Good morning! 👋 Dr. Kelly here. Elbow pain?
Is your elbow pain Golfers elbow or Tennis elbow?
Tennis elbow is pain in the outside of your elbow. 🎾
It is called Lateral Epicondylitis. 💪
It is caused by repetitive motions of extend the wrist. Like a backhand motion of tennis.
Or even typing. That is why it is important to keep your wrist straight at the computer. A wrist pad can be helpful.
You can have a weak grip with tennis elbow or pain when lifting palm down.
Golfer’s elbow on the other hand is pain located on the inside of your elbow. 🏌️♂️
It is called Medial Epicondylitis. 💪
It is caused by repetitive motion of flexing and gripping of wrist.
Like when you take your golf swing, or throwing, or carrying heavy bags.
It is the flexion motion of the wrist that uses the muscles on the inside of your elbow. Overuse causes pain.
Do you need x-rays of the elbow? Typically, no.
What about an elbow brace?
I recommend an elbow brace for both tennis and golfers elbow.
You can probably picture the brace that is a strap that wraps around about an inch or two below the elbow.
If it is tennis elbow, the pad of the brace goes on the meaty outside of your elbow.
If it is golfers elbow, the pad of the brace goes on the inside of your elbow.
Here is an example on Amazon:
Bring the brace to the office and I can explain where to place the brace.
Besides affecting the elbow your wrist and hands and be involved.
This is why you may notice that not only do I adjust your elbow, I will adjust your wrist.
I feel like I adjust thumbs on several patients every day. ✋🤚🖐
When your elbow, wrist, thumbs, or any finger for that matter ache, getting adjusted feels good.
Even if the ache comes from arthritis, the adjustment feels good.🙂
As a patient at Tree of Life Wellness Center, you know I typically use an instrument to adjust you. The instrument allows me to be very precise.
I can get into each individual joint and get neurological input into each segment.
It is like flossing in between your teeth. I am flossing in between the joints of your arm.😁😁😁
Here at Tree of Life Wellness Center, I work on the bone, the nerve and the muscle.
It is important to address the joint, but working with everything around the joint helps to keep it moving well.
Keeping the muscles of your forearm flexible helps to prevent future injury. 🙋♀️
Exercises for Tennis Elbow 🏋️♀️
These focus on stretching and strengthening wrist extensors.
1. Wrist Extensor Stretch
- Extend your arm straight, palm down.
- Use the other hand to gently pull the fingers down and back.
- Hold for 20-30 seconds, repeat 3 times.
2. Wrist Curls (Eccentric)
- Sit with forearm supported, palm facing down, holding light dumbbell (1-3 lb).
- Let the wrist drop down, then slowly raise the weight up with your wrist.
- Lower it quickly (concentric portion should be relaxed or assisted if needed).
- 2-3 sets of 10-15 reps.
Exercises for Golfer’s Elbow 🏌️♂️
These target the wrist flexors and pronator muscles.
1. Wrist Flexor Stretch
- Arm straight, palm up.
- Use opposite hand to gently pull fingers down and back.
- Hold for 20-30 seconds, repeat 3 times.
2. Reverse Wrist Curls (Eccentric)
- Same position as above, but palm facing up.
- Let the weight drop down, then slowly curl it up.
- Focus on controlled eccentric motion.
3. Forearm Pronation/Supination with Light Weight
- Hold a hammer or small dumbbell with elbow bent 90°.
- Rotate the forearm slowly palm-up and palm-down.
- Helps build strength and control around the medial elbow.
For both Tennis and Golfer’s elbow you can:
Ice after workouts if sore. Avoid aggravating activities during recovery. – That means Tennis or Golf or vacuuming. Consistency is key — improvements may take several weeks.
FOOD – that makes a difference too. 🍔🍕🥗
You may not think about food affecting your joints. But if you are reactive to foods, it can come out as achiness in your joints.
Think about inflammation from foods. They can cause inflammation in your joints.
So, get adjusted, do the exercises daily & make healthy food choices every day.
You will be amazed at the difference you feel. 😁
You can reach out by responding to this email, text us or even better, ask me about your elbow on your next visit. I can review the exercises with you, make food suggestions & adjust your elbow!
Yours in Health Naturally,
Dr. Kelly