Tennis elbow is the most common injury among tennis players, but it's often caused by activities unrelated to tennis, and many people who never play tennis get tennis elbow. What you do away from the tennis court can have as much impact on your elbow as how you hit the ball. In Tennis Elbow, we learned how to recognize tennis elbow and surveyed how it can be prevented, including better choices in equipment and strokes. Here, we will discuss how to avoid or change off-court activities that are likely to contribute to or cause tennis elbow.
Factory-type work: The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety cites tennis elbow as a common occupational injury, resulting most commonly from the repetitive motions that many jobs entail. Particularly harmful are motions performed with the arms extended that involve gripping tightly while bending the arm at the elbow or that involve rotating the forearm while bending the wrist. More violent motions, such as throwing with a jerky motion or hitting objects with the hand are also likely, not surprisingly, to stress the elbow. They recommend reorganizing workplaces to reduce repetitive motions and make them more comfortable, such as by using machines to perform more of them, giving each worker a wider variety of tasks, and modifying tools and equipment to require less force to use. Workers can also relieve their elbows by using smoother motions, avoiding bending their wrists, changing positions periodically, and resting more often.
Construction and mechanical work: Tasks that involve a lot of twisting motions, gripping a power tool that shakes or vibrates powerfully, or sudden impacts such as hammering are likely to increase your risk of tennis elbow.
Typing: Typing can be tough on your elbow, especially if you don't have the keyboard at the right height. When you type, your forearms should be nearly horizontal. A natural keyboard, which allows you to keep your wrists in a neutral position as you type, can help quite a lot. You might also reduce your typing by using dictation software that converts your spoken words into type. You'll have to go through the text and make corrections, but your number of keystrokes will be greatly reduced.
Mousing: Many people use a computer mouse for hours every day. Try mousing with your left hand.
Sleeping: Be aware of how you're sleeping. Many people put their arms in strained positions for hours during sleep, especially when they turn onto their sides. Some use one hand to help keep their legs separated slightly while lying on their sides, in which case a leg pillow might help.
