Gamer warm-up
Esports Healthcare
A comprehensive gamer warm-up
This comprehensive program includes movements for all the muscles and joints involved in gaming from your fingertips to your elbows. This program also prepares your eyes for gaming by including a dynamic warm-up for all your eye movements.
Did You Know?
The importance of warming up
Performing a warm-up is important prior to any physical activity, and gaming is no different! A good warm-up will make you feel loose and ready to play. A great warm-up will elevate your game play by mirroring the movements of your performance.
The Esports Healthcare: Gamer Warm-up is a comprehensive, dynamic movement routine that targets all the muscles and joints involved in gaming—for PC, console, and mobile gamers alike—that will help take your skills to the next level.
Gamer Warm-up: Individual Exercises
Fingers, hands, wrists, and forearms
Opposition finger-tap
With flexed fingers and full hand extension
Perform with both hands:
- Begin with your hand open and fingers fully extended
- Tap the tip of your index finger to the tip of your thumb, forming a circle with these fingers. Then, return to the starting position with your hand open and fingers fully extended.
- Repeat step 2 with your middle finger, ring finger, and pinky finger one at a time.
- Repeat steps 2 and 3 for a total of two (2) sets.
Opposition finger-tap
With straight fingers and full hand extension
Perform with both hands:
- Begin with your hand open and fingers fully extended
- Tap the pad of your index finger to the pad of your thumb, keeping both fingers straight. Then, return to the starting position with your hand open and fingers fully extended.
- Repeat step 2 with your middle finger, ring finger, and pinky finger one at a time.
- Repeat steps 2 and 3 for a total of two (2) sets.
Finger abduction
Perform with both hands:
- Begin with your hand open, fingers extended, and pressed together, side-by-side.
- Keeping your hand open and fingers extended, slowly abduct (separate) your fingers as wide as you can.
- Keeping your hand open and fingers extended, slowly adduct your fingers back to the starting position.
- Repeat steps 2 and 3 for a total of five (5) repetitions.
Palms together, finger separation
- Begin with your palms and fingers pressed together.
- Separate your thumbs as far apart as you can without separating your palms or your other fingers. Then, bring your thumbs back together.
- Repeat step 2 with your index finger, middle finger, ring finger, and pinky finger one at a time.
- Repeat steps 2 and 3 for a total of two (2) sets.
Fingers together, single finger circles
- Begin with your palms facing each other and fingertips together. Keep your fingers rounded as if you were holding a ball.
- Separate your thumbs without separating the other four fingers. Circle your thumb tips around each other forward for three seconds and backwards for three seconds. Try to keep your fingers rounded as if you were holding a ball.
- Repeat step 2 with your index finger, middle finger, ring finger, and pinky finger one at a time.
- Repeat steps 2 and 3 for any fingers that feel less coordinated.
Carpal squeeze with wide palm extension
Perform with both hands:
- Begin with your hand open and fingers fully extended
- Keeping your fingers extended, squeeze the base of your hand together.
- Then, open your hand back to the starting position.
- Repeat step 2 for a total of five (5) repetitions.
Forearm pronation and supination
Perform with both hands:
- Begin with your elbow bent 90 degrees and your palm facing upward.
- Turn your hand downward as far as you can.
- Then, turn your hand back upward as far as you can.
- Repeat step 2 for a total of five (5) repetitions.
Wrist flexion and extension
Perform with both hands:
- Begin with your palm facing upward, your hand open, and your fingers extended
- Keeping your hand open and fingers extended through the entire movement, bend your wrist upward, toward the palm side of your forearm as far as you can.
- Then, bend your wrist downward, toward the knuckle side of your forearm as far as you can.
- Repeat step 2 for a total of five (5) repetitions.
Radial and ulnar deviation
Perform with both hands:
- Begin with your palm facing upward, your hand open, and your fingers extended
- Keeping your hand open and fingers extended through the entire movement, bend your wrist to the pinky side of your forearm as far as you can.
