Elbow pain
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Anonymous
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I have tennis elbow or golfers elbow or both. lol originally aggravated years ago from lifting weights and I had to take a long time off of heavy weights and it even hurt in everyday activities (carrying items). I slowly went back up in weight and it has always been on and off with pain. For the last several months it’s been worse and when I try to go up in weight it acts up again. Mostly with bicep curls- if I try 20lbs it hurts and will be sore for days. I am not sure what to do about it. I don’t really want to go through X-rays and MRIs just to be told I need to rest it. And I am being stubborn because I don’t want to give up my progress and go down in weight. So I will rest it for a few days and try again.
Any thoughts? 46 F if that helps. Definitely perimenopause which can come with its own joint and muscle issues. |
Anonymous
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You are making it worse through stubbornness. Eventually you will damage yourself and have to take more time off than you would now.
At least look on YouTube to see which or both you have. Arm bands help. |
Anonymous
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See an ortho. Getting an X-ray is not that big of a deal and will rule out other issues it could be. They can give you anti-inflammatory meds that can calm down the inflammation in the elbow. They may also give you a wrist brace to stabilize the wrist while you do the course of meds -- movement in the wrist can aggravate the elbow.
The ortho will also likely prescribe PT. It won't just be exercises -- a PT can also massage and treat the elbow to help relax the muscles and address the inflammation, then start building in strengthening exercises to prevent if from happening again. It is likely the problem is bad enough that rest alone will not fix it, which means you will just be in a cycle of reinjuring it over and over. Seeing a doctor and PT might actually help you solve the issue and prevent it from happening again. |
Anonymous
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I could have written your post, OP -- almost word for word. Mine progressed to causing issues with sleep. I've tried braces, things for tennis elbow and golfers elbow, you name it and I tried it. It began with weight lighting. I'm an experienced lifter -- started in high school, but the pain did not begin until my late 40s. It has been 3+ years now and such a nuisance.
I've seen my PCP, an orthopedic guy (total wast of $300), and am now working with a physical therapist virtually. I have learned that "push" exercises are better than most pull exercises, so I do as much as I can and have learned to back off at the slightest twinge. |
Anonymous
Thank you! It does seem that pull is worse- there goes my goal of a pull up!  And it’s an overuse injury for sure because I probably wasn’t giving enough days between muscle groups.
Did you take off for an extended time or just do it all with light weights? I’m having a harder time giving it up now because I worked so hard the last few years to build up strength and lift heavier than ever. |
Anonymous
I took a pretty long break before realizing I could start easing back into push exercises. For the first few years, I re-injured myself regularly even using super light weights. I'm hoping PT helps me reset and get back to being pain-free! Re: pull-ups - have you tried negatives? You can still build strength as long as your elbows don't act up. I skip the dead hang at the end since that part can cause pain, even though the lowering generally feels fine. I also started bouldering again, which I used to do regularly through my 30s. I've been doing laps on easy problems - up & down, up & down - and it's been great for helping me build strength back up. I'm not totally sure why climbing doesn't bother me the way lifting does, but I think using my whole body together (vs isolating muscles, like biceps curls, which I avoid for now) just works better for me. Relying on legs + footwork probably helps, too. Just wanted to share in case that might be an option for you 
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Anonymous
| I guess I will be doing a lot more walking and bodyweight work. And yoga and Pilates. |
Anonymous
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If you go a an ortho who specializes in non-surgical, you'll likely be sent to PT. If you end up with a good practices, they'll help you forward. No one reputable rexcommends rest.
You need to build up the supporting muscles so you can get back to where you want to be. Also there are treatments out there that work like dry needling, ETAP and PRP depending on your exact problem. And yes, a diagnosis is likely to need Xray and MRI. Been there and done all this. For me it was worth it. |
Anonymous
| Check your thyroid. Looking back, that was my first sign of Graves disease. Unbalanced thyroid hormones can weaken/inflame your tendons. |
Anonymous
It was “normal” but all of my hormones are normal and symptoms are there for perimenopause! |
Anonymous
| Try taping your elbow and see if you get some relief |
Anonymous
Thanks. Will need to watch videos to learn how. lol |
Anonymous
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Take some time off from biceps (which lead to this problem for me) to heal. When you restart, begin with low weights. Maybe 12.5lbs on the biceps curl if you are capable of 20. Be mindful or your form. Wrists are likely your problem. Move up in weight very slowly. Find other exercises to hit biceps - underhand lat pull downs, if you like.
Stretch your forearms by pulling your hand back. Also try some forearm work with light weights. |
Anonymous
| Definitely get some PT! |
Anonymous
| I’m sure this isn’t the case for you, but this was my first symptom of rheumatoid arthritis. Did your doctor check your rheumatoid factor? |