Tendonitis stinks, but it’s typically temporary, and if you’re a glass-half-full type of person, we’ll let you know about weak links in the chain that you can help correct and move forward. While the causes can be different for each person, most episodes are related to overuse. Overtraining and under-recovering fall into the same category too, and they tend to blend together.
Regardless... Your elbow hurts. What do you do?
Well, chat with a therapist for one! They can help guide your training and recovery. But that aside, there’s a lot you can do at home...
Myofascial release can be helpful in ways that stretching can’t. For one, stretching of a tendon that’s already hurt can make things worse in some cases. You’re pulling on a string that’s frayed.
Using myofascial release can get you some of the same results without directly putting tension through a tendon that already hurts. Spend some time in and around the area, and definitely on the muscle tissue that connects to that tendon. You’ll often find tight muscles around areas of tendon complaints.
- Rest tissue as necessary.Take some time off, give the tendons some rest, or alter the way you move. We always want to keep recovery active, which brings us into our next tips.
- Work on the muscle ’belly. For example, the thick part of the muscle in the middle, away from the tendon. Use myofascial release to give it some space. The Rod can be a huge help here. Move fluid, take some tension off the muscle tissue, while helping to speed recovery. Finding other tense tissues in and around the area can be incredibly helpful. In the case of the elbow, the Rounds can help find all of the tiny forearm muscles that may be contributors.
- Strengthen back to full health. Often you can find ranges of motion in the tendon that are not painful, and will help carry over strength into the painful portions. Your therapist can help guide you through this portion of the healing.
