Alright so my tennis elbow story began like this – woke up one Tuesday, made coffee, grabbed the racket like normal. Then wham, just swinging warm-ups felt like someone stabbed my outer elbow with a fork. Sharp pain shooting up. Couldn’t even hold the mug properly later. Realized, “Oh man, maybe this is that tennis elbow thing people groan about.”
Heard guys at the club talk about these elbow straps, those “Band It” braces. Figured, “Why not? Gotta try something before I give up tennis totally.” Walked into the sports store downtown – not the fancy one, the cramped one with old dudes behind the counter. Pointed at the wall, “Give me one of those tennis elbow straps.” Didn’t care about brand, just grabbed the cheapest one. Felt kinda dorky holding it.
First Try – Clueless & Disappointed
Got home, ripped the package open. Looked simple enough – a strap, a little pressure pad, velcro. Slapped it on right below my sore elbow, right? Wrong. Strapped it tight, maybe too tight. Felt like a tourniquet cutting off blood flow. Padded part sat awkwardly, jabbing the muscle. Played Saturday anyway. Lost all my serves. Pain came back even worse halfway through the first set. Threw the racket once. Honestly, thought this band thing was total garbage.
Almost gave up. Then remembered some video online. Checked it later – oh! Turns out I put it totally wrong. The pressure pad needs to sit on the meaty part of your forearm muscle, below the bone bump where it hurts. Not on the sore spot! Felt stupid. Re-watched it twice.
Round Two – Positioning & Adjustment
Next time, tried it different. Measured two finger widths down from the sorest point on my elbow bone. Strapped the pad firmly there on the forearm muscle. Not crazy tight this time, just snug. Tapped my fingers. Rotated my arm. Felt the tension there, but no cutting off. Okay, maybe?
Gave it another shot next practice. Started slow:
- Light forehands: Okay, weird but okay.
- Gentle backhands: Still okay, elbow felt… supported?
- Full serve? Held my breath… did it! Hurt a little, but way less than last time.
Played almost a full set. Elbow grumbled later, sure, but no stabbing pain instantly. Huh. Maybe this strap wasn’t useless after all.
The Real Deal – Weeks Later
Used it every single time I played since then. Learned some tricks:
- It’s NOT a magic fix. Pain didn’t vanish instantly. Takes time.
- Gotta keep the strap clean. Velcro gets gunked up fast with sweat.
- Too tight = numb hand. Too loose = useless. Finding “snug” matters.
- Only wore it for tennis. Taking it off after play felt good.
Still did other stuff – ice pack on the elbow after matches, rest days when it flared bad, some stretching. The strap? It was like having a helper holding the muscle down when I swung. Didn’t stop all pain, but definitely made playing possible again.
So, Did It Really Help?
Look, it’s not a miracle cure. If your elbow’s totally wrecked, this strap ain’t gonna save you. You need rest, maybe even a doctor. But for me, dealing with this nagging, annoying tendon pain? Yeah, it really did help me keep playing sports. I’m still using it now, months later. Probably overpaid for the cheapo strap I got, should’ve sprung for the comfier one. But hey, it worked well enough for me to stay on the court. That’s a win in my book. Would buy it again.