Upper Extremity Exercise: Putty Exercises for the Thumb

The following instructions from the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) show how to use clay or putty to exercise the thumb.

Important information:

These exercises will help strengthen your thumb by squeezing putty or Play-Doh.

Patient instructions:

Follow the steps in the images below. Your therapist will tell you how many times to repeat each exercise and how many times you should perform the exercises each day.

Reviewed on December 30, 2022, by Kelly Seibert, MS, OTR/L