Have you ever wondered why you’re suffering from tennis elbow pain when you’re not an athlete? Elbow injuries are not limited to athletes; rather, office workers, homemakers, and fitness enthusiasts are vulnerable to them. Also, when you accidentally twist your arm while lifting heavy weights or working out, you can face problems such as pain, stiffness, or swelling in your elbow.
One of the easiest ways to manage such conditions is by using the right support, such as an elbow support. The confusion might come from choosing which is better for tennis elbow between a Velcro strap and a compression sleeve. These orthopedic supports are designed to offer a suitable support and protection for effective elbow joint recovery.
Let’s uncover how a tennis elbow strap vs a sleeve can make your recovery journey pain-free.
Is a Compression Sleeve or a Strap Better for Tennis Elbow?
Seek your doctor's advice on which support is best for the severity of your tennis elbow injury.
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A Velcro Strap for Tennis Elbow: It is worn just below the elbow joint. It offers a gentle compression, which helps relieve inflammation, stress, and pressure on the inflamed tendons. It acts as a shock absorber, which redistributes the strain away from your injured tendon. It can be worn while doing repetitive tasks like lifting, typing, or playing racquet sports.
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Compression Sleeve for Tennis Elbow Pain: Covers a larger area, typically from mid-bicep to mid-forearm. It offers gentle, even compression across your entire arm. This improves blood flow, reduces swelling, and provides all-around warmth and support to the elbow joint. Sleeves are often recommended for continuous, lightweight comfort throughout the day.
Can I Wear Both a Tennis Elbow Strap and Sleeve Together?
You can wear both a tennis elbow strap and a sleeve together. Many people find this beneficial for a higher level of support. Wearing both of them allows you to combine the effects of targeted compression and broad support. The crucial part is to make sure that both devices are fitted correctly to avoid discomfort and further injury.
How they work together
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Elbow Strap: The strap is crafted to be worn on the forearm, just below your elbow. It applies targeted compression to the muscles and tendons, which changes the angle of pull on the tendon at the elbow. This reduces the strain on the inflamed area and helps to alleviate pain when doing daily tasks.
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Elbow Sleeve: An elbow compression sleeve covers the entire elbow joint. It offers gentle compression, warmth, and mobility to the surrounding joint and muscles. This helps increase blood circulation, which is necessary for recovery. Also, it aids in relieving inflammation and swelling and promoting a quicker recovery.
You can gain a combination of benefits by wearing the sleeve under the strap:
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Enhanced Support: The elbow strap provides focused pressure on the area of tendon strain. In contrast, the sleeve offers gentle, overall compression and stability to the entire joint.
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Better Pain Management: Wearing a tennis elbow strap together with a sleeve can be effective for pain relief during activities that intensify pain, such as playing sports or performing heavy lifting.
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Reduced Irritation: The sleeve can provide a comfortable layer under the strap, which may prevent skin irritation from the strap's material.
Should I Wear My Elbow Support All Day?
A tennis elbow support is not meant to be worn all day long if you have not been dealing with a severe condition. Your daily activities determine how long you should wear it. You should ask your healthcare provider about when to wear it and when you should remove it.
This gives effective results, as you will be wearing it according to your activity level. Usually, it is worn while doing activities that trigger pain. It may be writing, typing, eating, lifting, throwing, or sports like basketball, handball, or volleyball. It is effective to wear the tennis elbow support during activities and to remove it when you’re resting. This is to allow your elbow muscles to breathe and naturally strengthen.
The severity of the elbow injury can also determine how long you can wear the tennis elbow support. If the pain is mild, you may wear it for a shorter period than when it is frequently aching. Use elbow support binders with skin-friendly materials. You can consider a Leeford Ortho elbow support binder that is made with 4-way stretchable fabrics. Its features help you to wear it during activities without experiencing skin irritations.
How Tight Should a Tennis Elbow Strap Be?
Most people overlook how tight a tennis elbow strap should be, not knowing that a proper fit is also crucial for effective, faster healing and comfort. Here are the fitting tips:
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Blood Circulation Test: Your strap is too tight if you notice a white color change on the skin.
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Comfort: You shouldn't experience any discomfort, like irritation, chafing, or blisters, when wearing it. Adjust it until you achieve a secure and comfortable fit.
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Stability: You can consider a Leeford Ortho Tennis Elbow Support, as it has adjustable straps. This protects your elbow from a wobbly experience, keeping it stable even when worn for extended hours during the day.
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Motion Freedom: Make sure that you adjust the straps such that they're not restricting your elbow movement.
Do Elbow Sleeves Help with Weightlifting Pain?
Elbow sleeves are often worn by athletes and gym enthusiasts for various reasons. Your forearm muscles and tendons experience repeated tension when lifting weight. This can happen when doing bicep curls, bench presses, triceps dips, etc. The continuous irritation in the tennis elbow tendons may intensify pain.
Here’s how elbow sleeves help with weightlifting pain:
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Increase Blood Flow: Lifting weights while wearing sleeves helps improve blood circulation, and this aids in relieving inflammation, swelling, and pain.
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Joint Support and Stability: Sleeves apply gentle compression to the muscles and tendons around the elbow. Also, they keep your elbow joint stable during movements and reduce the risk of injury.
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Prevent Injury: Sleeves provide support to the elbow joint, which reduces chances of overuse injury or sudden injuries.
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Enhance Performance: Wearing sleeves helps to gain extra strength when lifting weights.
Wrapping Up
Tennis elbow might sound like a condition experienced by athletes only, but the truth is, anyone can be affected by it since we all use our elbows and arms. This condition can occur in various settings, such as offices, household chores, or even during our favorite hobbies. Tennis elbow doesn’t have to disrupt your daily life; choosing the right one and the right care helps you heal effectively. If you’re weighing your options in this tennis elbow brace comparison, remember that comfort, fit, and activity type are what truly matter.
Always ask your healthcare provider for advice on whether you need to wear the tennis elbow support with Velcro straps or compression sleeves. You can be advised on whether you should wear the support frequently or not, according to your condition's severity. You can consider a Leeford Ortho Tennis Elbow Support that offers targeted support to athletes, workers, students, etc. It's designed with lightweight and anatomical fabrics that fit naturally to your elbow, helping you recover comfortably, pain-free, and hassle-free.
