Having a strong wrist reduces the movement that may occur when you land a punch whether it’s on an opponent or a heavy bag. If your wrist bends or moves at impact, the stress placed on your wrist is likely to cause injury as it will be put into a compromised position. Wrist strength is important for boxing to reduce the risk of injury to your hands and wrists and to punch with greater impact force. Stretching and exercising the muscles around your wrists will keep the wrists flexible and strong, and help you avoid repetitive motion and stress injuries.
Why it helps? Both stretching and exercising increase the production of synovial fluid, which lubricates your wrist joints and helps improve their function.
What to do? Your wrist bones connect your hand to your forearm. Wrist movements are controlled by the forearm muscles. To strengthen your wrists, you’ll need to work the group of muscles in your forearms, each of which has specific functions. Give these exercises a try.
Kettlebell Pronation/Supination- This exercise is a great one for boxing specifically. It strengthens the wrist through pronation which occurs while throwing a punch, by also while balancing your wrist strength. Here’s how to do it:
- Lie the kettlebell down with the handle facing towards you.
- Rest your forearm on a soft surface and grab the handle.
- Slowly rotate your hand both ways while keeping your forearm on the soft surface.
- Perform anywhere from 1-4 sets of 10-20 reps.
Thor’s Hammer- This is a grip exercise that you will need a sledgehammer or something with a weighted end such as a baseball bat or golf club.
- Hold the hammer like Thor in one hand. The further you hold the handle from the weighted end, the more difficult the exercise.
- Place your arm forward with a slight bend in your elbow. Point the hammer forward.
- Bring the hammer back with your wrist to your head (careful not to hit yourself).
- Repeat for 1-4 sets of 5-10 reps.
Wrist Walking
- Stand near a wall, with your arms straight, your palms against the wall, and your fingers pointed up.
- Keeping your palms against the wall, walk your wrists down the wall as far as you can.
- Then turn your hands around so that your fingers are pointed down.
- With your palms against the wall, walk your wrists back up as far as you can.
Strong and flexible wrists are important for everyday activities. Whether you’re driving a car, swinging a golf club, lifting weights, or boxing, your wrists are involved. Make stretching part of your daily routine. Do strengthening exercises three times a week. Take your time with each movement. Aim for correct form and steady movements.
