Tennis elbow, which in the medical world is referred to as Lateral Elbow Tendinopathy (LET) or lateral epicondylalgia, is one of the most common elbow injuries. As common as lateral elbow pain may be, it can be an absolute nuisance to treat and live with. It doesn’t just affect and cause pain with a tennis backhand but also shaking hands, grabbing dishes, typing, gripping, writing, and you name it. In this article, you’ll learn what tennis elbow is, how to treat it, what you should try first, and tennis elbow prehab exercises to try and avoid this injury in the future.

 

What is ‘Tennis Elbow’?

Tennis elbow refers to pain that is typically on the outside of the elbow and originates in what is known as the common extensor tendon origin, where multiple muscles in the forearm attach to the elbow. It is a condition that affects 1-3% of the general population, both men and women, and most commonly in the 3rd to 5th decade of life. Tennis elbow is more common in manual workers and tennis players, however, we often see it in the clinic after people do a lot of activity that their elbow is not accustomed to. Activities such as home improvement, a new workout routine, or a new hobby/sport (1).

In most cases of tennis elbow, the affected fibers are the deep and anterior fibers of the extensor carpi radialis brevis (ECRB) component of the common extensor tendon origin. The ECRB muscle is responsible for extension and radial deviation of the wrist. With tennis elbow, the tendon itself may undergo cellular and matrix changes accompanied by alterations in pain, sensory, and motor functioning. These changes occur because the tendon is overworked and unable to handle the forces placed on the tendon in your day to day activities. There is a chance you have tennis elbow if you have pain to palpation over the lateral epicondyle (see the image above where the red is), pain with gripping, and pain with resisted wrist extension, middle finger extension, or index finger extension (1).

 

So How Do I Treat Tennis Elbow?

With any injury, conservative management should always be the first line of defense. Although it could take up to a year in some cases, most people dealing with tennis elbow can get back to regular life without experiencing symptoms or activity restrictions. Addressing tennis elbow early on is key to better long-term outcomes! A model we like to use with tennis elbow cases is the EdUReP Model (2).

 

Treat Your Tennis Elbow With Our Program

Are you dealing with elbow pain? If so, we have the solution for you! The Elbow, Wrist, & Hand Rehab Program is a physical therapist developed, step-by-step program that teaches you how to optimize not only your elbow health but the entire lower arm. Learn more HERE!

 

What Is The EdUReP Model? Education, Unload, Reload, Prevention

Education is one of the most important aspects of managing tennis elbow. A common aggravating motion that someone with tennis elbow may want to avoid is lifting objects with the palm facing down, or gripping heavy objects. In the early stage of tennis elbow, try to avoid activities that reproduce pain and symptoms, and rest your elbow if needed from repetitive movements. So if doing home improvements are aggravating your elbow, take a break from them for a little! You could also use your other hand to try and unload your aggravated elbow. When appropriate, it will be time to reload the common extensor tendon with specific exercises. Last but not least, you will want to continue with a maintenance tennis elbow prehab exercise program to try and prevent experiencing tennis elbow symptoms down the road (2).

 

One Size Does Not Fit All

What we know from research focused on tennis elbow is that education and exercise are beneficial. However, there is no consensus on exercise programming for tennis elbow! “Despite clear benefits, the most optimal exercise intensity, duration, frequency, and type of load for the rehabilitation of LET have not been established.”1 Below we will cover various elbow, wrist, and hand exercises as well as other exercises we typically program for tennis elbow. If you do not have access to a lightweight dumbbell at home, you can use your other hand for resistance with most of the exercises demonstrated.

More Tennis Elbow Content Here!

 

Isometrics

What we do know is that when the elbow is extremely sensitive and painful in acute cases of tennis elbow, the angry tendon responds well to rest, unloading, and isometric exercises early on. Isometrics produce what is called an analgesic effect that can reduce the pain you feel by altering the nociceptive/pain pathways to your brain.

Isometric Wrist Extension With Elbow Flexion

Sample Tennis Elbow Rehab Program Exercise

Demonstrated in this exercise is isometric wrist extension with elbow flexion and slight wrist extension (20-30˚) as this minimizes compression on the involved ECRB tendon. For now, we want to minimize compression on the tendon as it may reproduce symptoms, however, working towards exercises with the elbow extended and the wrist in less extension is a progression when appropriate. Also having the wrist in slight extension maximizes grip strength as the finger flexor muscles are on a slight stretch, which improves the length-tension relationship of the muscles. This is a great starting point for tennis elbow exercises.

 

Isometric Radial Deviation With Elbow Flexion

Sample Tennis Elbow Rehab Program Exercise

The ECRB muscle is responsible for wrist extension AND radial deviation. Radial deviation is another important movement you want to include in your tennis elbow program. Be sure to have a strong grip in your fingers and your thumb!

 

Isometric Supination With Elbow Flexion

Strengthening the supinator muscle is also important with tennis elbow as it originates on the lateral epicondyle, which is also where the common extensor tendon originates. It is not uncommon for the supinator to be contributing to the tennis elbow symptoms as well. If movements such as opening a door or using a screwdriver bother your elbow, you should definitely include this.

