Tennis and/or golfer elbow

[sunsean]

Not sure which it is, but I have a nagging pain on the inside of my elbow joint...doesn't usually flare up bad unless I'm doing back/bicep exercises with a hammer grip...hammer curls hurt like chit, but standard curls aren't as bad...ditto wide grip lat pulldowns are painful, but close grip with palms facing in are manageable...also felt it today while trying to do lateral dumbbell raises for shoulder...

I believe it's a tendonitis issue...think I went too hard on dumbbell flies a few weeks ago and overloaded that tendon/bicep area while my arms were straight to the side, that's when the pain started.

Is the only solution rest? Chitty timing because I'm right in the middle of a bulk that was supposed to last until New Years...

Should I switch to a cut since maintenance training is less grueling than bulking? Same weight, but typically fewer sets/reps...I refuse to just stop lifting for who knows how many weeks because I'm not looking to deflate.

[Heisman2]

Have you tried resting it to this point? You may only need like 1 week of rest for it to heal fully if it's a pretty recent problem. You can still probably work around it. Try doing back/bicep exercises with your wrists extended and not flexed and that should probably feel better. You can do rows without issue most likely for back as well as straight armed pulldowns if pullups are giving you issues. For biceps definitely try doing curls with the wrists extended throughout the movement.

[backinthegymbro]

I've had some elbow issues lately. Found out it was from going heavy on the tricep cable push downs.
So now i do different tricep exercises for a bit.
Wrist also hurt like crazy but it came from supination during curls. So now i replaced those with regular curls / ez bar curls / hammer ones.

If you can still do other exercises fine, then there's no need to take a break from lifting. Just avoid certain problem exercises that agitate it.

[bigcat3655]

Could also be the ulnar nerve. I tore mine loose last year and had to have surgery to reattach it. You'd know if it was loose because it will pop over the end of the bone, but it feels a lot like tendonitis

[DougHolland]

Sounds like medial epicondylitis (golfers elbow). I have had this problem off and on for over 30 years. I made a video on how I stretch the flexor tendons and carpal tendons that brings relief. I also avoid exercises that cause it to flare up for 6 to 8 weeks. In my case it was heavy bench press. I had to use dumbbells at a lighter weight and keep my elbows close to the trunk. Here is my video for home stretch relief of golfers elbow https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fi_CDjF_2b0&t=68s

[ncsuLuke]

The way to fix golfers/tennis elbow is by doing eccentric exercises, the Theraband Flexbar is great for this (youtube it), and load management. Pure rest does not help tendon issues, eccentrics and exercising up to but not at the point of pain does more good than just resting.

[Heisman2]

The way to fix golfers/tennis elbow is by doing eccentric exercises, the Theraband Flexbar is great for this (youtube it), and load management. Pure rest does not help tendon issues, eccentrics and exercising up to but not at the point of pain does more good than just resting.

Agreed that pure rest is not helpful for longstanding issues but he said this just happened a few weeks ago. If he hasn't tried resting it for a week that could still be helpful at this point if he just inflamed it and has kept it chronically inflamed since.

[ncsuLuke]

Agreed that pure rest is not helpful for longstanding issues but he said this just happened a few weeks ago. If he hasn't tried resting it for a week that could still be helpful at this point if he just inflamed it and has kept it chronically inflamed since.

Fair point, I agree with that for sure.

[sunsean]

Thanks for the responses all, repped til I was out (on recharge).

I tried doing some fascial massages as recommended in another similar thread...

I hear lots of different things, rest, heat, cold lol...but taking 1 week off probably isn't a bad idea to see if it eases up on its own. Just hard to do that when you're in the middle of a bulk and feeling the momentum

[risingstarl96a1]

Yea, I got elbow pain when I first started doing pull ups. I stretched my elbow in and out and hold. Same thing started happening with my wrist. Just look after it and don’t do anything crazy until elbow tissues get stronger and repaired. After that it should be the end of the pain.

[sunsean]

I've had some elbow issues lately. Found out it was from going heavy on the tricep cable push downs.
So now i do different tricep exercises for a bit.
Wrist also hurt like crazy but it came from supination during curls. So now i replaced those with regular curls / ez bar curls / hammer ones.

If you can still do other exercises fine, then there's no need to take a break from lifting. Just avoid certain problem exercises that agitate it.

I think we may have different issues from the description...supinated curls are actually the only kind that don't hurt, hammer curls kill me. Ditto no problem with tricep pushdown (just did that yesterday). But I wish you a speedy recovery for your issues as well!

And yes I agree it's best to train around the pain if possible.

[air2fakie]

And yes I agree it's best to train around the pain if possible.

Rest is best, but in real life we all work around various nagging injuries rather than taking a break. From what you describe you should be able to work around it - getting an elbow sleeve may help a little w/ the pain too.

Standard curls: you can hit long/short heads well w/ various supinated grip widths and exercises; you can live w/out the hammer curls for a while.

Wide grip lat pulldowns: if palms facing in close grip feel ok, try a wide grip neutral bar instead of the reg overhand grip one. You could also try underhand grip for a while for variation.

Lateral dumbbell raises: go lighter & do more reps for a while, lean outwards using 1 arm to maximize tension, pause at top. It's not an exercise you need to go heavy with. Front and rear delt raises will also hit your side delts a bit if you want to skip them altogether. Upright rows will hit the side delts well, altho it creates other problems for some ppl.

[sunsean]

Rest is best, but in real life we all work around various nagging injuries rather than taking a break. From what you describe you should be able to work around it - getting an elbow sleeve may help a little w/ the pain too.

Standard curls: you can hit long/short heads well w/ various supinated grip widths and exercises; you can live w/out the hammer curls for a while.

Wide grip lat pulldowns: if palms facing in close grip feel ok, try a wide grip neutral bar instead of the reg overhand grip one. You could also try underhand grip for a while for variation.

Lateral dumbbell raises: go lighter & do more reps for a while, lean outwards using 1 arm to maximize tension, pause at top. It's not an exercise you need to go heavy with. Front and rear delt raises will also hit your side delts a bit if you want to skip them altogether. Upright rows will hit the side delts well, altho it creates other problems for some ppl.

Solid post, thanks dude will rep on recharge.

I actually did try going much lighter on the lateral raises, still felt the pain...I think it was the way the weight was impacting the area with the arms extended, lots of stress on the arm...solution was to use one of the lateral raise machines where you angle your arms and push up/out with the pads, that alleviated the pain thank goodness.