Stretching Advice

My forearms, especially my right one, hurt. I can't lift anything heavy (like a 1 liter bottle of water) without pain on the outside forearm. It feels very similar to the tennis elbow/tendinitis I was treated for a couple years ago.

I know, I should see the doc - just don't want to go down that road right now. Last time I ended up in a mini HMO hell.

I'm taking Advil every 4-6 hours, and I've tried massaging with Arnica gel. So? Stretching? Massage? Sit like a lump not lifting anything for the rest of my life? :p

Snap, when you were treated for the tendonitis, was there any physical therapy involved? The anti-inflamatory is probably a good thing to help, but maybe dig out those old exercises that we ignore when things quit bothering us actively?

I was just thinking about this for my shoulder as we were riding this morning -- elbow hurt, just on the side where the shoulder injury once was, and here I was thinking it was my elbow, but since today's ride was longer, I later started noticing (and maybe it's the other way around, and this started cuz elbow was hurting) that my shoulder stuff seemed to be bothering me. Can't decide if shoulder hurt cuz elbow hurt, or if elbow hurt cuz somehow I'm protecting my shoulder?

I figure it can't hurt to practice those shoulder exercises again!

(and it's a new bike, so I'll talk with my bike guys again too, since I'm down to just one elbow and one hand bothering me!)

Karen in Boise

does your arm hurt after you ride?
It sounds like the exact same pain as when I had bursitis of the shoulder(but it could be a million different things!)
I would get it looked at if you can,
or look into strengthening exercises for the shoulder,upper back, tri's,bi's. And start out with small little 1lb pound weights and work your way up.

doc or PT would be a good idea I think

in the meantime, don't forget ice and heat, usually alternating....and, yes, those exercises!

Hugs and healing butterflies,
~T~

Put on a tennis-elbow strap. (drugstore) I get that same tendinitis when I use the touchpad on my laptop too much instead of the mouse. The strap around the arm just below the elbow really helps support the tendon.

Karen

Here's a good article about lateral epicondylitis, it will help you in a self-diagnosis and recommended treatment options
http://www.emedicine.com/sports/topic59.htm

I was on the phone last night with my friend Bob, describing what was going on. He's a super-duper massage therapist, so after chewing me out for not calling sooner:o , we've set up an appointment for Saturday. Along with heat and ice (whee - that ice can hurt at first!)

Snap, and the rest of us who work on a pc all day....how's the ergonomic set up of your desk at work/home?

Setup is good - I had a PT come in and measure, check and suggest. I'm thinking of getting a new mouse, time to go wireless at work.

A new mouse would be good and you may want to try mousing with your other hand. It takes about 3 days to become functional at this and about 3 weeks to become proficient.

Continue with the ice, arnica etc. Good call on the massage therapy. Posture is very important for these things. Usually, it's not just an elbow issue, it's often a stiff neck/pinched nerve/problem shoulder that is leading to a complaining elbow. We call this the silent villian and screaming victim scenario. Think about your whole upper body kinetic chain, sit up straight, reach away from your body as little as possible.

I also rec. tennis elbow braces, I prefer the ones with a gel pad that goes over the tendon area.

Here are some stretches, do them gently:

http://www.acefitness.org/getfit/exe...spx?pageID=366

I recommend holding for 20 seconds and repeating each 4 times twice per day. It's usually not recommended to stretch after icing (tho that's a bit controversial).

Hope that helps.