Heavy lifting with elbow injury

BlueBombers

I have a bad elbow injury and I'm wondering which of these you would recommend for lifting? Elbow straps or wraps/sleeves? I'm taking a few days to let it heal as per my chiro but she suggested using some sort of elbow support and starting off again with lighter weights next week, but I'm wondering what would be a good investment as I see so many choices online and in the stores? Any other suggestions I didn't list here? I don't mind spending the money as long as it's a good product.

Thanks!

Straps/wraps:
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[/img]



or

Sleeves:




Edited for spelling.

Capt_Apollo

i see a lot of people using the sleeves. give those a try. the straps look like they might be a little too tight, or not tight enough, depending on how the user adjusts them. the wraps will allow a little more flex.

JoRocka

major bummer- elbow's suck.... I hate when mine gives me grief!!!

I'd try sleeves- or the below elbow strap- it honestly kind of depends on the type of injury you have.

I have one frm CVS- that's a loose sleeve with wraps- above and below- I don't particularly care for it- I think it doesn't help- I would go buy a real upgraded one at this point if I was going to do it- probably a compression sleeve.

I also transitioned to the cable towers for a lot of chest work- I have a hard time with pushing movement- esp bench- and those really help keep my chest stuff up to working capacity without stressing my elbow as much... but like I said- I have issues with straight pushing- so fly stuff on the cable tower was perfect YMMV obviously.

I'd stay far far away from push ups too- those are bad news bears with elbow problems.

NRBreit

I got major tennis elbow about a year and a half ago. I tried using the strap below the elbow and pushed through continuing to lift. Things like pullups really aggravated the elbow. I finally had to significantly reduce upper body lifting to let it heal. It took months and I really don't think the strap did anything. IMO, you just have to find ways to work around the injury and let it heal.

tracydr

If your pain is on the outer or inner point of your elbow then the tendons need support. The strap worn very tightly is best.
I've also found that topical antiinflammatory cream like diclofenac is very helpful.
Make sure you're icing after every workout. Avoid forearm exercises and anything that hurts if it's not improving. A physical therapist can be quite helpful as they will do ultrasound, electro-stim and other treatments that you can't do yourself.

richardheath

Do you have tendinitis, or something else?

I have one of those sleeve things that also has straps you can tighten, so it's kind of a combination. Seems to help me a bit when my tendinitis flares up. Although I've had to go for lower weights and more reps on things like bench, and pull-ups really aggravate it. Rest is obviously the best thing you can do for it, but that sucks!

BlueBombers

Thanks for all the suggestions. It makes me sad but I know I have to let it heal so it doesn't get any worse :sad: I'm going to have to play around and see which exercises work best for me at the moment as I only use free weights. I might have to dust off the ol' Bowflex in the future.

I find that even doing deadlifts really makes my elbow hurt (the straighening of my arm in general really), especially the next day. I've been icing which is helping.

I'm going to my family doctor on Monday and hoping to get some anti inflammatories to help with the soreness.

BlueBombers

Do you have tendinitis, or something else?

I have one of those sleeve things that also has straps you can tighten, so it's kind of a combination. Seems to help me a bit when my tendinitis flares up. Although I've had to go for lower weights and more reps on things like bench, and pull-ups really aggravate it. Rest is obviously the best thing you can do for it, but that sucks!

^ I'm going to my family doctor on Monday to find out exactly what my problem is, but I think it is tendinitis.

richardheath

If it is that sore, I'd suggest not doing anything right now that makes it feel bad. Don't try and push through, or you'll make it worse (or get pinned under the barbell doing a bench press like I did)! Concentrate on squats for a while.

BlueBombers

If it is that sore, I'd suggest not doing anything right now that makes it feel bad. Don't try and push through, or you'll make it worse (or get pinned under the barbell doing a bench press like I did)! Concentrate on squats for a while.

Yup, that's pretty much what I've thought, focus more on cardio and lower body. Sucks but has to be.

Thanks again!

musclebuilder

double ply elbow sleeves are what I use and I love them. Of course they can be counter productive if you use them as a means to try and push through an injury and simply make matters worse. they will add some warmth and stability but they won't magically heal an existing injury. Once you have an injury you have to make adjustments so it can heal. By adjustments it is usually adding some things that help this process and dropping some things that continue to aggravate the injury. Listen to your body and try and pin point any exercises/daily activities that may be contributing to the pain. then you may want to fruther evaluate them and see if it is the exercises themselves or something you may be doing incorrectly which is causing the exercise to be overly destructive to your joints/tissue what have you. A good rule of thumb is if it hurts, avoid it. But with that said, a quality pair of double ply elbow sleeves is a good investment if you train hard and often.

BlueBombers

double ply elbow sleeves are what I use and I love them. Of course they can be counter productive if you use them as a means to try and push through an injury and simply make matters worse. they will add some warmth and stability but they won't magically heal an existing injury. Once you have an injury you have to make adjustments so it can heal. By adjustments it is usually adding some things that help this process and dropping some things that continue to aggravate the injury. Listen to your body and try and pin point any exercises/daily activities that may be contributing to the pain. then you may want to fruther evaluate them and see if it is the exercises themselves or something you may be doing incorrectly which is causing the exercise to be overly destructive to your joints/tissue what have you. A good rule of thumb is if it hurts, avoid it. But with that said, a quality pair of double ply elbow sleeves is a good investment if you train hard and often.

I do train quite a bit so I will look into those. Thanks again!

bostonwolf

Thanks for all the suggestions. It makes me sad but I know I have to let it heal so it doesn't get any worse :sad: I'm going to have to play around and see which exercises work best for me at the moment as I only use free weights. I might have to dust off the ol' Bowflex in the future.

I find that even doing deadlifts really makes my elbow hurt (the straighening of my arm in general really), especially the next day. I've been icing which is helping.

I'm going to my family doctor on Monday and hoping to get some anti inflammatories to help with the soreness.

Good luck. once you have a better idea on what is wrong you will know how to approach things.

No_Finish_Line

i had what i was convinced was tendonits in my elbow, upper forearm.

i didn't seek medical attention for months, turns out it was torn mucsle in my forarm. I haven't been able to lift since thanksgiving and i'm still dealing with it after two seperate bouts of PT.

i signed up for a spartan race back when i thought it wasn't a big deal injury. i wanted to go through with it because i spent over 100 bucks on it.

I got one of the straps, it was call "Band-IT' i think, its black and white and had the best reviews on amazon. i bought it for 20 bucks and free shipping but i saw it on other websites for as much as $50.

didn't realize till the end of the spartan race that i experienced no pain at all. definetly recommend that particular strap.

pull ups were/are total agony btw. haven't tried the strap with a work out yet.

compression sleeves should help too. even the underarmor compression shirt made a slight difference in how the forarm felt.