- Then, bend your wrist to the thumb side of your forearm as far as you can.
- Repeat step 2 for a total of five (5) repetitions.
Wrist circumduction
Perform with both hands:
- Begin with your palm facing upward, your hand open, and your fingers extended.
- Keeping your hand open and fingers extended through the entire movement, roll your wrists in a clockwise direction three (3) times.
- Repeat step 2 in a counter-clockwise direction three (3) times.
Gamer Warm-up: Individual Exercises
Muscles of the eyes
Near-to-far focus
- Hold an object (for example, a pencil or your thumb) in front of your nose, approximately 12 inches away from your face.
- Hold the object in front of a background target at least 10 feet away (for example, the wall of your room or any object outside your window).
- First, focus your eyes on the object (the pencil eraser or your thumb nail). Then, focus your eyes on the background target.
- Repeat step 3 for a total of ten (10) repetitions.
Smooth pursuit
- Hold an object (for example, a pencil or your thumb) in front of your nose, approximately 12 inches away from your face.
- Without moving your head, slowly move the object back and forth, up and down, or diagonally.
- Move the object in H-pattern and/or an X-pattern, moving it as far as your eyes can gaze without the need to move your head. Try to reach all four corners of your gaze.
Target gaze
- Choose any focal point directly in front of your face; for example, a point on your computer screen.
- Without moving your head, look directly upward as far as you can, as if you were looking at 12 on a clock. Then, return your gaze to the starting point in front of you. Repeat this gaze pattern for each of the remaining 11 numbered positions on a clock in a clockwise pattern.
- Repeat step two in a counter-clockwise pattern, beginning again with 12 o’clock.
Reduce Your Risk
Our gamer warm-up may aid in prevention
Eye strain
Eye strain is a condition that occurs after long hours of strenuous activity for the muscles in your eyes. For gamers, this will occur after prolonged screen time—short, rapid movements of the eyes and focus only on the monitor.
Mouse elbow
Mouse elbow is an overuse strain that occurs in the extensor tendons of the wrist and fingers that attach to the outside (thumb side) of the elbow. The muscles involved are the extensor muscles that open the hand and bend back the wrist.
Gamer’s thumb
Gamer’s thumb is the common term for the diagnosis of tenosynovitis from repetitive use of the thumb. Specifically, gamer’s thumb affects the tendon sheaths of two thumb muscles. These muscles pull the thumb away from the hand and palm
Medial epicondylosis
Medial epicondylosis is a tendon injury more commonly known as “golfer’s elbow.” However, with increased prevalence in gamers, this injury may end up earning a new name related to gaming similar to gamer’s thumb, mouse elbow, and mouse shoulder.
Tension-type headache
Spending many hours in front of the screen can lead to headaches. Most commonly, gamers will suffer from tension-type headaches. These headaches result from poor posture, eye strain, stress, lack of sleep, fatigue, or poor diet.
Carpal tunnel syndrome
Carpal tunnel syndrome is perhaps the most common diagnosis given for any wrist or hand pain. However, this is not the most common disorder that you’ll face as a gamer. You’re more likely to suffer from overuse injuries including gamer’s thumb and mouse elbow.
Our physical health providers
Corey J. Csakai, DC- Jordon Centofanti, DC
- Daniel Carlin, DC
- Jessica A. Hardy, ND
Telehealth
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If you’re experiencing an injury, aches, or pains, our physical health care team can help figure out what’s wrong and give you advice on how to correct your problem(s).
Please note, we will do our best to accommodate you and set up an appointment; however, we may not be able to take every appointment for which there is a request.
Disclaimer
This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace the advice of your doctor. Esports Healthcare disclaims any liability for the decisions you make based on this information.
The information contained on this website does not establish, nor does it imply, doctor-patient relationship. Esports Healthcare does not offer this information for diagnostic purposes. A diagnosis must not be assumed based on the information provided.