Tennis Elbow

tennis elbow!

Luckily I have been playing most of my life and never experienced it but it recently snuck up on me after a weight lifting session. I think either my form was incorrect or possibly the weights I used were too heavy doing bicep curls.

I have been polling all my tennis friends and my physical therapy friends and even tried an acupuncture session to try and get rid of this nagging problem!

The general consensus is that icing, stretching and rest are the only ways to fully cure it. Some friends have recommended Aleve (naproxen) and some like Ibuprofen. I even had a friend who had luck getting a cortisone shot.

Once this heals for me I am going to focus on what to do so that it doesn't happen again!

Prevention should definitely be the main focus for the future once I recover.

Tips I have received are checking my string tension, position of my vibration dampener, and making sure that I am playing with a new-ish grip so that I am not gripping my racket too tightly or using a grip that is worn out.

Stretching my wrist and arm before and after playing are highly recommended and icing after is also highly recommended. 

THe muscles prefer heat and of course it feels better but icing and moving the ice in a circular motion is a great way to get quicker recovery.

Some friends like to play wearing a sleeve or a tennis elbow style band for prevention or for comfort. I haven't found one that I love so please share one if you have one and hopefully we can prevent this terrible injury!