Elbow Problems from Pullups/Bicep Curls?

Lynn M.

Lynn M.

Cathlete
Hi:

I am wondering if any of you have experienced this...

I'm getting some real tenderness in my right elbow..Its on the part where when you bend your arm, on and around the bone of the elbow on the inside part of the arm.

I've been really working hard on my pullups and also increasing my weight on barbell curls for bis and I think either/both might be the culprit.

I think its probably coming from something amiss in my form, but I can't figure out what.

Any suggestions or personal experiences out there anyone can share?

Thanks in advance, Lynn M.
 
I haven't had exactly that issue, but I've had nerve-related elbow problems. I think Anne is right - take a break and let things heal. If it's tendon thing, that's really about the only choice you have. Then work back into it carefully. Anti-inflammatory meds like ibuprophen can help too.
 
I have the exact same situation going on right now. I started using P90X dvd's consecutively for about five weeks. My first pain was in my right shoulder...so I let up on all the pushups. Now it's my right elbow! I really think I ought to switch back to the Gym Styles. I never had a *pain* with Cathe's workouts, and I've used hers for years. I'd also suggest letting up on the weights for a little while. I hope you feel better soon.
 
There are also these bands that you can buy at any drugstore that will help the area heal. I had the same problem and the doctor told me to purchase one. It's a wrap that you put on your arm just below the elbow. That way, it makes it so that there's no pressure put there during daily functions and then the area can heal. It worked really well for me and for the life of me I can't remember the name of the darn thing. It's an elbow wrap and they are sold where most other wraps are sold for injuries.

It's sort of a springy thing with velcro so you can make it fit your arm. It's about an inch to and 1-1/2 in width.

If the name of it comes to me...I'll post it later.

Dianne
 
I know I've gone too heavy on my curls when my elbows hurt. Glad I'm not the only one! ;)
 
Tennis Elbow is usually the outside elbow....Golfers Elbow, aka medial epicondylitis (which many rock climbers experience) is the inside elbow.

I have experience with Golfer's Elbow....it was (and is) not a fun healing experience. Mine was severe and triggered by a bang on my elbow. Some days were worse than others and it took a very long time to heal (over 2-3 months). I still feel twinges now and then and it has been about 4-5 months now. I've had physical therapy which included numerous forearm exercises. (The orthopedist said that the overuse of my wrist could further aggrevate the condition....I often wore and slept in a wrist splint while healing.) For a long time I was afraid it would never heal. Now I am getting back into my regular upper body routine, but it includes many recommended forearm exercises. Because I'm absolutely terrified of ever going through that kind of pain again I don't do any pull-ups....I believe they are a lot like rock climbing and could cause an occurrence. Maybe someday when I forget the pain I may change my mind, but I highly doubt it.

I really do hope yours is just a strain or pull and not more serious. (Maybe you have weaker forearms as well and tend to overuse the wrist in a twisting movement??? Just a random thought....)

I do hope you heal real fast.
 
That happened to me last year and I had to lay off the weights for... months. Seriously. It is a debilitating injury if you do not take care of it. I don't mean to be alarmist or anything, but I just kept ignoring it until it got to the point where I couldn't do ANY tricep work at all because it was so weak.

Ibuprofen really helps, as does icing the area, but you may want to see the doctor.

One tip I got that really helped: joints are aggravated by the action of gripping the bar tightly. Apparently this puts a lot of stress on them. So, when you are doing bicep curls, at least, you need to concentrate on your bicep and avoid squeezing the bar too much. I'm not sure how you can avoid that in a pull-up action. What I do now is use bodybars for lifting. They're expensive and limited in size BUT the cushioning has been a lifesaver for me.

Anyway, this was probably way too much info.

Good luck!!
Marie
 
Hi Everybody...

Wow, with all of the responses, it sounds like we could almost start a support group for this type of injury!!!

Thanks so much for all of your input.. Unfortunately I may have to lay off upper body work for awhile.

I am also going to look into that brace thing as well.

Sigh.. so much for my quest for the perfect bicep peak now!! Guess I'm gonna have to switch gears and focus on my lower body for a while until I get this thing healed up. Sigh, the goal of a perfect bi peak was much more attainable than the perfect butt! ;)

Maybe we should start a check in... Lower body blast for recovering elbow injuries???? :)

Thanks again everybody, you are all awesome!!!

Lynn M.
 
Hi Lynn,

I have the "tennis" elbow on the left side. Never did figure out what started it, but it never totally goes away anymore. Resting it does nothing much for me, but not gripping the bar & icing it down after does help. I also do the exercises rehab always recommends for elbows...basically the last two exercises on S&H Biceps.

I must say, I'm surprised to see all the responses because I never can find much about elbow injuries elsewhere. Glad I'm not alone, although I wouldn't wish it on anyone! :p

Ironically, mine hurts the most during hammer curls, which I never did before & now love. Sigh!

Good luck, hope rest cures yours & everyone else as well.

Ruth
:)
 
These are the exercises that bothered me.
Pullovers
Upright rows.
Hammer curls I could do regular bicep curls with less weight
The gumband work for shoulders on the GS series...

1 arm rows did not bother me. Go figure. For back.

Dr. told me to rest it and everything i read said gumband work to stregthen it. I lightened up and if it hurt didn't do it and used ice after a workout.
It was on my left elbow. It was like the bone was bruised. It is a pain in the bum bum...
Anne
Aka( Storm)

http://www.picturetrail.com/acatalina
 
Thanks Ruth and Anne.

It definitely sounds like hammer curls are out for a while for sure based on both of your comments.

One more quick question... would you guys ever do kickboxing workouts while recovering from the injury? I could see some of the punches possibly aggravating it, but at least there wouldn't be any weights involved. What do you think?

I am fairly bummed..I was really happy on the progress I was making on my biceps lately, too!!! :(

Take care, Lynn M.
 
I have had the elbow thing for a couple of years and it has never really gone away. I did cut out all bicep work which eliminated a lot of the pain.

It started out on my left elbow then went away and about a year later came back on my right and has never gone away completely. I have found that the heavier the weight the more it gets aggravated. I now only use 20lb weights for a couple of exercises and try to stick to 15 lbs as my heaviest weight. When I am doing back exercises with a barbell I can go heavier somehow it doesn't seem to get aggravated by back workout, odd!
 
Lynn I don't know if I would do any real punching until it feels better...I have a vague memory of trying it once & yikes! You could, of course, still do the leg work.

I know how you feel about slowing your progress...sometimes you almost feel desperate! At this point, I just don't care anymore about the silly elbow. I do whatever I can without falling on the floor in pain, ice it, do some rehab exercises, & that's the end of it for me, but I've been battling this injury off & on for years now.

You, however, may be able to recover completely so do be careful of it. Let us know how it goes.

Ruth
:)
 
Hi Ruth:

Gosh, I am so sorry to hear that this has been a chronic thing for you. Isn't it funny ( not in a good way) how one little joint problem can mess up everything else that you want to do?

I sure hope you find something that helps you heal 100%.

I've decided that since I am going to lay off the weights for awhile, that I'm going to try and train for a 1/2 marathon that is in April. Maybe focusing on this will help divert energies away from the elbow while still giving me a challenge to work on.

Good luck to you and if you find anything that helps your elbow let us know. I'll do the same.

Take care, Lynn M.
 
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