The short answer is yes, but it’s not always straightforward. Let’s dive into the topic a bit deeper to learn which massage styles help the most and what you can do at home to help ease your discomfort.
What Is Tennis Elbow?
If you have ever experienced a painful sensation on the outside of your elbow that just won’t ease up on its own, you might have a tennis elbow. This condition occurs when the tendons in your elbow have been working overtime, causing inflammation and tiny muscle tears.
Tennis elbow typically develops in people who perform repetitive motions with their arm and wrist, which, as the name suggests, is why it is common amongst competitive tennis players. You don’t have to be a racquet sports enthusiast to experience tennis elbow, though, because you can also get it simply by knocking your arm into something with enough force to strain the tendons.
At Urban Massage and Wellness, our massage practitioners often have clients come into our St. Albert clinic with the hope that we can help ease the pain and discomfort caused by tennis elbow, which is why we’re going to talk about how massage therapy and other remedies can help tame your tennis elbow pain.
How to Soothe Tennis Elbow Symptoms
Common symptoms of tennis elbow typically manifest in the muscle that helps stabilize your wrist when it is straightened. Overworking this muscle can cause pain and inflammation. Common symptoms of tennis elbow can include:
- Pain on the outside of your upper forearm below the bend of your elbow
- Pain while lifting or bending your arm
- Difficulty gripping small objects
- Trouble straightening your forearm fully
- Residual pain in the upper arm, shoulder, or neck due to over-compensation
Going through life with symptoms of tennis elbow can be very frustrating and painful, so if you are experiencing any of these symptoms, we encourage you to talk to your doctor about your options for treating tennis elbow.
In the meantime, there are some massage techniques our practitioners can perform at Urban Massage and Wellness to provide some relief for your tight muscles. Tennis elbow pain can also be managed with a good at-home stretching routine and submerging your arms in ice baths to help decrease the inflammation. Let’s dive into a few of the ways we can help with tennis elbow at our St. Albert massage therapy clinic.
Massage Therapy for Tennis Elbow
Our ultimate goal is to help clients feel relaxed, at ease, and comfortable in their bodies. When you are experiencing unrelenting tennis elbow pain, our registered massage therapists can use a number of massage techniques to help provide relief.
- Sports massage addresses muscle strain caused by regular physical activity. We can incorporate stretching, mobility, and resistance training into your appointment to condition your over-exerted muscle groups.
- A deep tissue massage can also be quite effective in easing tennis elbow symptoms, as your practitioner may perform a friction massage on your arm to target the tendons along your elbow. This therapy breaks down the over-arching tension that causes much of the pain and tenderness. Deep tissue massage also helps to break up scar tissue and smooth out fascia on the forearm muscles, which can promote healing for your arm and wrist.
- Another type of massage therapy that can provide tennis elbow relief is myofascial cupping because it can help mobilize the connective tissue around the wrist extensor muscles and tendons. Cupping targets the fascia that wraps around the muscles and helps smooth it out to ease the tension caused by over-working the targeted area.
No matter which type of massage therapy you choose to try for tennis elbow relief, we recommend taking time to rest and recover as well before getting back to your normal routine. Massage therapy techniques are designed to smooth out the fascia and soothe sore muscles, but specialties like deep tissue massage and cupping that work deep into the muscles and tendons can also leave you feeling a little sore for a day or two. Be sure to take it easy and give your body time to heal.
Stretching for Tennis Elbow Relief
The benefit of including stretches during your appointment is that your practitioner can help make sure you are stretching the right muscle groups for the right amount of time. At Urban Massage and Wellness, our massage practitioners can incorporate many stretches into your massage appointment. Still, we always recommend taking time to stretch your muscles at home as well to prevent them from tightening up as quickly.
Incorporating massage therapy and regular stretching into your lifestyle can give your muscles and tendons the TLC they need to function properly, which could potentially prevent tennis elbow from coming back as harshly in the future.
Other Remedies for Tennis Elbow
It is important to seek professional medical advice before taking any medications. Some doctor-approved medications can provide temporary relief for your painful tennis elbow symptoms. Physical therapy, coupled with massage therapy, could also help condition your over-loaded muscles to prevent further injury.
If you experience recurring tennis elbow symptoms, it might be a good idea to consult with your doctor and assess the root of the pain impacting your forearm and wrist.
Tame Your Tennis Elbow with Massage Therapy in St. Albert
At Urban Massage and Wellness, our clients come to our St. Albert massage therapy clinic because they know our highly-trained registered massage therapists have plenty of tricks up their sleeves when it comes to alleviating chronic pain symptoms, muscle tightness and tenderness, and anxiety with a wide range of massage techniques.
Book your next massage therapy appointment online today and experience compassionate care you can count on at Urban Massage and Wellness, St. Albert’s trusted massage therapy clinic for clients in Edmonton, St. Albert, and surrounding areas.
