7 Exercises For Relief From Tennis Elbow Pain

Tennis elbow or lateral epicondylitis is a medical condition in which the tendons present in your elbow become weak and lead to constant pain and discomfort.

It is caused due to the repetition of a particular motion. The condition is named after tennis but it causes only about 5% of total cases.

You experience pain on the outside of your elbow from the tennis elbow. It begins as slight inconvenience but can become serious chronic pain. You have to physically rehabilitate for relaxation, if you suffer from lateral epicondylitis.

These workouts help to relieve muscle and elbow strength. They require a minimum of 2 weeks to show action and can require more time in some cases.

The following exercises help relieve Elbow pain caused by tennis elbow:

Clenching Your Fist

Fist clenching improves grip and increases muscle strength. Image Credits: wallpaperflare

The tennis elbow also contributes to arm loss of grip. This exercise will help you improve your forearm muscles and improve your grip.

To perform this exercise, do the following:

1. Rest your arm with your palm facing upward on a flat surface

2. Slowly roll your hand into a clenched fist

3. Hold your hand in this fist position.

You should use a ball to do it to get improved outcomes after a week of this workout. It should be performed once a day.

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Extending Your Wrist

This can be done with or without weights. Image Credits: Needpix

Your wrist contains a set of muscles which are responsible for its extension These muscles are connected to the elbow and are often overused.

This exercise will help in strengthening these muscles. The steps for this exercise are:

1. Use a low weight dumbbell. Preferably 1 kg or less. In case you feel a dumbbell might be too heavy, you can do this without one as well.

2. Sit on a chair and rest your troubled elbow on your knee with your palm facing down

3. Hold the dumbbell in your hand and curl the dumbbell upward so that the wrist is extended.

4. Follow the same procedure for curling the dumbbell downward.

5. If you are doing this without a weight, then use your other hand to put some pressure on your wrist.

6. Be careful not to put excess pressure.

7. Ensure that the elbow does not move and only the wrist is extended.

8. You can begin with 10 repetitions simultaneously and work up to 20.

Flexing the Wrist

This exercise is similar to wrist extension. In this exercise, another group of muscles called the wrist flexors are strengthened to reduce pain and discomfort.

Small dumbbells are very effective for this exercise. Image Credits: Flickr

To do this exercise, you would need a lightweight dumbbell of up to 1 kg. You should perform the same activity without a dumbbell if you don’t feel comfortable.

1. Sit on a chair with your elbow on your knee.

2. Your palm should be facing upward

3. Hold the dumbbell and curl your wrist upward while keeping your arm rested.

4. If you are not using the dumbbell just curl your wrist upward.

5. Repeat 10-20 times once a day.

Turning Your Wrist

This is an exercise which has a relaxing effect on the muscles and provides comfort. It also strengthens the wrist muscles to ensure healing.

Follow these measures to implement this exercise:

1. Stand up and bend the elbow at an angle of 90 degrees.

2. Your arm should be making an L with your palm facing upwards

3. Rotate your wrist in such a way that your palm is facing downward

4. Hold this position for 10-20 seconds.

5. Start with 10 repetitions.

Bending Your Elbow

Elbow bend is an exercise which helps in strengthening the elbow. Be very careful while doing this exercise and do not make sudden movements. Do smooth movements without jerking your arm.

The steps for this exercise are as follows:

1. Stand straight and hold your arms parallel to your body.

2. Slowly lift your arm by bending the elbow upward.

3. Bend the elbow until your hand touches your shoulder.

4. Hold this position for 20 seconds and repeat.

Towel Twisting

This is a suitable workout for bracelet flexors and extensors. The grip on your hand also works positively. You need to do this with both your hands even if you have tennis elbow in only one arm.

To do this exercise follow these steps:

1. Roll a small towel and hold it between both your hands.

2. Twist the towel as if you are removing water from a wet cloth.

3. Ensure that both your hands are twisting in the opposite direction.

4. Hold for 5 seconds and repeat.

5. Ensure that both hands twist in both directions.

Finger Stretching

An illustration of the right way to perform finger extensions. Image Credits: Wikimedia commons

This exercise is helpful for the ligaments present in your arm. This exercise can be done in the following way:

1. Take a rubber band and place it around your hand covering your thumb and finger.

2. Gently push your fingers apart stretching the rubber band

3. Repeat this exercise 10 times.

4. Be careful to follow smooth motions

Takeaway

Tennis elbow often requires long term treatment. The situation can last for years in some situations. These activities contribute to strength building.

In case you still suffer from pain despite these exercises you should visit a doctor. Some other forms of treatment such as physiotherapy are also available.

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