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kansasclimber
Jan 18, 2005, 3:44 PM
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On the top of inside of my elbow, almost where there seems to be some type of tendon or cartilage, my elbow really hurts. To describe the pain would be like it feels almost like a cramp, or ball just sitting in there. It is on the outside of the elbow, and it is totally due to stress im sure. I would just like to know if anyone else has felt this sort of thing. I feel i can still climb, just locking off is not a good idea. Help me out!....
Stephen
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soulwithoutfear
Jan 18, 2005, 4:00 PM
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Tendonitis is most likely. Work your triceps more by doing pushups and it may help. I sometimes get it because my biceps are overpowering my triceps. Opposing muscle have to be around equal strength or it can f*ck up your tendons.
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soulwithoutfear
Jan 18, 2005, 4:02 PM
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Tendonitis is most likely. Work your triceps more by doing pushups and it may help. I sometimes get it because my biceps are overpowering my triceps. Opposing muscle have to be around equal strength or it can f*ck up your tendons.
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kamloopsclimber
Jan 18, 2005, 4:02 PM
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i got same thing, most people say take time off but i continue to climb, just a little easier on it, it gets a little better each day, just have to give it time, pop some ibuprofin
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kamloopsclimber
Jan 18, 2005, 4:03 PM
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i got same thing, most people say take time off but i continue to climb, just a little easier on it, it gets a little better each day, just have to give it time, pop some ibuprofin
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chadnsc
Jan 18, 2005, 4:49 PM
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It may be tendentious caused by a strength imbalance between your biceps and triceps as stated above. The elbow pain may also be caused from another strength imbalance between your inner and outer forearm. Climbing works the inner forearm a lot while the outer forearm is underused. In my case doing reverse wrist curls with a dumbbell helped to elevate the problem. Good luck.
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hitman
Jan 18, 2005, 6:09 PM
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www.climbinginjuries.com
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rgold
Jan 18, 2005, 6:56 PM
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The climbinginjuries.com site gives the basic information. Note that biceps/triceps "balance," whatever that really means, is not the central issue. More likely, the balance between (too strong) flexor and (too weak) extensor muscles in the forearm is a contributing cause, which is why reverse wrist curls are in the rehab routine.
In my experience, most climbers who climb hard experience this overuse injury. More common than the lateral form you have is the medial form at the inner elbow. The common name for lateral epicondylitis is "tennis elbow," and the common name for medial epicondylitis is "golfer's elbow." "Tennis elbow" is sometimes used interchangeably for both.
The injury seems to come from a combination of gripping and pulling. A number of people get this injury from pullup exercises. Sustained hanging on, even at a relatively moderate level, can also produce it.
Here, for whatever they are worth, are my personal experiences with the medial injury. I am not a medical doctor but I have coped, with increasing success, with the injury for most of my climbing career.
(1) Initial rest is critical, but long amounts do not necessarily help. Many people rest until they have no pain and the injury comes back immediately when they try climbing. Rest until you can do every tasks with little or no pain.
(2) The key to getting back is a very gradual return, which takes a lot of self-discipline. It only takes one overly hard pull to recactivate the injury and put you right back where you started before the rest period.
Because of this, I think, in addition to the wrist curls, that some light finger-specific work is called for before you get back to the gym or on the rock. In my case, I happen to have a hang board mounted so that I can grasp all but the highest holds with my feet on the floor. In my most successful (and most recent---3 years ago) rehabilitation, I began standing on the floor and gripping various holds at a level that did not cause pain. (This was, at first, a ridiculously light load, just a little pressure on the holds while standing under them.) As things improved, I stepped forward so that I was very slightly overhanging and hung from various holds. Then I progressed to feet on a stool, and from there to repetitions of brief two-arm hangs. For these, I grasped the holds, allowed my body to swing forward slightly and then back, stepped down to relieve pressure, and then repeated. The determining condition for all phases of this rehabilitation is the absence of elbow pain---if increased resistance (which was always very little) hurt, I stopped immediately.
