Many people experience pressure pain in the elbow area. Although people often talk about tennis elbow or golfer's elbow, many of those affected have never practiced these sports. These classic pain conditions arise because the muscles responsible for the activities of the wrist are permanently overloaded.
This can become noticeable as pressure pain points in the elbow joint . Painful phases often alternate with pain-free periods. Those affected can suffer from these stabbing pain attacks for a long time. Is it advisable to protect the entire area comprehensively? Or can targeted strength training at home or in the gym help to permanently reduce pain ?
We have summarized the most important aspects of this topic for you in this article.
The elbow hurts - why?
We often recognize those affected by the fact that they are wearing elbow bandages . A clear indication that there is joint pain in the elbow area. The joint in the actual sense is usually not responsible for pain in the elbow segment. Certainly, elbow pain can be due to wear and tear in this area of the body.
Nerve pain is also conceivable if nerve structures in this area are irritated by stress. But that's not typical. Classic tennis elbow is an irritation of certain tendons that attach above the extensor muscle in the elbow joint . If these tendons are permanently overloaded while working on computers and mice, they tear.
The fine cracks can cause inflammation. This creates the pain that is so characteristic of golf or tennis elbow. In fact, tennis or golf can be responsible. More often, occupational and everyday stress is a decisive factor when epicondylitis occurs, as this tendon irritation is also known medically.
Chronic tension in the shoulder and neck muscles also plays a key role in the background. This tension leads to incorrect posture and more often to areas of the muscles being overloaded that are not designed to withstand high loads.
The irritation process is intensified by incorrect technique when playing tennis, golf or constantly cramped postures while working at a desk.
Demarcation of the different pain areas
Epicondylitis is characterized by painful areas on the outside of the elbow that are sensitive to pressure. The doctor can feel these painful pressure areas. They can also be triggered if the person affected presses their wrist against resistance, for example on a table top.
Specialist doctors often make a distinction between tennis elbow and golf elbow. Golf is more likely to put pressure on the elbow bone prominence. This is why areas near the inner bone hurt. In all forms of epicondylitis, the pain can radiate into the wrist.
They are different from other wrist pains. The wrist area has its own symptoms, which are due to tendonitis or jammed nerves in carpal tunnel syndrome. Under certain circumstances , elbow problems and wrist irritations can merge.
This can be particularly the case if the entire arm is overloaded. In addition, severe epicondylitis also affects the wrist. Those affected may no longer have sufficient strength in the affected hand. This can result in difficulty shaking hands or unscrewing a bottle and these activities become painful.
Causes of epicondylitis
In addition to overloading the elbow joint, there are other possible causes for the pain. It is therefore not always immediately clear what the painful pressure points on the elbow are caused by. As already mentioned, elbow problems can also be due to arthritis.
The bursa in the joint can also become inflamed, which can lead to a so-called bursitis. Pain in the elbow can also be caused by damage to the cartilage and bones. What is less obvious is that pinched nerves in the spine area can also lead to arm and elbow problems.
There may be a connection with shoulder pain if there is sudden overloading of the entire body part.
Elbow pain: treatment approaches
If epicondylitis is regularly the result of overuse of the elbow area, those affected first think about protecting the tennis elbow as much as possible in order to be pain-free. This is also one of the treatment approaches for painful inflammation . However, rest cannot be the only way to deal with the pain-causing factors.
After all, the tendons and muscles in this area of the body are indispensable in order to be able to carry out certain everyday tasks using the arm and hand. Therefore, gentle care alone is not a solution and cannot always be carried out consistently in everyday life. If the dominant arm is affected, the loss of this arm means an intensive restriction of all activities. For most people this is the case in the right arm.
Anyone who suffers from intense pain may also be unable to carry out professional activities. Those affected therefore have a great need to do something about painful elbow areas as quickly and effectively as possible.
The following can also be considered for treatment:
- Cold therapy
- Shock wave therapy
- Injections, for example, with botulinum toxin in the area of the tendon insertion
- anti-inflammatory drugs
- stimulation current
- physiotherapy
Strength training yes or no?
Epicondylitis can be the result of excessive strength training . We are familiar with muscle soreness after intensive training, which is also caused by fine micro-tears in the muscles. In epicondylitis, the fine tears in the tendon attachments are crucial.
