had become so excruciating that she literally could not hold a pen for more than a matter of seconds.

She switched to an ergonomic keyboard (I call it a split keyboard) and it made ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD. The pain/numbness slowly subsided and over time, eventually her hands healed. She still does just as much typing... but today she lives basically pain-free and her hands and wrists are strong! No surgery. Anyway, maybe you've already heard of these or have one, or tried it already - but if you haven't... GIVE IT A TRY FOR SURE!

Mac... You're MORE than welcome! Hope it helps.

I certainly recognize that hand braces and lack of sleep... I wear them off and on, but usually more when it is cold and I wind up pulling my hands in to keep them warm. I have tried a keyboard similar to that a few times, but honestly it was so hard for me to type on it that I gave it up before really giving it a fair shake. This is a good reminder to go back and really work on getting the hang of it. Thanks man!

Yep, she had a hell-of-time getting acclimated to it too. But now she finds it difficult to type on the regular style. Anyone that comes in to work with us also gets thrown for a loop. I tend to fair ok on the split or the straight ones - but I'm far from a marathon typist on either, lol. There's a lot of different designs - some of them are truly split in two independent pieces. Now that I think would be a little weird. Anyway, the one I linked to is the exact model she has.

Also, Dr. Levi no doubt is a busy man. But I do believe he takes questions and does his very best to stay attentive - so that's always an option. Another thing that appealed to me about him; he just comes across as a very genuine, warm, and caring person. I really enjoyed his positive attitude and outlook on life as I sifted through his vids. He says "the world is behind you, with you... not against you". Sure, seems true enough. Obvious enough. Yet I know loads of people that would NEVER say that. It would do them well to believe it - even if just for a minute. lol

I never knew you had such a severe case of carpel tunnel. What you've accomplished in the lock world is even more astounding to me now. I mean really, I'll spend 6-8 HOURS and still not feel like I've had enough time or made enough progress. You're forced to take a break every 6-8 MINUTES?! That would frustrate the fuck outta me. Ha! In light of your condition, your perseverance is not only impressive but inspiring. Keep up the good work and I hope you somehow, some way, get your hands feeling at least a little bit better.

He really does seem that way, and his positive outlook makes his videos all the much more enjoyable to watch I've been doing the stretches he suggests as I make my way through your playlist and I'm really surprised by both the lack of motion I have and the discomfort I feel when doing them. I think I've ignored and abused my hands for just too damn long. Where I work we actually have an ergonomists that will come into my office and do a consultation for me. I had her take a look at my setup and form once when she was working with one of my employees who had broken his wrist. She said it all looked pretty good, but that she would be happy to do a full assessment for me if I wanted. I think I'm going to take her up on that. I also think half of it is simple genetics. My Mom already had both wrists operated on by the time she was my age, LOL.

With respect to picking, spinning, etc, I'm still able to put in long hours, but pretty reliably after about six to ten minutes (of picking in particular) I will start to feel that little tingling and I know it's time to set my pick down and shake or stretch it away. It really only takes just a few seconds for it to subside, so I usually don't even need to un-tension the lock. Not sure if you watched my ASSA Twin Combi video, but towards the end I was pulling the pick out of the lock and my hand would leave the frame for a few seconds. That's what was going on then. I knew I had the damn thing almost open, but my hand was starting to go to sleep. Normally I'd just reset, but that was a Twin Combi, LOL. Anyhow, it just takes a few seconds for it to go away and I can get back to the matter at hand. Not really sure if that's the best thing for me, but it's what I do. I'll often spend most waking hours on the weekends picking or otherwise goofing around with locks. Spinning, for one reason or another, doesn't seem to bother me at all.

Anyhow, I'm rambling'. Just thought it was serendipitous that you wrote this, since my hands have been bothering me more than usual of late. I think it's mostly because it's been cold here and I subconsciously pull my hands in close to my body when I'm sleeping to keep them warm, which bends the wrists more sharply. I'll keep working through your playlist and doing those stretches. I'll also let you know what our person at work has to say. I suspect she will suggest that I use one of those split keyboards and I'm just going to have to kick my own ass into actually using it.

I hurt my hands bad last year making picks . I didn't stab myself but injured my hands by holding the picks instead of using a vice .
My fingers started locking into postion to where I had to pry my fingers apart .
It took awhileto heal aftere stopped using my hand like a vise .

Have you read anything on Chi Gong exercises or Tai Chi ?

bump

To whoever meant to, but didn't. lol

Just think... how far along you'd be right now if you
had just stuck with this the first time you read it.

Just sayin'