How to deal with forearm injuries

Hi all, injuries, in our game sooner or later you're going to encounter them, and when they do occur, you'll want to get on top of them as quickly as possible. During my time, I‘ve amassed more than my fair share of injuries and despite taking extra care, I still run into a few here and there.

A trouble spot for me was always with my forearms. Particularly in the past I was always carrying some sort of niggle in them. Over time I've learnt that many who lift weights, especially Body Builders suffer in the same way. Because we use our forearms for just about every exercise we perform, they simply become (over trained/under recovered) over used. Add incorrect lifting form to the equation and the problem compounds, add additional outside of the gym daily use and the problem can really get out of hand. Forearm injuries are especially annoying to us Body Builders as they can seriously wane your training enthusiasm. I mean how annoying is it when you can't get past the pain in your forearms to max out on heavy compound exercises.   The solution or the way out is an ongoing process...

1^st -Initial diagnosis plus initial and ongoing treatment:

If all this sounds a bit like you, it's times to act and remedy the problem.

* Get help. Ask a reputable Massage therapist or Physio to check you over and locate the injured or problem areas.

* Then have them do their thing, beware this might hurt a lot!

* Initially you may need weekly treatments for a period of several weeks, thereafter you may just need maintenance work done every two to four weeks.

* It is a good idea to have the therapist teach you how to treat yourself, as this could save you a bit of coin.

* After treatments and after problematic workouts, Ice your forearms for 10-15 minutes. Persisting with this will do wonders for your recovery. Sadly Ice treatment is often neglected or forgotten about, DO IT!!! 

* Treatments like Anti Flam rubbing creams and Arnica oil are also helpful.

2^nd -Change your movements to ensure the problem does not reoccur:         

As the age old saying goes... An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. These injuries don't happen by accident, largely it's the way we do things that lands us in trouble.

What I'm alluding to here is your Movements or the incorrect form that you must be using during your weight training. Let's face it, we all tend to get a bit carried away from time to time, especially when we're trying to lift heavier and usually when others are watching J.

To get on top of the problem, any incorrect movements whether they be, in the gym, work related or lifestyle related, need to be identified and corrected.

For the purposes of this article I'll stick to the action you should take within the gym.

If your forearms are injured, then avoid adding extra forearm exercises to your routine. Because forearm injuries tend to come about from overuse, it makes little sense to compound the problem.

* Get help. Ask a Reputable trainer, one with experience in this area to work with you and make the necessary changes to all of your movements. This should involve going through all of your workouts with them.

* Don't expect a quick fix. Changes to incorrect movement patterns that have been learned over a long period of time, will take time to relearn properly.

* Lifting straps are a good idea, especially on Back training days.

* Lifting chalk is invaluable, just don't make a mess.

* Wrist bandages or wraps may be of value, especially to those who have serious forearm issues but certainly are no replacement for using correct form in the first place.      

So there you have it, stay on top of these injuries and without the unnecessary pain, not only will you enjoy your training more, it will help you to avoid training plateaus.

So until next time, keep training hard, you know I will be.
Phily