Unlike normal muscle soreness , inflammation also occurs, which leads to long-lasting pain. Tendons require much more time than muscles to train and strengthen. Their metabolism is considerably slower than that of muscles because tendons hardly receive any blood supply.
It is therefore not surprising if painful tendons appear after intensive training . If you want to start with strength training and other sporting activities, you must definitely take into account the slower development of the tendons. This is why one-sided loads are particularly problematic.
Problems can also arise if you permanently avoid stretching after strength training . It doesn't even matter whether you stretch immediately after training. Stretching is good for the tendons because it relaxes them. On the other hand, strength training is characterized by its ability to stimulate muscle growth through performance incentives.
If you already have problems in the elbow area, you should adapt your training to this problem. Here it can be helpful to ask an experienced trainer about the right training. A physiotherapist can also explain valuable tips and exercises to you here.
How to train?
During the acute inflammatory phase, it is recommended to avoid intensive strength training in this area. However, targeted exercises in physiotherapy are possible. Shoulder exercises can be incorporated to strengthen and relieve pressure on the entire area. If you are pain-free, you can carefully start training the whole arm.
Isometric exercises are also well suited as static training units to train the structures of tennis elbow in the long term. These exercises are characterized by the fact that they do not involve the characteristic pressure and pulling exercises in classic strength training . Isokinetic training is particularly suitable for rehabilitation.
It allows a particularly careful adjustment of resistance because load peaks are avoided. Isometric exercises and isokinetic training are parts of physical therapy and physiotherapy.
Which exercises help with acute pain?
Some training sessions are even suitable if golfer's elbow/ tennis elbow is acutely painful. The main focus is on stretches that can relieve the pain. The exercises can also have a positive effect on wrist pain to a certain extent.
If you have nerve pain, you should first find out the cause of the pain. Pinched nerves cannot always be released from the spasm through your own efforts.
Exercises for acute elbow pain are shown here , for example.
Elbow bandages can help you carry out certain exercises, even in acute cases. The elbow joint is supported by bandages. You will have a pain-free impression of the elbow area more quickly if you bandage the area.
Many people also have good experiences with taping using Kinesio tapes. Have a doctor or therapist show you how to bandage and tape.
Bending forward from the elbow
Can you prevent elbow pain through strength training ? With appropriate and sensible training you can prevent joint pain overall. This is possible by strengthening the muscles and therefore the associated tendons. However, this is not about a short-term solution to a painful elbow joint.
Trained and strengthened structures in the muscles and tendons cannot be so easily overloaded. They are more resilient and do not easily lead to painful pressure points. Trained tendons are less likely to tear, making pressure pain and pressure pain points caused by microtears less likely.
Shoulder pain or sore wrists also become less common when the entire muscle area is trained comprehensively. To achieve strong structures in these parts of the body, you need to train regularly, long-term and appropriately. The focus here is not just on training sessions for the entire arm area and wrist.
Coordinated shoulder exercises and the upper back area should also be taken into account. This is primarily about resolving typical tensions that are the result of one-sided stress, for example from constant sitting. Professional advice is required when designing your training, especially from middle age.
For example, contact an experienced personal trainer. This will help you avoid choosing a workout that unknowingly contributes to pain-causing factors. This doesn't just apply to tennis elbow. Don't forget to stretch after strength training .
The role of nutrition
If you want to strengthen your muscles and all associated areas such as tendons, don't neglect the topic of nutrition. Muscles and all other body tissues need building material in order to grow and remain resilient. Protein is a key factor here. The smallest protein building blocks, the amino acids , are particularly important.
Amino acids are converted into various other substances in the human body. With regard to your diet, the essential amino acids , which the human organism does not produce itself, are highly relevant. You have to keep getting it from your food. The need for amino acids proteins can be different in different life situations.
Therefore, do not just base your daily protein intake on the recommended average requirement of 0.8 g/kilogram body weight. During exercise, illness, old age and stress, you can reach requirements of over 2 g/kilogram of body weight.
Conclusion : If you have elbow pain, don't lose sight of appropriate strength training . You can benefit from this in the medium and long term.
