TENNIS - ADVICE TO REDUCE/ASSIST WITH UPPER LIMB PROBLEMS

At last the sun's arrived and for many the tennis court beckons. If that's you but you're concerned that old injuries might return, or work related problems may inhibit your game, I recommend you take action and really work to strengthen both your shoulder and arm muscles and also make sure that your core stability muscles are working well.

I regularly treat racquet sports injuries and work related upper limb problems and have found that good posture, core stability and scapular (shoulder blade) control are significant contributors to long term painfree games.

For core muscle activation I recommend looking at my earlier blog on 'running and back pain'. Pilates is also a great way of getting your core muscles working.

Getting your shoulder into a good position is not easy to describe but good posture with well maintained back curves will help to achieve this. Think of a 'piece of string' pulling you up by your hair - don't stick your chest or bottom out but reach up with the imaginary piece of string. This should help to bring your good posture about.

The other thing is strength - once the shoulder and posture and core is good - making sure the muscles around your shoulder blade and arm are strong enough and not too tight. A balance between length and strength of muscles is essential.

Please note that if you're still struggling despite these tips or if you have been experiencing tingling, numbness or pain radiating down your arm and/or into your hand, headaches or other oddities, I recommend that you seek the help of a Chartered Physiotherapist to address the specifics of your problems.

None of the information given on this blog should cause you any problems but if it does stop immediately and seek the advice of a professional.