Its that time of year when Wimbledon is on and (hopefully) the weather is pleasant. Traditionally the uptake of tennis shoots up during Wimbledon, and while its great exercise and great for the social aspect, like any sport it has potential injuries. A very common cause of injury involves doing some kind of movements/activity that the body or body part is not used to doing. Here is a list of potential injuries to look out for:
DOMS – it stands for Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness. Basically, it’s the pain you feel after returning to the gym for the first time in 6 months, or after that adventure race that you didn’t really train for. Its also the pain you get after moving that washing machine once every four years. Its basically brought on by doing any activity the body isn’t used to doing regularly.
Lower back issues – Serving usually involves an arching of the back and if your back is not used to arching repetitively can cause pain.
Rotator Cuff (Shoulder) injury – If you’re not used to swinging your arm with all your might, both forward and backhand, its easy to get a problem with your shoulder. Especially the rotator cuff. When the Nintendo Wii consoles first arrived on the scene with its controllers that you move around in the air it caused a phenomenon called Wii shoulder. This can also be the case with tennis.
Ankle/Knee ligaments – With all the twisting and turning that comes with the game, its easy to twist on a knee and ankle. Hard to prevent but the surface you play on tends to play a big role in this injury
Tennis Elbow – Whilst not exclusively associated with Tennis it is still a common problem. This is a pain on the outside of the elbow but is usually associated as a grip problem. People usually report pain on holding things and pulling doors. It occurs in tennis as the racquet is held tight in the hand and the wrist is moved in a variety of positions and absorbs/produces some large forces.
Tennis Elbow, or Lateral Epicondylalgia (We’ll stick with Tennis Elbow for now I think) is a complex condition that we have made great strides in understanding in past ten years. Activity modification is a huge part of the recovery, this involves adapting your every day tasks, so not to trigger or irrtate great pain. For example, pain is oftern worse with an outstretched arm, so patients with this condition are advised to keep their elbow bent when performing tasks if possible.
It is a condition that can last a while if not managed properly, and it has been proven that physiotherapy and exercises can speed up the recovery.
If you’re suffereing with pain on the outside of your elbow or any body part, drop us a a line on the usual number or book in online.