Pain in Elbow

Joined
Sep 26, 2018
Messages
350
Location
TX
Not sure if this would go better here or in fitness.

I started shooting a few months ago with a bow set at 55lbs. I have since purchased a new bow and been running at 60lbs. I also started shooting a lot more once I got the new bow.

Well, I have started to have a pain in my bow arm elbow and from the little bit I have looked might suggest I'm overbowed? I dont have any trouble drawing at 60lbs, my shoulders, back, etc all feel fine. It's just the one spot in the elbow.

Anyone experience anything like this and have any remedy? I've taken a few days off where I haven't shot and it goes away a bit but then comes back once I start shooting again.

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nphunter

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Jul 27, 2016
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If you think your over bowed back it down to 50 and shoot it. If that helps it was probably the problem. Make sure your not locking your arm straight out, I could see that causing some issues if your draw is too long.
 

nphunter

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I would start doing some pushups to build up your triceps. Start against the kitchen counter at like 45 deg so there easier and do them with your hands close together.

Shooting bows use weird muscles, it may just be fatigue unless you have a history with that particular elbow?
 
OP
H
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Sep 26, 2018
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TX
I would start doing some pushups to build up your triceps. Start against the kitchen counter at like 45 deg so there easier and do them with your hands close together.

Shooting bows use weird muscles, it may just be fatigue unless you have a history with that particular elbow?
Nope. Never anything until I got the new bow and then the pain didn't start until a couple weeks after.

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OP
H
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Thinking more on it, I dont think it started until I switched to a thumb trigger from a wrist strap.

Don't know how that would cause it though?

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OP
H
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TX
Could it be Lateral Epicondylitis (tennis elbow)?


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Yea this is what I have come up with from Google and the only thing I've found related to archery says overbowed.

Just wanted to see if anyone had a similar experience and found it was caused by something else.

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OP
H
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Neck arthritis is one of the most common causes of elbow/arm pain in people.
Wow that's not two thing I ever would have put together. I'll look that up though.

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Joined
Apr 22, 2012
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Chugiak, Alaska
A couple years ago I got tennis elbow in my right (dominant), elbow and the only thing I could attribute it to was passing a football. During that summer I started spending a lot of time throwing the football around with my son, and that was the only thing I did different when the injury occurred. I had to stop doing that activity, which was a no brainer because it got so bad I wasn’t able to throw the football anyway. Whenever I would bend my elbow, like touching my hand to my shoulder, an inflamed tendon would protrude out on that side. It was very noticeable and painful. It took several months for things to settle down and the tendinitis to eventually go away, but I had it all the way into hunting season in October. A buddy of mine loaned me a band/strap that you put around your arm, right over the top of the tendon, and it had a knob on it that you could twist and create pressure against the tendon. I used that band for my hunt that year and it seem to help quite a bit. This is what it was.


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jmez

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Wow that's not two thing I ever would have put together. I'll look that up though.

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Buddy of mine has it. He fought elbow pain for two years. Finally went to Dr. And he's got neck arthritis.

He had to switch bows and releases to keep shooting. A lot of it is postural so different anchor and arm positions can flare it up.



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damxam

Lil-Rokslider
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Feb 10, 2016
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MT
Also make sure you're draw length is not to long. That lil extra can throw your elbow out sideways and may be tweaking it
 

jdubrr

Lil-Rokslider
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Feb 11, 2018
Messages
196
Location
Bellflower, CA
Not sure if this would go better here or in fitness.

I started shooting a few months ago with a bow set at 55lbs. I have since purchased a new bow and been running at 60lbs. I also started shooting a lot more once I got the new bow.

Well, I have started to have a pain in my bow arm elbow and from the little bit I have looked might suggest I'm overbowed? I dont have any trouble drawing at 60lbs, my shoulders, back, etc all feel fine. It's just the one spot in the elbow.

Anyone experience anything like this and have any remedy? I've taken a few days off where I haven't shot and it goes away a bit but then comes back once I start shooting again.

Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk
Yup, happened to me when I went from 60# to a new 70# bow. I stopped shooting for a few months and it went away. Now when I go to the range I shoot a few arrows and take more breaks in between. Not sure if it'll go away on it's own
 
Joined
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I had it to it’s no fun, I’ve had a messed up right shoulder since babe Ruth baseball and in the past few years of over use it’s become tendinitis in my elbow down to hand when it’s really flared up it was OK shooting not great but manageable. So I shot a ton last year at 72 lbs but since October I didn’t really shoot at all till January and started shooting a lot again and developed it in my left elbow and it was super painful I thought I was done shooting a bow for a while I went to a ton of PT and did the exercises daily after maybe 3 weeks of not shooting I dropped the bow down to 60 or so and started slow a dozen shots a day and slowly built up to 50 or so shots then bumped up the poundage a little every week now I’m shooting 72 again and it’s been fine for a while now. It’s scary for sure but if you stay on top of the exercises you might be fine it worked for me
 
Joined
Sep 7, 2017
Messages
324
Location
Boise, Id.
"Tennis Elbow", comes and goes, for me, too ! I put 50 Pound Limbs, on my Bow ( maxed down, tight @ 50 LBS ) and try to shoot, no more than 12-15 Arrows MAX, every other Day or, every 3 Days. IMO,.. RESTING the Elbow, is what's needed between, shooting Days. You can Kill, Deer and Elk, just fine with, a 50 Pound Bow IF, you shoot a "reasonably heavy" Arrow of about 415 - 460 Grains, good 12 -16% FOC and sharp COC, 3 Blade B-H's like, WacEm's, Strikers, Shuttle T's, etc. Good Luck,.. I feel, your pain !
 
OP
H
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Sep 26, 2018
Messages
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TX
Thanks for all the replies guys. Guess I just need to give it more time.

Total Archery Challenge is next weekend though so I'll just have to bear with it for that then maybe take a break.

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Wrench

WKR
Joined
Aug 23, 2018
Messages
5,663
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WA
A couple years ago I got tennis elbow in my right (dominant), elbow and the only thing I could attribute it to was passing a football. During that summer I started spending a lot of time throwing the football around with my son, and that was the only thing I did different when the injury occurred. I had to stop doing that activity, which was a no brainer because it got so bad I wasn’t able to throw the football anyway. Whenever I would bend my elbow, like touching my hand to my shoulder, an inflamed tendon would protrude out on that side. It was very noticeable and painful. It took several months for things to settle down and the tendinitis to eventually go away, but I had it all the way into hunting season in October. A buddy of mine loaned me a band/strap that you put around your arm, right over the top of the tendon, and it had a knob on it that you could twist and create pressure against the tendon. I used that band for my hunt that year and it seem to help quite a bit. This is what it was.


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I've used that with great success too.

I'd look for a bodyblade also. It's a low impact workout that helps a ton.

Lots of stretching and low impact work is all you can do. Ice will help. It'll take a long time.

It would pay to have an archery coach look at your form to see if you have some mechanics that are screwing you up.
 

Ten Bears

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Joined
Mar 1, 2017
Messages
1,498
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Michigan
Going through it currently. Haven’t picked my bow up in months. Ended up having my ulnar nerve compressed. Got a couple cortisone shots in the elbow and started physical therapy. It was from over shooting and sleeping with my arms bent/clinched. Really lost a ton of strength in that arm and my hand was numb.

The stretches they have me doing are slowly working. Go have it checked out.
 

tunafed

FNG
Joined
Jul 29, 2018
Messages
48
Neck arthritis is one of the most common causes of elbow/arm pain in people.
I've been dealing with the tennis elbow for a few weeks now as well and never even thought to put that together. I literally saw my VA doc last month about neck pain on my left side, it's my left elbow as well. Xrays showed mild degenerative disk disease and muscle inflammation. Follow up appt is in a couple of weeks to go over the xrays and hopefully give me a referral to physical therapy and/or a chiropractor. Definitely gonna bring up the elbow.

In the meantime I've just switched up my gym routine, avoiding lifts that agitate it. Along with icing it 3-4 times a day and one of those bands that keep pressure on it. It seems to be getting better but, I'll probably give it another week or two before I test it again.

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