 

The Prehab membership is the anti-barrier solution to keeping your body healthy. Access state-of-the-art physical therapy, fitness programs, and workouts online in the comforts of your own home or gym! Taking control of your health with exercise & education from the palm of your hand has never been easier. Get access to 50+ programs, 100+ unique workouts, and 3000+ exercises to build your own workout routines. Trial it for free, and learn how to get out of pain, avoid injury, and optimize your health with [P]rehab!

 

The Importance of Eccentrics

When appropriate, it is important to progress towards eccentric exercises. Eccentric exercises are excellent for tennis elbow as they specifically load the affected common extensor tendon. A progressive loading program is required in order for the tendon to undergo positive adaptations so that it can tolerate the demands imposed on it! Eccentrics can be a good starting point for long-standing cases of tennis elbow that have not responded well to other treatments. Eccentrics are also a nice progression from isometrics. Detailed instruction, as well as tips and tricks, are included with every video!

Eccentric Wrist Extension With Elbow Flexion

 

Is Stretching Effective?

It is a hot debate if you should stretch with tennis elbow. There is evidence to support stretching to increase the stiffness of tendons through applications such as sustained static stretching, however, stretching an angry tendon may not be appropriate or comfortable for people. If you want to learn more about what stretching really does click here. Our thoughts on stretching for tennis elbow – if you like to stretch, if you think it will help, and it doesn’t cause significant pain go for it, but do so sparingly. Stretching alone will likely not resolve your tennis elbow symptoms. You can try the contract-relax method or soft tissue mobilization method below.

Contract-Relax Extensor Mass Stretch

 

Spine & Nerve Mobility

Improving thoracic and cervical spine mobility as well as neural mobility can have positive central effects on the nervous system. This means for someone with tennis elbow that has been experiencing hypersensitivity at their elbow for a long time may benefit from the exercises demonstrated below. Performing these repeated movements, especially the nerve exercises, may decrease the sensitivity and symptoms associated with tennis elbow! Also in this day and age, almost everyone could benefit from having better thoracic mobility, clearly part of tennis elbow prehab!

Thoracic Spine Foam Rolling

 

Proximal Strengthening

Proximal strengthening is something we always program for tennis elbow prehab. You have to realize that it is not always the elbow’s fault. There may be a lack of strength and stability elsewhere that is leading to overuse or compensation at the wrist, which can strain the ECRB tendon.

 

Closing Thoughts

As we mentioned above, one size does not fit all. There is some evidence to suggest a combination of isometrics, concentric, and eccentrics leads to better outcomes. It is a matter of finding out what works for you! If you’re having trouble managing your tennis elbow, please seek a consultation with a physical therapist or other healthcare professional. This is not strict medical advice, but rather a guide to try and help you to manage this on your own. It is also important to consider other factors in life including the demands of your job, your habits, stress, hobbies, and anything else that could be contributing to your tennis elbow symptoms. Remember, most cases of tennis elbow resolve within a year. Only in rare cases do people with tennis elbow elect to have surgery. It is important to be patient and trust the EdUReP model. Take tennis elbow prehab seriously (1, 2)!

 

Take Control of Your Elbow Issues

The function of the elbow, wrist, and hand is not truly appreciated until discomfort comes along and limits its use. The shoulder girdle helps initiate movement of the arm but the lower part of the arm is the finisher! The lower arm gives us access to fine motor control and we cannot forget about the aspect that makes us human: opposable thumbs. Your brain perceives the hand to be so important that it dedicates a large chunk of the sensory area specifically to the hand. We are following the brain’s lead here and dedicating a program to regaining full lower arm function!

 

REFERENCES

1. Coombes BK, Bisset L, Vicenzino B. Management of lateral elbow tendinopathy: one size does not fit all. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2015;45:938- 949. https://dx.doi.org/10.2519/jospt.2015.5841
2. Davenport, TE; Kulig, K; Matharu, Y; Blanco, CE: The EdUReP model for nonsurgical management of tendinopathy. Phys Ther. 85(10):1093 – 1103, 2005.

 

About The Author

Craig Lindell, PT, DPT, CSCS

[P]rehab Co-Founder & Chief Content Officer

Craig is a South Jersey native & Penn State Kinesiology Alumni. When the opportunity came, Craig packed his bags and drove to California to pursue his Doctorate in Physical Therapy from the University of Southern California. With [P]rehab, Craig oversees all digital content creation and multi-channel publication that reaches millions of people on a weekly basis. As a PT, Craig has a wide array of experience from working with various neurological conditions to working with collegiate & professional athletes across the Big Five in North American sports. Experiencing physical therapy first-hand as a soccer player in high school, Craig has a passion & special interest in adolescent athletic development working with young athletes to overcome injuries. In his spare time, Craig enjoys exercising, playing golfing, hiking, traveling, watching Philly sports, and spending quality time with his family.

 

 

 

 

 

Disclaimer – The content here is designed for information & education purposes only and is not intended for medical advice.