joined with tendonitis in my elbow
Hi, all. I googled "online tennis community" and found my way here. I am looking for advice on how to avoid "tennis elbow"--tendonitis in my elbow/forearm. I know how to make it go away with time--ice, ibuprofen--but I need to figure out how to keep it from spoiling my next game. Help!
Oscar Wegner on Tennis Elbow
"I have a very large hand. Back in the days when I was on tour, I used a large grip (4 3/4 inches) wooden racquet, which resulted in plenty of elbow trouble. Thanks to the development of larger racquet heads, which are fairly flexible, and the use of a smaller grip size (4 1/4 inches), I no longer suffer from tennis elbow, even when playing for as long as four hours. And I enjoy a greater feel for the ball."
"do not tighten up too much on your grip (a cause of tennis elbow)."
Oscar showed me how to adjust my grip to use eastern to semi-western for my groundstrokes and continental for serves and volleys only. Using a continental gip for groundstrokes is unnatural and causes strain on the elbow. Also, he showed me how holding the racquet with the head up in the ready position causes strain on the elbow. Instead, he recommends bringing the racquet butt up against your navel, with the face vertical and the tip slightly down. This releases tension on the muscles of the forearm. I now use the smallest grip size and have learned to loosen up my grip considerably. With these 4 adjustments I have gone from severe tennis elbow, including a 4 month rest and 13 chiropractic sessions and always wearing an arm brace to NO BRACE and NO TENNIS ELBOW whatsoever.