Elbow Pain

[Abel_J]

Hello Docs.

So I noticed over several workouts that I felt pain near my left elbow (nearing the “forearm” part of my arm as opposed to the “humerus” part). This is apparent in the lowering phase of the Overhead Press, when I felt a “pinging,” radiating sensation on my left elbow. The pain is present when I Bench as well, although not as painful.

I know pain is not necessarily mechanistic (i.e. I experience elbow pain, therefore my elbow must be screwed) and is influenced by our perceptions. That’s why I don’t want to catastrophize my situation. Also, my description of pain may be rather vague. But could you offer some insight on this?

I was thinking of managing load (reducing work weights). Problem is, my e1RMs for my Overhead Press and Bench (1ct paused) decreased when I ran The Bridge 1.0 (probably because I didn’t have quality sleep on some days or misjudged RPE in the beginning). I don’t necessarily want to further reduce my load, but I guess I’ll keep my ego in check if I have to.

Thanks for your insights.

[Michael_Ray]

@Abel_J

Hello Docs.

So I noticed over several workouts that I felt pain near my left elbow (nearing the “forearm” part of my arm as opposed to the “humerus” part). This is apparent in the lowering phase of the Overhead Press, when I felt a “pinging,” radiating sensation on my left elbow. The pain is present when I Bench as well, although not as painful.

I know pain is not necessarily mechanistic (i.e. I experience elbow pain, therefore my elbow must be screwed) and is influenced by our perceptions. That’s why I don’t want to catastrophize my situation. Also, my description of pain may be rather vague. But could you offer some insight on this?

I was thinking of managing load (reducing work weights). Problem is, my e1RMs for my Overhead Press and Bench (1ct paused) decreased when I ran The Bridge 1.0 (probably because I didn’t have quality sleep on some days or misjudged RPE in the beginning). I don’t necessarily want to further reduce my load, but I guess I’ll keep my ego in check if I have to.

Thanks for your insights.

Hey Abel,

Sorry to hear about the elbow pain. How old are you? Have you experienced this before? Do the symptoms linger after training?
Which part of the elbow are you experiencing symptoms?

Adjusting loading (even if it is more than you want to do) is likely the first appropriate step in this process. Happy to discuss.

[Abel_J]

Sorry for the late reply…

How old are you? Have you experienced this before?

I’m 18 years old. Yes, I have experienced the “pinging” elbow pain when lowering the bar from overhead a couple of times in the past 3-ish months, although I just dismissed them. It didn’t get as noticeable as it is now.
However, during one of my GPP days I tried some light Presses overhead, and I found that putting my wrist in slight extension and lowering the bar quickly (almost “dropping” it) reduced the pain. Guess I’ll find out in my next Press session with my normal working weights.

In regards to Benching, I’ve only had the pain for 2-ish weeks. Interestingly, I didn’t feel the pain in my most recent Bench session. I also Benched with a slight wrist extension, whereas previously I focused so much on keeping very straight wrists.

Do the symptoms linger after training?

Sometimes I can feel a slight strain in my forearm when I flex my left wrist, but again that’s gone now.

Which part of the elbow are you experiencing symptoms?

Just below the medial side of the elbow joint, near the forearm.

Oh and something that may help this discussion:
I have small hands and I play the piano. I noticed that I strain the lateral side of my left hand (near the pinky finger) whenever I play octaves with my left hand. Just two days ago, after the last incidence of elbow pain, I played the piano in a service. Of course, I noticed the strain again.

The next day, I noticed that my wrists would hurt when I flex them. However, I proceeded to Bench pain-free as mentioned above. Interestingly, the pain disappeared today. Maybe the elbow pain has something to with the wrist strain from playing the piano? I don’t know.

I guess I just have to wait for my body to heal itself and find movement tweaks that don’t aggravate the pain.

[Michael_Ray]

@Abel_J

Sorry for the late reply…

I’m 18 years old. Yes, I have experienced the “pinging” elbow pain when lowering the bar from overhead a couple of times in the past 3-ish months, although I just dismissed them. It didn’t get as noticeable as it is now.
However, during one of my GPP days I tried some light Presses overhead, and I found that putting my wrist in slight extension and lowering the bar quickly (almost “dropping” it) reduced the pain. Guess I’ll find out in my next Press session with my normal working weights.

In regards to Benching, I’ve only had the pain for 2-ish weeks. Interestingly, I didn’t feel the pain in my most recent Bench session. I also Benched with a slight wrist extension, whereas previously I focused so much on keeping very straight wrists.

Sometimes I can feel a slight strain in my forearm when I flex my left wrist, but again that’s gone now.

Just below the medial side of the elbow joint, near the forearm.

Oh and something that may help this discussion:
I have small hands and I play the piano. I noticed that I strain the lateral side of my left hand (near the pinky finger) whenever I play octaves with my left hand. Just two days ago, after the last incidence of elbow pain, I played the piano in a service. Of course, I noticed the strain again.

The next day, I noticed that my wrists would hurt when I flex them. However, I proceeded to Bench pain-free as mentioned above. Interestingly, the pain disappeared today. Maybe the elbow pain has something to with the wrist strain from playing the piano? I don’t know.

I guess I just have to wait for my body to heal itself and find movement tweaks that don’t aggravate the pain.

I don’t think you have to necessarily avoid movements. However, a consult would allow for more individualistic advice to be given. Contact Us | Barbell Medicine.

Overall, this does sound like a load management issue and training modifications should be made. We can also discuss playing the piano as part of the “load management” issue. Ideally, you will find appropriate loading to the area that allows tolerable symptoms and doesn’t leave you feeling debilitated afterwards.