Why is it so much easier to tap/drum your fingers on a table from your pinky to your index finger compared to index finger to pinky?

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Why is it so much easier to tap/drum your fingers on a table from your pinky to your index finger compared to index finger to pinky?

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14 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

You’ve built up muscles over your life that make that motion easier. Try consistently doing it from the opposite direction, every day 15-20 times, for about 2 weeks. It’ll suddenly be normal.

Anonymous 0 Comments

When you go from the index finger outwards, you have to suspend your pinky and ring finger up at the same time which is more difficult (those two tendons aren’t as good at working independently). You can train them, as you would if you were learning piano.

Anonymous 0 Comments

I think its just muscle memory. So many things we close our fist around and simulate the same shape. Holding a pencil or holding a computer mouse. Pinky gets tucked in under the other fingers and the index finger is the open/pointed finger

Anonymous 0 Comments

Weird, its the exact opposite for me. Index to pinky is super easy, pinky to index is tough.

Anonymous 0 Comments

You may have done this as a kid:

Put your hand down flat.

Bend in your middle finger until it touches your palm.

now tap each remain finger one at a time.

You CAN do all of them with some effort but the pinky unless you have practiced and or trained will barely move.

Now if you do ring and pinky at the same time it’s fine-ish.

That’s because the tendons in the back of your hand that pull them up so very rarely work independently they barely can.

When you are doing the tapping index to pinky ring goes first and pulls pinky up.

The other way and it’s working against those tendons.

Anonymous 0 Comments

It’s not, it’s just what you may have practiced more. I thought this same thing when I was a child and so just practiced the other way and now they’re just as easy

Anonymous 0 Comments

Ligament independence.

Try making a fist and place it palm-down on a table. Now stick out your index finger. You should be able to move it up and down easily. Now try the middle. It’s a little less free. Now try your 3rd (ring) finger. Probably impossible. The pinky is on the end of your fist so it will have some ability to move probably.

Now hold your hand straight up with your fingers fully extended and spread your fingers loosely so they are straight out but relaxed. Now just do some bends of your first two knuckles on your index finger. Now just do the middle finger. You might see some movement in your ring finger when you do that. Now bend just the ring finger. You should encounter some difficulty while your middle finger is extended straight and your pinky finger should try to bend a little. You may not be able to bend the pinky by itself without moving the ring finger.

It turns out our fingers are not naturally all as independent as they seem. So if you drum from the index finger to the pinky, you start by stabilizing the more independent fingers down on the table and are stuck holding the less independent ones up, which might make the muscles more jerky and make the movement less smooth. But if you start by setting the pinky down and moving towards the index finger, you’ll be following a more natural pattern of muscle and ligament interaction.

At least, apparently, for some people. Including me.

Anonymous 0 Comments

Whatever your habit is.

I practice both ways and have for years to keep my fingers limber for playing instruments.

Anonymous 0 Comments

I think it’s to do with the angle of the dangle the twist of wrist to the table and just let those twisted little fingers drop like the beat.

It is most likely due to your pinky finger being shorter and lower down.
I myself can finger tap either way no problem, each hand though I have to think about it to do so with my right hand.

Anonymous 0 Comments

My guess is that its more natural. But its just a matter of practice. Gtr players go from index to pinky and they can go pretty fast. Piano players go both sides.