Fixing Elbow Tendon Injuries for Bodybuilders
December 29th, 2011Tendon injuries in the elbow are from repetitive stress which can be so easy to do when bodybuilding. Virtually every pushing exercise of the upper body involves the use of the elbows and as such, repetitive stress injuries can be a side effect of dedicated training. I have had an ongoing tendon injury in my elbow for some time but have tried to train around this injury with mild success. After reading extensively on tendon injuries, particularly those involving the elbow and getting some advice from former IFBB professional bodybuilder and fellow Aussie Anthony Wingett, I decided to take steps to fix this problem for the long term.
I have had this elbow tendon injury for many months but have continued to train hard and do many warm up sets at the beginning of each workout to lessen the pain in my sore elbow once my workout got going. The problem here is, unlike warming up the muscles where by you force blood into the muscles you are training, tendons hold very little blood since they are composed of many fine fibers and sinew, this means it is very difficult to warm up the tendons. Subsequently, if they are sore at the beginning of your workout, they will ultimately be almost as sore at the end of your workout. I have found out this fact the hard way.
The pain is my elbow has now gotten to the point where it is becoming increasingly difficult to train at all. My elbow not only hurts when I am training, it hurts constantly, even when I am sitting down and resting. I have decided to do the unthinkable and take a rest from weight training for at least a full month. Instinctively this feels like the right course of action for me. After bodybuilding for so many years now, experience tells me taking a prolonged rest to overcome long term injuries and fight the effects of overtraining is the best way to go to ensure I can continue to train hard for many years to come.
I have been icing my sore elbow for about 15 minutes, 4 times per day as well as taking some over the counter anti inflammatory pills. In just one week I have noticed a significant improvement in the level of pain in my elbow. On top of this I have also been icing my wrist which just like icing my elbow, reduces inflammation and increases blood flow. The damage in my elbow is caused by many micro tears in the tendon so by increasing blood flow through icing, the increase in blood brings much needed nutrients to my damaged tendon which amplifies the healing process.
Although I am taking a rest from weight training, I am still doing regular cardio exercise like walking. Walking keeps the blood flowing throughout my entire body and blood circulation always helps in the recovery of any bodyparts. I will write another article on the outcome of my efforts to fix my sore elbow tendon, hopefully in the near future.
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