How to Treat Tennis Elbow at Home

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If you suffer from tennis/gold elbow and wish to fix this issue, then please keep reading on. Whether you are a professional golfer, an avid weightlifter, or simply someone who works with his hands daily, developing gold elbow can be disastrous. The pain can be intolerable and basic movements such as opening a door become difficult. As a sufferer of tennis elbow for 11 years, I understand this struggle well. I started experiencing symptoms around the year 2005 and over the following 11 years I tried everything to alleviate the pain. Along this journey I learned allot about what helps and what doesn’t. One day I compiled everything I learned into a daily routine and stuck with it for a few weeks. It has been two years now and I’m finally free from this crippling injury. I devised a simple yet effective method for both alleviating pain and preventing future flairs. I would like to share this technique on how to fix golf elbow with you. And I truly believe that if you follow this simple guide will cure your tennis elbow in as little as 4 weeks. Before we begin, I would like to explain the condition and its symptoms a little. Feel free to skip to the section titled “How to Fix Golf Elbow” for the exact method

What is Tennis Elbow?

Tennis elbow, otherwise know as lateral epicondylitis, is caused by inflammation of the tendons in the elbow. It is a form of tendinitis and results from overload on the tendons around your elbow from repetitive motion of the arm or from pulling heavy loads. It not only effects tennis players and golfers but also plumbers, mechanics, weight lifters, and painters. All these professions share one thing in common— a need for constant and repetitive arm movement. The muscles used in extending the arm are constantly contracted resulting in micro tears in the tendons that connect the forearm muscles to the elbow. All If left untreated, the resulting pain may make basic activities such as shaking hands or opening a door very difficult.

How to Fix Golf Elbow!

So, how do you fix tennis elbow? Let’s break the system down into three sections starting with what you do before a workout. If you do not have access to a gym, please see the next section. The following routine should be completed daily for 2-3 weeks (or for however long your body needs to start seeing serious improvement). At this point you may decrease the frequency to every other day, then every third day. Eventually you will no longer require it but as a good preventative measure, try to do it at least once a week.

Pre Workout

Perform the following warm-ups and stretches 30 minutes prior to your workout.

Warm up the wrist extensor muscles: bend your wrist up, hold for a total of 2-3 seconds, bend your wrist down, hold for a total of 2-3 seconds. Repeat this 15 times. If extending your arm out all the way causes pain, bend it at a 90 degree angle and lay it flat on a surface.

2. After warming up those muscles you want to start stretching them out. Do the same as before but curl your fingers and pull slightly with your other hand. Hold for 30 seconds and repeat three times. Note: if pulling with your other hand is uncomfortable you can use a wall.

During Your Workout

Now we need to strengthen those muscles. The two best exercises I have found to fix tennis elbow are the barbell wrist curl and the reverse barbell wrist curl. If you are doing any “pull” movements (back exercises, biceps exercises, deadlifts, etc.) it is best to start to start your workout with one of two exercises I mentioned. Doing so is one of the best ways to prevent that flaring pain. Sit down on a bench with your feet flat. Position your arms on the barbell so that you can comfortably lay your arms on your legs. Curl the weight up slowly with your wrist, hold for two seconds, then slowly bring the weight down. Use a weight that you can comfortably complete 30 reps with. Repeat this 4 times, each time gradually adding more weight. I like to start with an empty bar and add 5 pounds (two 2.5lb plates) after each set.

Post Workout (Water Bottle Method)

Now for the most important step — soft tissue mobilization. Soft tissue mobilization is a manual physical therapy technique that aims to break adhesion and scar tissues. This is usually done with your hands but I discovered I great trick that had been the most help to me so far. Take a plastic water bottle (or fill a dixie cup with water ) and place it in the freezer. After the water freezes peel off the plastic so you are left with a nice block of ice. Wrap a small cloth around one end and use the other to massage the area. Do this twice for 2-3 minutes each. After that apply some sort of topical analgesic heat rub to the area. Try not to left or pull anything heavy for the remainder of the day. Make sure to eat well and get a goods night sleep.

How to Prevent Future flair-ups!

The two most important things you must do to prevent future flairs ups is to use the water bottle method consistently and to utilize weightlifting straps while working out! Aside from the water bottle method, the most important aspect to my recovery was using lifting straps during back workouts. Lifting straps are usually used by powerlifters to overcome a weak grip. They will help you by transferring tension from your tendons to your wrist. Use them for any workout that involves a pulling motion. If you would like to purchase a pair, Check out the link below the Harbinger Padded Cotton Lifting Straps.

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Adam

Adam is the founder and main contributor for Olympic Muscle. He is a full time pre-medical student majoring in computer science and chemistry.