Exercises for Tennis Elbow Pain Relief

Tennis elbow is a condition that happens when you excessively strain the muscles and tendons of your forearm due to overuse of the joint. The condition can cause mild to severe pain in the arm and soreness around the elbow and it is common among people who play racquet sports like tennis. This can also develop in other sport activities which involve repeated gripping or twisting movements of the wrist & elbow. Although not a serious condition, tennis elbow can affect your quality of life & prevent you from participating in certain sports and recreational activities. While ice packs and over-the-counter medication can ease associated pain and discomfort, you must also perform the right exercises for tennis elbow rehabilitation. Here, we will share simple and effective exercises that you can perform, preferably under the guidance of an experienced physiotherapist, to rehabilitate your tennis elbow.

Exercises For Tennis elbow

The following are some exercises that can help relieve symptoms of tennis elbow and restore mobility.

1. Wrist rotation

• Keep the affected arm parallel to your body.

• Gently raise it from the elbow and rotate the wrist in one direction and then the other.

• Be careful when you are doing this exercise, and avoid sudden movements.

• You can start with 10 repetitions in each direction. Once your arm feels better, you can increase the repetitions and range of movement.

2. Wrist rotation with weight

This exercise is similar to wrist rotation. However, you must grip a small dumbbell or some weight to do this exercise. Hold the weight on the affected arm and do wrist rotation following the steps stated above.

3. Wrist lift

• Grip a light weight, such as a dumbbell, on the affected arm and bend your elbow slowly.

• Extend the hand outward in such a way that the palm faces up.

• Concentrate on the wrist and bend it slowly towards your body. Keep it in this position for about 5 seconds and release it slowly.

• Start with 1 or 2 sets of 10 repetitions, and increase the repetitions once your arm feels better.

4. Grip squeezes

• Take a hand grip, exercise putty or tennis ball in your hand.

• Squeeze it with all your fingers and hold the tension for 10 to 15 seconds before releasing it.

• Perform this exercise 5 times in the beginning and gradually increase the repetitions.

5. Towel twists

• Take a hand towel and roll it loosely.

• Hold the ends of the towel horizontally and twist it in one direction and then the other. It should look like you are wringing out the towel.

• Repeat this exercise 5 to 10 times.