Bikers (Tennis Elbow)

Odd question, has anyone gotten tennis elbow from riding? I recently started getting it bad from riding and can’t figure out why given in the last 30 years its never been an issue. Wondering if wide bars are the issue

Many people are riding with bars that are too wide for them. I cut my 780s down to 755, because I just don’t have the shoulder width to justify that and it starts to put pressure on my shoulders and elbows. Try moving everything inboard an inch or so and ride that way for a while before cutting though.

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Yeah I have some 750’s I will try for a bit. I was running 800 as I am 6’3 with pretty long arms (I wear a 36" sleeve) and based on my measurements and some studies on bike fitment I read said around the 800 range.

I’ve had some issues with Tennis Elbow over the last year and a half. I don’t think it’s related to bar length, for me at least. I’m also 6’-3" and was running 765 mm bars for a couple of years before I started having issues. I’ve been riding with 780 mm bars for most of this season and that didn’t seem to make it any worse.

I wore some elbow sleeves for a while, but some exercises and stretches from YouTube seem to have helped mostly cure me. I just chalk it up to getting old.

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I had some issues last year with tendonitis, and also like @Ghost I am old. Physio traced it to a weakening neck/shoulder and overcompensation. I did a lot of strengthening exercises and wore sleeves and it cleared up.

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What do you mean by sleeves? Like a Tennis Elbow Brace?

100%
I don’t have any medical advice to add here but totally agree that I see a crazy amount of guys riding around with bars far too wide for their size, their terrain and the speed they’re riding.
Rolling around the McIntosh Run Singletrack (see what I did there!) or Whopper avg’ing 9 k/hr and trying to jink your way through the trees with way wide bars aint efficient or fast.
Everyone decides what works for them but I often find that riders go better as they start trimming their stock trailbars.

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I caught that :slight_smile: For sure, back in the day we cut them crazy short so wider ones are a bit foreign to me anyways

Yeah, no need to go back to the crazy narrow 1990s days of 22" or even the “old man width of 650” lol!

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Looking back on it, I am not sure how I am still alive

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Compression sleeves.

This is what I got (from Amazon): Elbow Sleeves - Grey & Black (1 Pack) - Physix Gear Sport

Similar to the Physio exercises, some pushups and tricep extensions can help build up some strength to handle the abuse you’re throwing at your body. But after 30 years, there may definitely be some overcompensation or unknown damage. Stretching, yoga, and massage could help with that.

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I switched to Ergon grips and they alleviated a lot of my hand, elbow, and wrist problems.

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People at home with forearm issues like arm pump were having success with Ergon grips and Rev Grips.https://pinkbike.com/news/revolution-suspension-grips-review-2016.html

I get it bad in my my right arm. It’s more common on longer rides. The biggest culprit for me is years of weightlifting combined with 18 years of power tool use as a carpenter… the vibration of drills and saws combined with kick back of nail guns takes a toll

Yeah, I’ve got a bike with those narrow bars. Hopped on it recently and I don’t know how we rode those. Then throw bar ends into the mix.

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Still not totally healed but Shock Wave Therapy helped alot. May try a PRP injection.

I would play around with different grips and brake lever position. I always found the thicker style lock ons were hard on me.

Ive had elbow, bicep issues for a long time and it was caused by over-gripping things like ladders and ropes, over torquing during cross training, etc. My last flare up took a really long time to calm down but with constant mobility and compression care its been gtg.

Also, highly agree with the recommendations on bar width. Im 6,2 and run my bars at 760 and feel its appropriate for the various terrain we have here on the entire East Coast.

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What do you mean by compression care?