Home Row

I managed a new high score in TypeRacer today: 112WPM.

With this article, I wanted to share my journey here, and how I would recommend someone to start.

My Typing Story

I have an interesting history with typing.

I started "typing" at age of five years old to learn the controls of Quake. While the keyboard was a different language with different characters, the muscle memory was the same keyboard-to-keyboard. Upon moving to the states, I changed to an English QWERTY keyboard, and continued playing Doom.

In middle school, before beginning typing class, I clocked in at 35-40 WPM. As I progressed throughout the class, I got familiar with more of the "weird" keys (symbols, numbers, q/z/v) and what a proper "home-row" hand positioning looked like. Midway through the class, I made a discovery about our typing software: you were allowed to make two mistakes, with one word misspell counting as one mistake, and at the end the software took the number of characters you had finished and divided it by 5 (the average word length). So I typed a few words, then held down a random key until the timer expired. And scored 230 WPM.

I thought I was going to get credit for finding a bug our school's software; while my teacher did call my parents that night, it was accuse me of hacking the typing software and changing my score. After explaining to her what I did, her first remedy suggested was a generous failing grade and suspension, but after apologizing to her and the staff, I was only forbidden from being crowned best typist at the school assembly. I may have not gotten an award, but I kept typing skills, reaching 55-65 WPM consistently.

In high school, it was more of the same classes, so I didn't see my typing speed increase drastically—I hovered in the 60-70 WPM range. Even in college, I plateaued around this range.

That is, until I got a mechanical keyboard. I didn't see the results immediately, but with consistent use I bumped my numbers to 65-80 WPM. And this is where I hovered for 5 years; this is where I felt like I had maxed out given the same environment.

I couldn't get any better, because my hand movement prohibited it. While my core fingers mostly stayed in home-row, to achieve my top speed I had developed bad habits to maintain it. Habits such as using right (dominant) index finger to go 3 keys over to the left or using my ring finger in-place of my little finger. While I always returned to home-row, I could feel the excess movement taking its toll, both on my efficiency and general hand strain. During the pandemic, I was working on my computer a lot, and my hands just could not keep up.

So for the first time since I started typing I had to try. It's hard to rewire muscle memory, especially at 30. I tried perfecting every keystroke, getting a massive dopamine hit as I consistently landed the ones I use most often. However, that last 20% feels much harder than the first 20%.

Today, I still try to perfect my craft. I still struggle with my little finger movement. I still catch myself trying to regress some of my old ways when I am trying to compensate and type fast. But today I also typed 112 WPM, and that's cause to celebrate. Take that, typing teacher.

You Too Can Improve

While I can't teach touch typing in a single blog post, I can give a pretty decent summary of it. The following are things I recommend doing in order to become a better typist.

Keyboard

I'll just state it outright: there's no conclusive evidence that ergonomic keyboards actually prevent RSI. Keyboards measurably improve your posture, just not necessarily your health outcomes:

• Alice layouts (Keychron V10, Epomaker Alice) reduce ulnar deviation with 10-degree inward tilt, 2-4 week learning curve
• Fully split keyboards (ErgoDox EZ, ZSA Moonlander) offer maximum adjustability including 0-60 degree tenting, 2-6 weeks to adapt
• Column-staggered designs (Corne, Kyria, Dactyl Manuform) optimize for finger lengths, brutal 1-3 month adaptation
• Kinesis Advantage2 reduces muscle activity in key flexor/extensor muscles, 2 weeks to full mastery
• Traditional ergonomic boards (Microsoft Sculpt, Logitech ERGO K860) offer gentle splits with fixed angles, ~1 month learning curve
• Alternative layouts (Dvorak, Colemak) claim reduced finger travel but have zero clinical trials and 1-3 months of productivity loss

The biomechanical improvements are real and measurable; the clinical benefits remain frustratingly theoretical.

But here's the thing: you don't need empirical evidence on the health benefits if you enjoy typing that much more. Think of it as fun with benefits (FwB, for short...). If you enjoy sitting down at your desk and typing, and it's something you do several hours a day, a keyboard you enjoy could be the push you need to improve other parts of your typing too.

Home Row

Touch typing technique centers on the home row position—ASDF for the left hand and JKL; for the right hand. The F and J keys contain tactile bumps that allow positioning without visual confirmation. This central position minimizes finger travel distance, with proper technique requiring only 0.76-1.5 key distances per character compared to 3.5+ for hunt-and-peck typing.

Each finger has specific responsibilities:

The index fingers cover the most keys (two columns each), while pinkies cover their column plus all outer keys. After striking any key, fingers must return to home row position—this maintains spatial orientation and prevents positional drift that increases error rates.

Ergonomics

Wrists should remain in neutral position: straight in alignment with forearms, neither bent upward (extension), downward (flexion), nor sideways. During active typing, wrists should float 1-2 inches above the keyboard surface, not resting on the desk or wrist rest. Resting creates contact stress and forces non-neutral positions. Wrist rests serve only for pauses between typing bursts.

Fingers should curve gently, similar to holding a tennis ball. This natural curve allows fingertips to strike keys perpendicularly with optimal mechanical advantage. Palms stay raised above the keyboard while hands maintain this curved posture. The biomechanics of each keystroke involve three distinct muscle activation bursts: extensor muscles lift the finger, flexor muscles drive it downward against keyswitch resistance, and extensors again remove the fingertip. Collision with the end of key travel stops downward motion, not muscle action—meaning excessive force provides no benefit and increases cumulative joint stress.

Arms should hang naturally at the sides with elbows forming 90-110 degree angles. This open angle promotes blood circulation and prevents nerve compression at the elbow. Shoulders remain relaxed and slightly externally rotated, not hunched or rolled forward.

Strength Training

Strength training shows what ergonomic keyboards can't: actual evidence. Research suggests it can significantly reduce injury risk, with clear biological reasons why—it strengthens tendons, improves tissue resilience, and builds endurance in the muscles you use for typing. The formula is simple: use weights or resistance bands (not just bodyweight), train 2-3 times weekly with rest days between, and focus on your forearms, grip, and upper back. Just be patient—tendons adapt slower than muscles, so it takes months to see results.

Conclusion

There's a learning curve to typing. In the beginning you'll see gains with minimal effort, just by knowing roughly where the keys are. As you progress and focus more on your speed, you might sacrifice hand placement (accuracy) for quickly hitting the correct key (speed). As you plateau, it will take more and more focus to correct the muscle memory. And along the way, your typing teacher may try to expel you.

All that matters is fixing your fingers, one key at a time.