Words from the Founder

Hello, I'm Greg Irwin. Over the past 40 years since the conception of Finger Fitness, I am constantly asked just what is Finger Fitness and why should I do it?

Perhaps Walt Whitman put it best. "The hand is the most beautifully complex and powerful machine not invented by man." It made sense to me that the better condition a machine or tool (i.e. the hand) is in, the better and longer it will perform its task. As a musician, this need for improving the overall condition of the hand was what motivated me to begin exercising my fingers and eventually developed into the Finger Fitness program.

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Initially, I started doing simple splitting and bending exercises with my fingers and found that it did help me limber up my fingers and made it easier to play an instrument. As time went on, I expanded on this idea. I added more exercises using the natural movements of our hand such as tapping and folding. To really challenge myself, I would do the exercises by isolating individual fingers, followed by combining different exercises and then having each hand do the opposite of the other.

After talking and demonstrating the exercises to hand surgeons, physical and occupational therapists, as well as sports medicine professionals, I found that, although there were rehabilitation programs for hands, there were none for advancing the ordinary hand to a higher level of strength and coordination. With the help of my wife, Lorraine, and Certified Hand Therapist Meg Robinson I organized the exercises and published the book and video "Finger Fitness: The Art of Finger Control" to introduce others to this unique approach to building finger coordination, dexterity, and strength.

Our company, Hand Health Unlimited, is an outgrowth of the Finger Fitness program. After publishing the book and first video introducing Finger Fitness in 1988, my wife and I started attending physical and occupational therapist conventions. We attended these conventions to not only create interest and obtain medical feedback on the Finger Fitness program, but more importantly, to find additional products that complement the Finger Fitness program.

Over the last 22 years, Hand Health is the website offering a variety of products available for anyone looking to improve manual ability, help prevent hand stress and fatigue, and rehabilitate many hand injuries. Additional DVDs on Finger Fitness and The Chinese Therapy Balls have also been added. Visitors to our site include athletes, doctors, computer users, gamers, magicians, musicians, surgeons, teachers, and therapists -- basically anyone who is involved in hand-intensive activities. Over the last decade the number and types of visitors to our site has increased dramatically due to the ever increasing cases of Repetitive Motion Syndrome, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, Tendonitis, and Cumulative Trauma injuries.

We thank you for visiting our website and are dedicated to providing the best customer service. We welcome your questions, comments, and testimonials so we can continue to improve.