Why does my elbow hurt when I strum(guitar)?
When Im playing a song that repuires a lot of fast strumming my elbow starts to hurt. It usually only takes between five and ten minutes for it to start hurting.
When I strum I use mostly wrist motion but also move my arm up and down(probably no more than five or six inches).
Should I stick to one or the other?
Am I doing something wrong?
Can someone tell me what the proper way to strum is?
Tagged with: elbow • six inches • wrist motion
Filed under: Tennis Elbow Home Cures
Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!
You’re probably getting some slight tendonitis or bursitis, which is my guess. I would ice it right after playing. But if it keeps hurting, change your technique because your elbow will get worse.
You’re doing it wrong. Strum with your fingers or a pick not your elbow!!
I had the same problem- try to relax, don’t tense your shoulder and upper arm. You might end up with tendonitis if you keep up like that.
Play a flute
If you straighten your arm out and then have someone twist your hand to affect your wrist… wrist and it pains you … it’s tennis elbow.
You don’t have to play tennis to get it. You either bumped it and don’t remember (like opening a screen door with your elbow) or it is an occupational thing like playing the guitar. Rest it awhile.
I play harmonica, so I don’t know proper form, but I think that it is possible you could be developing some type of tendon irritation which could lead to tendonitis. Best to speak to a guitar instructor about form. My brother is a classical guitar player and organist and tells me that a lack of proper form can throw one’s body alignment out of whack. Good luck on your way to Carnegie Hall!
Believe it or not it’s ‘Tennis Elbow’ and no, you don’t have to play tennis to acquire it. It’s a result of overworked tendons in the forearm/elbow area and as a fellow sufferer I know well the pain it can cause, that ‘toothache’ sort of gnawing with bright spikes just to keep things interesting…OUCH!!!
Luckily there is a remedy and it’s simple, cheap and effective. Go to your local Pharmacy or Walmart type store and look where you find the wrist braces and ‘Ace’ bandages. What you want is a ‘Tennis Elbow’ strap, a ballistic nylon strap with Velcro closure. It is strapped around the upper forearm just below the elbow with some firmness and works by keeping the muscles and tendons from flexing too far, they being the cause of the pain. It doesn’t inhibit movement in any way and you stop noticing it rather quickly, mostly because the pain vanishes and you just forget it’s on.
Wearing this not only kills the pain, it actually helps the affected muscles and tendons to heal by keeping the affected area stable and thus further injury is prevented. Make sure you get a strap and not an elbow brace as they are totally different and the brace will do nothing for this condition. Cost is under $10 and you can choose from either a padded version or an unpadded, the unpadded being less intrusive and in my estimation a better bet when close movement such as strumming is required. Hope this helps and good luck with getting the situation under control.