Pain after armwrestling ( BEGINNER )

[John99]

Hey everyone, new to the forums,

So in total, i've arm wrestled seriously 3-4 times, and i always end up having this really tough pain in my arms, around the elbow area, not the elbow.

I've researched a little bit, and i THINK it's related to the side pressure, and a specific tendon in my arm being really weak?

Is this correct? If so what can i do to continue armwrestling without having this pain ? This pain usually lasts for 1 week or so, i only feel the pain if i do any arm related exercises.

 

Thanks!

[David_wigren]

On 6/15/2018 at 11:03 PM, John99 said:

Hey everyone, new to the forums,

So in total, i've arm wrestled seriously 3-4 times, and i always end up having this really tough pain in my arms, around the elbow area, not the elbow.

I've researched a little bit, and i THINK it's related to the side pressure, and a specific tendon in my arm being really weak?

Is this correct? If so what can i do to continue armwrestling without having this pain ? This pain usually lasts for 1 week or so, i only feel the pain if i do any arm related exercises.

 

Thanks!

Are you practicing with a crew or with friends? 

I think the best approach for a beginner is to not intentionally use side pressure in training. The majority of your focus should be on learning the basics of the hook and toproll, if you train with a crew they’ll hook you up (pun intended). Work on improving hand control and pulling toward you. Don’t go balls to the walls hard. As a beginner that’s only going to put you in poor positions and it will teach you bad mechanics. Instead, work with 80-90 % maximum effort in good angles with proper technique. 

To reiterate, try to avoid intentionally using sidepressure. 

[Adam Juncker]

On 6/15/2018 at 4:03 PM, John99 said:

I've researched a little bit, and i THINK it's related to the side pressure, and a specific tendon in my arm being really weak?

Most likely if the pain is just below the elbow on the inside, it is related to side pressure. I get some nagging pains there too if I overdo wrist flexion.  You can do contrast baths too, if you get big enough buckets you can get your elbows in too which I like to do. 

A proper warm-up, stretching, avoiding intentional side pressure (as David said), and knowing when to quit have been most helpful to me. 

Arm wrestling can be tricky to train (imo) because when you practice with a group you just want to keep pulling. Next thing you know, you've been pulling for 2 hours, you're exhausted, and you can't straighten your arms. Then your buddy is like, "hey let's pull in the strap since my wrists are fried." And you do it because you "need to train to get better."  

Knowing when to quit and cool down has been very valuable to me to prevent further injury - especially to this region of the elbow. 

[John99]

I train with friends.

A big thank you, david and adam, im relieved because i thought this pain was unusual, i will continue to train armwrestle but a bit more carefully!

[DavidR]

I'm also new to armwrestling-related exercises, and I've found that after working your tendons to the point where they ache, it's best to cool them down with cold or iced water. At least it helps my recovery.