Did you know this injury almost ended Sachin Tendulkar’s career? Tennis Elbow is a painful condition that happens due to the swelling up of bones usually due to repetitive overuse of forearm muscles. Read all about it in this article along with exercises to cope with this condition too!
What is Tennis Elbow?
“Tennis Elbow” is a form of tendinitis called lateral epicondylitis. It is caused by a strain to tendons in the forearm. The tendons become inflamed where they join the bony part on the outside of your elbow joint. This type of strain is usually caused by activities that involve repetitive gripping and twisting of the forearm.
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What are the Symptoms of Tennis Elbow?
Here are some common symptoms of tennis elbow:
- Mild discomfort while moving the arm
- Pain, severe enough to disturb your sleep
- Outside of the elbow feels tender to the touch and might be swollen
- You may also have pain further down your forearm
- Repetitive movements of the wrist will make the pain worse especially if combined with lifting something heavy.
Causes of Tennis Elbow
Here are some common causes of tennis elbow:
- Weak muscles
- Overuse – Playing or working with excessive, repetitive and forceful gripping while extending or twisting the wrist.
- Improper Equipment – Incorrect grip size, strings too tight or raquets and other tools that are too heavy or unbalanced.
- Poor technique while playing that involves too much wrist action, jerky strokes and poor ball contact.
Helpful Tennis Elbow Exercises
The following exercises can be used to warm-up before tennis, golf or other gripping activities.
- Resisted Wrist Flexion and Extension – Wrap a resistance band around the hand and secure another end below your foot. Keep your palm facing up and down for flexion and extension respectively and bend the wrist and hand upwards, as far as you can.
- Resistance Forearm Supination and Pronation – Holding a dumbbell, with the forearm supported on your thigh, slowly turn the palm up and then down. Hold the elbow still and move only the forearm.
- Wrist Flexor Stretch – Keep your elbow straight and face your palm upside. Stretch the wrist backwards while grasping the involved hand at the fingers and feel a stretch on the inside of the forearm. Hold – 15 seconds, repeat 3-5 times. Do 2-3 times / day.
- Wrist Extensor Stretch – Keep your elbow straight and face your palm down. Feel a stretch in the muscles on the outside of the forearm by pushing down the back of the involved hand. Hold – 15 seconds, repeat 3-5 times. Do 2 to 3 times/day.
How to sleep with a Tennis Elbow?
Sleeping with a tennis elbow doesn’t have to be difficult (and painful) if you follow the below-given tips:
Keep the affected arm down:
According to a study, “Sleep position should be considered as a possible aggravating factor that delays healing of an acute injury and results in chronic pain.”
Keeping the affected arm overhead can further aggravate the issue of tennis elbow.
Sleep on the back
The best solution is to sleep on your back. This doesn’t put pressure on your elbows; thereby giving them the required relaxation. Our body heals when we sleep and reducing the pressure on the affected arm can help in curing this issue at a faster rate.
Warm up the affected arm before going to sleep
It is a well-known fact that heat reduces pain. Heat accelerates the blood flow to the affected area. This in turn provides relaxation to the muscles.
You can use a hot water bag for 10-15 minutes to achieve the required effect of heat.
Bracing:
A counterforce brace, an elastic strap is worn one to two inches below the elbow, gives compression to the forearm muscles and helps lessen the force that the muscle transmits to the tendon.
Treatment For Tennis Elbow
Here are some helpful treatments for tennis elbow:
- Rest: Rest to let the injury heal. Avoid lifting or carrying anything heavy, opening doors or repetitively shaking hands with others.
- Icing: During the early painful stage, apply ice to your elbow three times a day for 20-30 minutes. Then apply for 20 minutes after active use of your arm.
- Physical Therapy: Stretch to prevent stiffness by making the muscles more flexible and by breaking down the scar tissue.
- Exercise: Exercise to strengthen your forearm muscles. Building strength will help protect the injured tendon and prevent the injury from happening again.
- Medication: Sometimes anti-inflammatory medication helps reduce the pain.
- Surgery: Surgery may not be required but is sometimes useful to correct chronic or recurring tendinitis.
To lower the risk of getting a tennis elbow again, make sure you don’t make repetitive movements with your elbow. Also, stretch properly before any physical activity.
About the Author: Ismat Khoja, Fitter Coach & a physiotherapist(MPT)
I am facing issue of tennis elbow in both my arms from last 2/3 weeks .Should I still apply ice ? I am doing exercises for the same as suggested in the article. Also I have stopped weight training but still doing workout of upper body also with light resistance bands .I am doing ok or completly stop my workout regime? please guide .