As we witnessed in Andy Murray’s gruelling fight to victory at Wimbledon, tennis puts a huge amount of strain on the body and you don’t need to be Andy Murray to feel the effects of this strain. Tennis injuries are very common and that’s why at Octopus Clinic we are highly experienced in treating tennis related injuries and pain.
Here are four of the most common injuries tennis players face and how to overcome them. Make sure you get all injuries fully assessed and treated before taking on board any of the following advice or doing any of the exercises.
This is an irritation of the tendon that runs over the bony bit of the elbow. The pain comes on slowly often after tennis at first, then during the game and when lifting and twisting, like pouring from a kettle or opening a heavy door. It is caused in particular by the movement required to create top spin. To treat it properly the stability of the shoulder needs to be addressed. If the shoulder is moving inefficiently more strain is exerted on the elbow. Treatment should therefore never focus purely on the elbow itself.
An insight into treatment…
Ankle injuries have been particularly prevalent on the slippery surfaces of Wimbledon this year. The risk of ankle injuries, which can range from ankle ligament sprains, ankle impingement, tendon problems and even fractures; can be reduced by training the stability muscles of the ankle and leg and improving proprioception. Proprioception is the body’s positional sense, i.e. how you can control the position of your arms and legs without having to look at them.
An insight into treatment…
Back injuries can destroy any tennis players’ game whether you are social player or a world champion like Andy Murray. Common back injuries are muscle strains, facet joint injuries or damage to the intervertebral discs. Disc injuries include prolapses, which can irritate the nerves coming out the spine and at worse the spinal cord and therefore must be diagnosed and treated properly by your physiotherapist. Please click on the link to learn more about the spine and back pain.
An insight into treatment…
Far too many people suffer in silence with shoulder aches, pains and injuries. The vast majority fall under the umbrella of shoulder impingement and this is fully treatable with the right physiotherapy. The absolute key to treatment is to get the shoulder working efficiently in the positions required of it to play tennis. It might sound obvious, but if you are only working your shoulder muscles with your arm by your side, there is not going to be sufficient carry over into a tennis swing and certainly not an overhead swing. Therefore your Physiotherapist will need to design exercises that safely rehabilitate your shoulder with your arm moving through the motions required to play tennis.
An insight into treatment…
Remember, you must have your injury or pain fully assessed and treated by an experienced physiotherapist or osteopath.
'Shin splints' is an umbrella term for a number of conditions causing pain down the front of your shin, which is usually aggravated by exercise and tender to touch: compartment syndrome, stress fractures, tibial stress syndrome and periostitis. It is commonly associated with a change in running technique, footwear, sudden...
Read MoreClicking or crunching in the back can be caused by a number of things.Most people fear that the clicking is caused by bone hitting bone. However, thankfully nowadays this is rare. If you have this, it is likely that for many years you have been suffering severe pain and movement...
Read MorePlease read how the knee works before reading the following. ITB friction syndrome causes pain at the outside of the knee and may be accompanied by stiffness, giving way or a clicking sensation and is commonly worse when running, going downhill or down stairs and tender to touch. The ITB...
Read MoreCervical disc problems include degeneration, disc bulges or disc prolapses.If the discs in the neck become damaged they can bulge out and irritate or pinch the nerves coming out of the neck or the spinal cord itself. This clearly has serious implications, however can often be treated successfully with physiotherapy...
Read MoreMild neck pain and/or tightness that comes on slowly is commonly due to the upper back rounding forwards and the chin pointing forwards and upwards, which increases muscle and nerve tension and may cause pins and needles or pain in the arms and hands. Sometimes, breathing becomes restricted due to...
Read MoreClicking or crunching in the ankles or feet can be caused by a number of things. Most people fear that the clicking is caused by bone hitting bone. However, thankfully nowadays this is rare. If you have this, it is likely that for many years you have been suffering severe...
Read MoreThere are a variety of exercises that are great for your feet and ankles including: 1) Foot self-massage exercise 2) Eccentric calf strengthening 3) Foot muscles strengthening 4) Concentric calf strength and ankle instability exercise
Read MorePlease click here to read how the shoulder works before reading the following. The lats are often tight and over active relative to the smaller shoulder muscles like the rotator cuff muscles.
Read MorePlease click here to read how the foot and ankle works before reading the following. Make sure you have your pain diagnosed properly by a physio, osteo or sports doctor to ensure that this exercise is appropriate.
Read MoreThere are a variety of exercises that are great for your shoulders including: 1) Train shoulder posture 2) Train your scapular stabilizers 3) Train serratus anterior muscle 4) Stretch the lats (latissimus dorsi) muscles 5) Train the rotator cuff muscles
Read MorePlease click here to read how the foot and ankle works and click here to read Achilles pain before reading the following. Make sure you have your heel pain diagnosed properly by a physio, osteo or sport doctor to ensure that heel drops are appropriate. There are some types of...
Read MoreHip flexor muscle exercise and tendon loading can be brilliant for hip flexor tendon pain but must only be done under the guidance of your Physiotherapist. Please email reception@octopusclinic.com to book now. https://youtu.be/f9wYTHV2g7s
Read MoreITB pain, or pain at the outer side of the...
As a physiotherapist this is probably the most common question I get...
Sprained ankle So you have gone over on your...
The eighty-seven videos include exercises for the treatment and prevention...
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