I think it was a total of 8 weeks for me, including the initial total rest period, before I went back to the gym. You still have to be careful even then to stop if your elbow starts to hurt.
(3) I found that some over the counter pain-relieving creams were very helpful. I massaged them into the injury site for 5-10 minutes 2-3 times a day. I don't know if it was the cream or the massage that helped, and we all know the value of such anecdotal experiences, but, in my case I felt I got a significant benefit. The stuff that worked the best for me was called CT Cream---you can google it and buy it on the web. It appears expensive, but the amounts you use are very small and so the ultimate cost seemed very reasonable.
Good luck.
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rgold
Jan 18, 2005, 6:56 PM
Post #9 of 11
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Registered: Dec 3, 2002
Posts: 1804
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The climbinginjuries.com site gives the basic information. Note that biceps/triceps "balance," whatever that really means, is not the central issue. More likely, the balance between (too strong) flexor and (too weak) extensor muscles in the forearm is a contributing cause, which is why reverse wrist curls are in the rehab routine.
In my experience, most climbers who climb hard experience this overuse injury. More common than the lateral form you have is the medial form at the inner elbow. The common name for lateral epicondylitis is "tennis elbow," and the common name for medial epicondylitis is "golfer's elbow." "Tennis elbow" is sometimes used interchangeably for both.
The injury seems to come from a combination of gripping and pulling. A number of people get this injury from pullup exercises. Sustained hanging on, even at a relatively moderate level, can also produce it.
Here, for whatever they are worth, are my personal experiences with the medial injury. I am not a medical doctor but I have coped, with increasing success, with the injury for most of my climbing career.
(1) Initial rest is critical, but long amounts do not necessarily help. Many people rest until they have no pain and the injury comes back immediately when they try climbing. Rest until you can do every tasks with little or no pain.
(2) The key to getting back is a very gradual return, which takes a lot of self-discipline. It only takes one overly hard pull to recactivate the injury and put you right back where you started before the rest period.
Because of this, I think, in addition to the wrist curls, that some light finger-specific work is called for before you get back to the gym or on the rock. In my case, I happen to have a hang board mounted so that I can grasp all but the highest holds with my feet on the floor. In my most successful (and most recent---3 years ago) rehabilitation, I began standing on the floor and gripping various holds at a level that did not cause pain. (This was, at first, a ridiculously light load, just a little pressure on the holds while standing under them.) As things improved, I stepped forward so that I was very slightly overhanging and hung from various holds. Then I progressed to feet on a stool, and from there to repetitions of brief two-arm hangs. For these, I grasped the holds, allowed my body to swing forward slightly and then back, stepped down to relieve pressure, and then repeated. The determining condition for all phases of this rehabilitation is the absence of elbow pain---if increased resistance (which was always very little) hurt, I stopped immediately.
I think it was a total of 8 weeks for me, including the initial total rest period, before I went back to the gym. You still have to be careful even then to stop if your elbow starts to hurt.
(3) I found that some over the counter pain-relieving creams were very helpful. I massaged them into the injury site for 5-10 minutes 2-3 times a day. I don't know if it was the cream or the massage that helped, and we all know the value of such anecdotal experiences, but, in my case I felt I got a significant benefit. The stuff that worked the best for me was called CT Cream---you can google it and buy it on the web. It appears expensive, but the amounts you use are very small and so the ultimate cost seemed very reasonable.
Good luck.
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korntera
Jan 18, 2005, 11:13 PM
Post #10 of 11
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Registered: May 14, 2004
Posts: 422
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I have the same problem from playing racquetball and climbing. All that info is good stuff and i will have to try all that but also take glucosomine and eat avocados(they help strengthen tendons and joints)
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ottoman
Jan 19, 2005, 12:00 AM
Post #11 of 11
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Registered: May 26, 2003
Posts: 149
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Yeap did the same thing to my right elbow..tried tape, moderately successful, bought a tubular brace works even better....heck its been since the second week of November...and only a wee bit of climbing done...just trying not to stress it again!! :x
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