Elbow pain when you grip your tennis racquet often feels sharp or sore during the squeeze itself, usually because the forearm tendons attached near the elbow have been stressed by repeated hitting and gripping.
Elbow pain when you grip your tennis racquet often shows up as a sharp, aching, or weak feeling the moment you squeeze the handle, usually because the tendons around the elbow have been overworked. You may notice it during serves, backhands, or even when picking up the racquet between points. Repeated gripping can leave the area sensitive enough that a simple squeeze starts to hurt.
If your elbow hurts when you grip your tennis racquet, you may notice that the pain appears before you even swing. The handle feels uncomfortable in your hand, and squeezing harder often makes the pain shoot toward the forearm or the outside of the elbow. Sometimes the elbow feels fine at rest but hurts immediately once you grab the racquet.
This usually develops gradually rather than from one specific shot. After enough practices, matches, or tournaments, the tendons that help you grip can become sore and less tolerant of repeated use. You might notice that opening jars, carrying grocery bags, or shaking hands starts to reproduce the same pain you feel on the court.
The Pain Starts The Moment You Tighten Your Grip
You feel a sore or sharp pull around the elbow as soon as you squeeze the handle.
During tennis, your forearm muscles constantly tighten to control the racquet. When those muscles have been working hard for days or weeks, the tendon attachment near the elbow can become painful whenever you grip firmly. The harder you squeeze, the more noticeable the pain often becomes.
The Elbow Feels Worse As The Match Goes On
The first few games may feel manageable, but the elbow becomes increasingly painful with continued play.
You may start a session with only mild soreness, then notice each serve, volley, or backhand becomes more uncomfortable. Repeated gripping gives the area little time to recover during play, so the elbow can feel weaker, tighter, and more painful as the match progresses.
Why Your Elbow Could Be Taking Longer To Heal
Your elbow has a hard time healing when blood flow and circulation are limited.
Tendons, ligaments, and other soft tissues naturally receive less blood supply than many other parts of the body. Because of this, they often take longer to heal after repeated stress or injury, leaving you more vulnerable to lingering pain and a cycle of reinjury.
When circulation through the area remains limited, injured tissues have a harder time receiving the vital oxygen and nutrients they need to repair and heal. This can leave your elbow feeling stiff, tight, weak, or painful during everyday movement and activity.
What Can Help Your Elbow Feel Better
Your elbow starts feeling better when blood flow and circulation improve.
Chinese herbs have been used for centuries to promote healthy blood flow and circulation. Their medicinal properties help break up stagnant blood and fluids that remain trapped around injured tissues, interfering with circulation. As circulation improves, blood flows more freely through the area, allowing those tissues to receive the oxygen and nutrients they need to heal properly.
Topical herbal remedies made with these Chinese herbs can help relieve pain while improving blood flow and circulation to injured tissues. The right product depends on your symptoms and whether you're in the acute or chronic stage of recovery.
If you have pain, swelling, inflammation, or bruising, Acute Sinew Liniment helps relieve these symptoms by increasing circulation and dispersing stagnant blood and fluids around the injured area to speed recovery. During the acute stage of healing, getting circulation moving early allows injured tissues to receive the fresh blood, oxygen, and nutrients they need to repair and heal.
If your injured area is especially swollen, red, or warm to the touch after a recent injury or flare-up, Sinew Herbal Ice is also used to reduce swelling and inflammation while restoring normal circulation so you can quickly regain range of motion. While traditional ice is commonly used to reduce swelling, Sinew Herbal Ice acts as an ice alternative to reduce swelling and inflammation while also dispersing accumulated blood and fluids to speed the healing process.
If you no longer have swelling or inflammation, but still have pain, stiffness, weakness, or sensitivity in cold and damp weather, Chronic Sinew Liniment helps relieve these symptoms by strongly stimulating circulation and increasing blood supply to injured tendons and ligaments to promote their healing. This is especially important because tendons and ligaments naturally receive less blood supply, which is why chronic injuries can take longer to heal.
If you have residual pain and stiffness, or the area becomes more painful in cold weather, Sinew Injury Poultice is also used to significantly stimulate circulation to injured tendons and ligaments to further promote their healing. By strongly increasing circulation, it counteracts the reduced blood flow caused by cold weather that commonly aggravates chronic tendon and ligament injuries.
If you exercise, play sports, or do other strenuous activities, Sinew Sports Massage Oil warms and stimulates muscles for exertion and relieves muscle tightness and soreness after activity. Warming and preparing your muscles before activity can improve flexibility, enhance performance, and reduce the risk of injury.
Frequently Asked Questions
You may also find these commonly asked questions helpful.
Why does my elbow hurt only when I grip my tennis racquet?
Gripping activates the forearm muscles that attach near the elbow. If those tendons are sore from repeated tennis activity, squeezing the handle can trigger pain.
Is gripping pain a sign of tennis elbow?
Yes. Pain that appears during gripping is one of the most common signs of tennis elbow and related overuse problems around the outer elbow.
Why does the pain get worse during longer matches?
Repeated gripping and hitting can fatigue the forearm muscles and place ongoing stress on the same painful area throughout the match.
Can my racquet grip contribute to elbow pain?
Yes. A grip that is too small, too large, or requires excessive squeezing can increase stress on the forearm and elbow.
Should I stop playing if gripping becomes painful?
If the pain is persistent, worsening, or affecting your ability to play normally, reducing activity and seeking professional evaluation is a good idea.
Recommended Products
New to Sinew Therapeutics?
Enjoy 10% off with code WELCOME10.
• Acute Sinew Liniment — Used when pain, swelling, and inflammation are present to relieve pain, reduce swelling and inflammation, and increase blood flow and circulation to injured tissues.
• Sinew Herbal Ice — Used when the injured area is especially swollen, red, or warm to the touch to reduce swelling and inflammation while restoring normal circulation and range of motion.
• Chronic Sinew Liniment — Used for pain and stiffness after swelling and inflammation are gone to relieve pain, strongly stimulate circulation, and promote the healing of injured tendons and ligaments.
• Sinew Injury Poultice — Used for chronic tendon and ligament injuries to significantly stimulate circulation and promote deeper tissue recovery.
• Sinew Sports Massage Oil — Used before or after activity to warm and stimulate muscles, increase circulation, relieve tightness, and improve flexibility in muscles and joints.
Related Articles
You may also find these articles helpful.
The information provided here is intended to help you better understand your symptoms and recovery, but it is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
Persistent, severe, or worsening symptoms should be evaluated by a qualified healthcare professional.
