Picking hand exercises can help keep your hands healthy by stretching and strengthening your muscles. Exercises can improve your hand's dexterity and gripping ability which makes it easier to pick up, carry and hold onto items. Exercises also increase finger independence, which is necessary for fruit picking or playing a musical instrument. Increase your proficiency and hand health by doing the exercises daily.
Arm and Wrist String Exercises
Picking hand exercises can increase your proficiency of playing different parts of a string, according to the website I Love Guitar. Think of each string in a scale as two picking exercises, or notes. Start at the top string and proceed to the lowest string. Strike each string's upper and then lower portion. Use a down stroke on the upper portion and an upper stroke on the lower portion. The outside and inside will make up the two notes. Move your hand and fingers as you progress to the next string. Do this consecutively for each string in the scale. Go as fast as possible without hindering proficiency. Once you have reached the lowest string. Rest for 15 seconds. Reverse direction to pick back up to the top string, closest to you.
Grip Improving
Strengthen your grip by doing a hand squeeze exercise. Find a cylinder object the size of a tennis ball. Either sit or stand for this exercise, your choice. Place the ball into your right hand, according to the National Institute on Aging. Squeeze the ball as tightly as possible. Hold the squeeze for seven seconds. Release the tension. Rest for 10 seconds. Repeat this exercise 15 times. Do the exercise again with your left hand.
Down Stroke Click
Strengthen your picking hand by doing down stroke exercises. Pick an open string, according to the guitar teaching site Zentao. Find a metronome or another beat-keeping method to keep the beat to. Use your right hand for this exercise. Place the pick between your index and thumb fingers. Place your pick onto the chosen string. Using only a down stroke, start striking the string with each beat. Do this for one minute. Rest for 10 seconds. Repeat the exercise using an upstroke. As your proficiency increases, play two notes per beat with each down stroke. When you can play two notes per beat, increase the difficulty by playing two strings per beat.
Finger Dexterity
Keep your fingers flexible by doing stretching exercises. Place a piece of paper onto a table. Tissue paper, newspaper or an 8 1/2-inch-by-11-inch piece of paper work well for this exercise. Sit upright in a chair. Place your right hand onto the edge of the object closest to you. Slowly start crumpling up the paper or towel. Keep opening and closing your hand until the paper forms into a ball. Toss the paper aside. Use another sheet. Do this exercise for two minutes. Rest for 10 seconds. Repeat the exercise with your left hand.
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