Why Does My Elbow Hurt During My First Few Tennis Serves?

Your elbow may feel stiff, sore, or sharp during the first few tennis serves because the tendons around the joint are still tight and stressed from repeated serving and have not fully loosened up yet.

You may notice the pain shows up most during the acceleration part of the serve, especially when you snap through contact or reach full extension overhead. The elbow can feel tight at first, almost like it needs several serves before it starts moving normally again. Sometimes the pain fades once you settle into play, then comes back later after the match or the next morning.

This pattern is common when the elbow has been handling repeated serving volume without enough time to fully calm down between sessions. The tendons around the inside or outside of the elbow can stiffen after rest, making the first few serves feel uncomfortable before the area gradually warms up. You might also notice reduced confidence in your serve early on because the elbow feels weak, restricted, or unstable during contact.

The Elbow Feels Tight And Painful Before It Warms Up

The first few serves often feel the worst because the elbow stiffens while resting between sessions.

You may feel a sharp pull or sore tightness during the first overhead motions, especially if you served heavily the day before. Once the arm gets moving, the elbow may loosen enough that the pain becomes less noticeable. That temporary improvement can make it feel confusing because the elbow still tightens again after cooling down later.

Repeated Serving Keeps Re-Irritating The Same Area

The pain often keeps returning because the elbow does not get enough recovery time between serving sessions.

You might notice the elbow feels fine during casual movement but starts hurting once you add serving speed and snap. Repeated overhead force can keep stressing the tendons around the elbow, especially if your serve volume recently increased or your arm still feels fatigued from earlier matches or practice. The area may stay sore longer after play and feel sensitive again the next time you pick up the racket.

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 most during the first few tennis serves?

The elbow often feels worse at the beginning because the tendons are still stiff from previous serving and have not fully loosened up yet.

Why does the pain improve after I keep serving?

The area may temporarily loosen as circulation increases and the elbow warms up during activity, even though the underlying strain is still there.

Can repeated tennis serves cause tennis elbow?

Yes. Repeated serving can overload the tendons around the elbow and gradually lead to ongoing pain, especially with high serving volume.

Should I stop serving if my elbow hurts early in practice?

If the pain keeps returning, worsens during play, or lingers afterward, reducing serving volume temporarily may help prevent the area from becoming more irritated.

Why does my elbow tighten again after tennis?

The elbow can stiffen again after activity because the irritated tendons and muscles tighten once the arm cools down and rests.

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.