5 Stretches to Recover from Tennis Elbow

Tennis Elbow might sound like it only affects tennis players, but many other people also suffer from this injury. Whenever the tendons that connect the elbow to the forearm become inflamed, pain will be felt on the outside of the arm by the elbow. To complete heal, time, rest and over the counter pain relievers are needed. Fortunately, there are stretches and gear that can help speed up your recovery time. Be sure to check with your doctor or physical therapist before you try the following exercises.

Wrist Flexor Stretch

Stand up straight with your arm extended in front of you with the palm facing up. Bend your wrist toward the floor with your other hand gently pulling your palm towards you. Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds before resting. Repeat this 2-5 times.

Wrist Extensor Stretch

Stand up straight with your arm extended in front of you. Turn your palm towards you with your fingers facing down. Use your other hand to gently push your fingers back towards you. Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds and rest. Repeat 2-5 times.

Fist Clench

You will need a ball or towel for this exercise. Place your forearm on a table with your hand facing up. Gently squeeze the ball or a rolled up towel for 10 seconds at a time. Rest between sets and repeat up to 10 times.

Wrist Extension

You can use a light weight (no more than 2 pounds!) for this exercise. Sit in a chair with your elbow resting comfortably on your knee. With your palm facing down, extend your wrist up. Be sure to only move your wrist, keeping the rest of your arm stationary. Repeat 10 times. You can gradually work up to more sets.

While you are healing, compression sleeves can also help relieve pain by increasing the blood flow to your arms. Conveniently, these sleeves can be worn all day, so you can continue your day to day activities and resume exercise. Zensah offers compression sleeves with a flip cuff for additional support of your elbow when the pain becomes worse. These sleeves feature sweat wicking fabric and a non-slip cuff so it will stay in place during the most rigorous of exercises. Zensah also uses chevron ribbing in their sleeves to provide additional support to your forearm, helping to relieve any additional pain in that area.