Tennis Elbow: Why 95% of People Who Get It Have Never Played Tennis
If you’ve got a nagging ache on the outside of your elbow that flares up when you shake hands, lift your coffee cup, or turn a doorknob — you might have “tennis elbow.” And here’s the funny part: you probably don’t even play tennis.
Despite the name, this condition has very little to do with the sport. It’s really an overuse injury, and it can sneak up on painters, tradies, hairdressers, parents lifting kids, gardeners, gym goers and anyone who spends hours at a keyboard or gripping tools.
Basically, if your wrist and forearm do the same repetitive motion over and over, you’re a candidate.
So what’s actually going on?
The muscles that extend your wrist and fingers all attach via a tendon to a bony bump on the outside of your elbow (called the lateral epicondyle). When those muscles get overworked through repetition, poor technique, or simply doing too much too soon then the tendon struggles to keep up with the demand. Tiny bits of damage build up faster than your body can repair them, and the tendon starts to break down rather than heal properly.
What it feels like
- A tender, sometimes sharp pain on the outer elbow, which can spread down into the forearm
- Pain that gets worse when you grip, lift, twist, or bend your wrist. Think shaking hands, opening jars, lifting weights or carrying a shopping bag
- In more stubborn cases, an ache that’s there even at rest, making everyday tasks like typing or cooking genuinely frustrating and painful
Who tends to get it?
It’s most common between the ages of 30 and 50, and men are affected slightly more often than women. But the real common thread isn’t age or sport, it’s repetition. Regular culprits include:
- Racquet sports (yes, tennis included)
- Painting and labour work
- Carpentry and trade work
- Long hours typing or using a mouse
- Repetitive use of hand tools
- Intense levels of exercise
How we figure out what’s causing it
A physio will usually start with a hands-on assessment. We check your elbow’s range of motion, strength, and exactly where it’s tender alongside some questions about your daily activities and history. That’s often enough to make the diagnosis.
Sometimes we’ll also send you for imaging like an X-ray, ultrasound, or MRI. This isn’t always necessary, but it helps rule out other causes of elbow pain and gives us a clearer picture of what’s happening in the tendon itself.
Why you shouldn’t just ignore it
It’s tempting to push through, especially if the pain is mild at first. But left untreated, tennis elbow can become chronic, and the surrounding forearm muscles can weaken over time. That means simple tasks such as carrying groceries, typing a report, picking up a toddler start to feel genuinely hard. The earlier you address it, the faster and easier the recovery tends to be.
What actually helps
Recovery is usually a combination of:
- Modifying your activity — not necessarily stopping everything, but adjusting how (and how much) you’re using the arm
- Physiotherapy — targeted exercises to rebuild strength and flexibility in the forearm and gradually reload the tendon so it can heal properly
- In some cases, PRP (platelet-rich plasma) injections, which may be considered for pain that isn’t responding to the above
Rest alone rarely fixes it The tendon generally needs the right kind of loading to properly recover.
Keeping it from coming back (or happening in the first place)
- Check your technique and form during repetitive tasks. Small adjustments make a big difference
- Build in regular breaks rather than grinding through long stretches of the same motion
- Do simple forearm strengthening exercises to build tendon resilience
- Consider a brace or ergonomic tools if your job or hobbies involve a lot of repetitive gripping
The takeaway
Tennis elbow is common, it’s treatable, and despite the name it can happen to anyone whose forearm is doing more work than it’s used to. If that outer-elbow ache is starting to interfere with your day, don’t wait it out. Get in touch and book an appointment. The sooner we get eyes on it, the sooner you’re back to doing the things you love pain-free.
