walking

I walk about 4 miles five days a week. About half way through my workout I notice that my fingers and hands swell up big time. Anyone else have this problem or have a guess as to what may cause it. I swing my arms when walking and walk briskly. Rarely notice any major swelling any other time. Confused.

Do they stay swollen for the rest of your walk and after? I don't know what is causing it, I have to say. I am interested in hearing thoughts on the matter. I usually feel a tingling feeling in my hands and fingers, but hadn't stopped to look at them. Maybe they are swelling up, too. I will have to look!

Take this with the proverbial grain o' salt, but here is my take on why this happens.

Gravity.  Seriously.  You don't have much noticible swelling in feet and legs because with every step you are bouncing the pooled blood/fluid back up the legs. 

Anecdotally - I too find that my hands swell when I've had too much diet soda (salt) so I up my water intake (ideally, I should also limit my sodium intake as well). 

Just my two cents. . . hope this helps!

That used to happen to me all the time when I was younger. I didn't know why, but it was a pain in the rear end. I also used to drink soda like water. Since then I have totally given up soda.

Have you tried changing your arm position from time to time?  Not sure if that'll help or not, but it's the first thing that comes to mind.

its water retention... it will not happen if you are well hydrated. drink water after your walk, and notice how quickly they get back to normal.

check this site for some answers....

http://walking.about.com/cs/med/a/swollenhand s.htm

It happens to me all of the time...I say GRAVITY TOO! It goes away...try moving them around when you walk!! I really am not worried abou tit at all BUT THOUGHT ABOUT IT BEFORE..

SUE:)

Thanks for all the input and info! I tend to agree with gravity because as soon as I am done walking, by the time I've driven home, it is gone. I was just going crazy trying to figure out why this occurs. Maybe salt too, though I do not drink soda at all, I am big on salty foods and need to cut that down. Thanks again.

sesoz, that is a very helpful article and seems to cover all the bases. Thank you for looking it up and posting it.

Are you letting them hand down. What i mean by that is your hands hand down on each side of your hip. I move mines a lot and i walk with 1 pound hand weights on. I had that problem too.. But hey.. That 1 pound weight glove is a charm. No more numb or swelling in my fingers.. Oh and don't walk with your rings on. I had to use baby oil to get the rings off when i started walking.

Yes it happens to me too.  I really try to swing my arms to keep it from happening.  I also read somewhere to not clench your fists when walking cause it will cause swelling.  But my ankles swell too.

Part of the reason may be because when you work out, you generate more
body heat.  In order to rid yourself of this, blood moves to your
extremities so that it can release some of the heat (opposite of this
is when you're cold, your hands and feet get white and get colder than
the rest of you--all the blood is staying in your torso to stay
warm).  It's probably not as much of a problem in your legs
because the contraction of your muscles help to push it back up to your
heart.  I don't think it's really anything to be concerned with
unless the swelling doesn't go away, but if it bothers you, the gloves
idea doesn't sound too bad, or try walking with your elbows bent
(power-walk style) instead of with your hands swinging down by your
sides.

When I have something in my hands like a small weight, mine do not swell at all. The only time they swell is if I don't have something in my hand. Hope this helps.