First off let’s talk about what tennis elbow is. Tennis elbow is the inflammation of muscle tissue attached to the elbow. This is most often caused in tennis initially by having incorrect equipment as well and incorrect form, the latter being harder to fix.
So, if you have the incorrect equipment particularly your racquet, the incorrect racquet can cause more bad vibrations go into your arm and lead to tennis elbow. Common issues for having the wrong racquet often include: to light, improperly balanced, Wrong strings, too large of a head size, and a hollow frame with no dampening technologies. Surprisingly heavier racquets are sometimes a good thing since more mass absorbs more vibration a good rule of thumb is to pick the heaviest racquet comfortable. This is where demoing is a great option after your arm has healed of course. You can easily talk to one of our specialists on the phone for racquet recommendations and also talking to a coach or teaching pro may help make a selection.
If you already have tennis elbow the best advice is to lay off tennis for a week or two, since that will likely only lead to more inflammation. But if you must play then wear an arm brace or band and take it easy.
Now if you have the right equipment and your taking preventive measures, but inflammation still occurs there may be a bigger issue. The problem may lie in your form, incorrectly playing tennis may over exert your body and lead to unnecessary damage to your muscles and joint
A good way to relieve that pain is to possibly fix your form and while taking a break will relieve for a period of time. If your form is the cause of inflammation it’s worth talking it over with a tennis pro or coach. One of the best ways to alleviate your pain is switching to a softer string. People often forget how important string is to your game the best strings for tennis elbow is natural gut the second is multifilament with a high fiber count for a plush feel.
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