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Post by Chris W on Jul 31, 2015 20:44:31 GMT -7
I'm afraid I've developed a bit of pain just distal to the medial epicondyle, worse in the L than the R forearm. First really noticed it (or at least willingly and consciously acknowledged it) today. I believe it is from either:
1) high volume and high intensity ARC training 2) Pull ups 3) Using a manual ring cutter at work
I've ARCed at this level of intensity before without any issues, so I'm hoping it's just the pull ups (haven't worked these into my training before). I'm trying to increase some basic upper body strength, and the pain seems to be aggravated by forcefully pronating with a closed grip (like gripping a jug and pronating). The ring thing is a bit of a job hazard.
My plan so far is:
1) Decrease the volume and intensity of the ARC training 2) End the base phase early to start the strength phase early, essentially adding 1 extra hangboard workout. 3) Switch to chin ups (hands supinated) using rings instead of a fixed board or bar 4) Add eccentric wrist curls to my ever expanding list of rehab/prevention exercises.
Anyone with any experience or thoughts on the issue? |
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Post by MarkAnderson on Aug 1, 2015 13:02:14 GMT -7
3) Switch to chin ups (hands supinated) using rings instead of a fixed board or bar
Definitely don't do pull-ups from a fixed bar; do them only from rings. That said, consider not doing pull-ups at all when you have an elbow injury (same goes for campusing). I do pull-ups when I'm healthy, but their relevance to rock climbing has been greatly exaggerated. Maybe start by switching to rings and see if that helps. If it doesn't ditch them completely for a while and see if that helps. |
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Post by heelhook on Aug 1, 2015 14:46:56 GMT -7
MarkAnderson do you do explosive pull ups on rings too? I find it almost impossible to do more than a couple due to uncontrollable swinging. Or do you not do EPU at all? Any thoughts on it being helpful or campusing?
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Post by MarkAnderson on Aug 1, 2015 16:21:17 GMT -7
I do explosive pull-ups on rings. Swinging can be a problem, but I lower the rings so I can dab a foot as needed (at the low point of a rep) to stop any swinging. I think they're helpful for campusing, that's one of the best reason to do them. But campusing isn't climbing  |
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Post by amalec on Aug 1, 2015 16:57:46 GMT -7
In addition to what else has been mentioned: therabar flexbar oddly enough, turkish getups have been awesome for my elbow (something about creating stability across a range of angles, or something) www.youtube.com/watch?v=LyslIUJOCws |
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Post by tedwelser on Aug 3, 2015 19:48:44 GMT -7
Cold water immersion helps, especially if you do it every day. In terms of pullups you can do them from 1 inch wide slings, looped similar to an ice ax loop. I found when I had elbow pain I could do some pull ups from these with no pain whatsoever. That was a big help. I still have slight pain, but in general it is diminishing even though I have generally ramped up my training volume.
Consider also that several different wrist flexors attach to the medial epicondyle-- so if you do some detective work to figure out which positions and movements are causing the most intense pain you might have a better insight into which rehab exercises would be most helpful.
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Post by Lundy on Aug 3, 2015 20:13:02 GMT -7
An oldy but goody is Dr. Saunders in Rock and Ice on "Dodgy Elbows". This is all I use for my elbows, which used to give me tons of trouble, but now can withstand much too much campusing and heavy weighted pull ups (on rings). I do both of his recommended exercises every day - takes just a couple minutes, and has really been amazing to not have elbow pain anymore. www.drjuliansaunders.com/resources/feature_articles/dodgy_elbows/Hope it helps. |
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Post by Chris W on Aug 4, 2015 3:12:35 GMT -7
Thanks for all the insights guys. The pain isn't really in the elbow, but just distal to it. Cold water immersion helps with the pain, but hasn't done much in the past to heal or prevent any issues for me. I've followed a version of Dr. J's elbow exercises for about 2 years now, (modified slightly to meet my needs) and had the most success with those.
Update:
-After my last workout, I took two complete rest days
-Early yesterday AM, I managed 2 x 20 min ARC session without any pain or issues. First set was on my vertical wall, second on my 15 degree wall
-Skipped any pullups for now
-Did my regular "rehab" exercises last night, specifically eccentric pronation, supination, and wrist extension exercises
-Slept in this AM to 05:30 (livin' large!).
Conclusion:
-Seems like the pullups are what caused the most issues, specifically bad form subconsciously pronating into the board while pulling up. My poor little pronators didn't stand a chance. A bit odd, considering it was only one set of ten after every ARC workout. I'm a bit relieved it doesn't seem DIRECTLY related to my climbing.
-Time to dust off the old Metolius Rock Rings for my SE during the strength phase. Hopefully, hangboarding doesn't cause any issues.
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Post by MarkAnderson on Aug 4, 2015 17:59:03 GMT -7
Hopefully, hangboarding doesn't cause any issues. I'd be pretty surprised if it did, that would be unusual for sure. |
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