Wrist Pain With Hand Stands? Try this!
There are many reasons as to why people struggle with handstands, handstand pushups, and hand stand walks. Perhaps the three most common limiting factors are the wrist, the shoulder, or because they’re just really freakin’ difficult. However, if you feel as though wrist pain is getting in the way of you performing these maneuvers, here are a few things you can work on.
First, check your mobility! Assume a quadruped position. If you can’t comfortably lay your palms flat with your forearm perpendicular to the floor, odds are your wrists don’t have enough mobility. Passive stretching of the wrists in quadruped (shown in the picture below) is a great way to improve your wrist mobility! However, frequency is important. Be sure to perform this exercise at least 6 times per week in order to see true progress. Performing these exercises near-daily will maximize your positive progress and create lasting change!
Feel free to use a band to address any joint tightness!
If your mobility checks out, it may be a tolerance issue. Perhaps you aren’t spending enough time challenging your wrists? Often times, in order for our body to adapt, we just need to spend time in a certain position! Start modifying so you can tolerate the weight better. Pike pushups, standard pushups, or even wall pushups are three ways to stress the wrist, without putting too much pressure on the joint. A great rule of thumb is; keep the movement within a 0-3 out of 10 on the pain scale, as well as no sharp or shooting pain. If you can keep your weight bearing movements within these parameters, your wrists will become more and more resilient and thus, tolerate much more load!
Wall push up
Pile push up
Finally, limited wrist strength may be a limiting factor for hand stand maneuvers. If your wrist doesn’t have enough strength to support itself, the joints will compress or stretch to it’s end-ranges. This will create a pseudo-stability which will place undue stress on the ligaments, which could result in pain or even injury. Prioritizing resistance training in the wrist can reduce the risk for traumatic or overuse injury in CrossFit!
If you are having wrist pain with handstand maneuvers in CrossFit or any other sport, it may be your wrist mobility, resilience, or even strength. Consider seeing a performance based physical therapist in order to reduce the risk of severe or chronic injury and get back to 110%! The PATH Rehab & Performance offers free phone consultations in which we can discuss symptoms, goals, and answer any questions and/or concerns you may have. Pain is your body’s way of saying something isn’t right. Ask for help!
Dr. Cody Benavides
PT, DPT, TPIc
Co-Owner | The PATH Rehab & Performance
