Self- Care 

These self-massage techniques and stretching suggestions would be helpful for anyone who works with their hands! 

Artists, musicians, computer techs, surgeons etc... 

It's important to stay loose for practice because what we practice, we perform. 

The best performers are usually loose and comfortable in their skin. 

Stop. Breathe. Shake it out. 

Take a break to stretch. 

The Morning: Try dynamic stretches. When your muscles are cold, these are said to be the most effective.  Dynamic stretches are any kind of active momentum without holding the stretch, ie: arm circles and neck rolls. Try it out right where you are now! 

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Hands 

Lightly pinch grasp the webbing between your fingers and the pad of your thumb. If you don't want to use your hands, google search massage wands. You can use these to lightly press into the muscle tissue. 

Lightly tug each finger, stretch the fingers forward and back and gently roll around in their socket. 

Next, check out this thumb stretch:

Arms 

Clock 

From 12:00 to 7:00 

Start slow, don't over stretch, you may only be able to get to 11:00 at first but stick with it. Something is better than nothing!

 

Shoulders and Pecs 

"Door Jams"