Tennis Elbow anyone?

Anyone ever get from tennis elbow from swinging a mallet? I was working on a Pele yesterday and now I can't even hold a cup of coffee. What's the best remedy? What's the recovery time? I browsed some threads but no juice... Orders are piling up... Grrrr.

I think "tennis elbow" must be pretty common among mallet and chisel carvers.
I also suffer from hand cramps due to clutching the chisels...but I did find a
solution several years ago. Now I mostly carve with an Arbortech Power Chisel.
you need to get a bunch of chisel attachments but it sure saves a lot of
wear and tear.

This is related to VampiressRN's ergonomic study on this thread:

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=47690&forum=7&30

I wonder how the study is going?

Anyway, I never reported my "tennis shoulder". What I frequently do is swap mallet/chisel hands every 10 min or so. My doctor prescribed Meloxicam for inflammation. Can't say it worked really well...

after making a living selling tikis for the last few years. I've had several repetitive use injuries..

my right bicept was hurting like hell for months there...

A follow up: I noticed less shoulder stress on my mallet arm if I keep the mallet closer to my body. That thing's heavier the farther you hold it away from you. That might reduce the fatigue a little.

On 2015-03-17 08:49, pjc5150 wrote:
after making a living selling tikis for the last few years. I've had several repetitive use injuries..

my right bicept was hurting like hell for months there...

So jeff, were there any cures? Other than stopping for a while?

Thanks BigT for the thread. Like you I wonder if there has been any progress made from the study. I'm definitely gonna look into a jaw horse though. Sounds rad. (By the way Jeff how's that headhunter comin? Haven't seen finished pics yet on FB. Did you finish it?)
Conga thanks for the arbor tech tip. I'll take a look into that. I guess for now i'll just grab an elbow brace from CVS wait for this thing to heal up a bit.

Or maybe I won't....

On 2015-03-17 09:07, AlohaTexasTikiCo wrote:
Thanks BigT for the thread. Like you I wonder if there has been any progress made from the study. I'm definitely gonna look into a jaw horse though. Sounds rad. (By the way Jeff how's that headhunter comin? Haven't seen finished pics yet on FB. Did you finish it?)
Conga thanks for the arbor tech tip. I'll take a look into that. I guess for now i'll just grab an elbow brace from CVS wait for this thing to heal up a bit.

Or maybe I won't....

IBUPROFEN

UGH.. I know your pain...

I went through a BAD spell after spending 6-7 hours of roughing with mallet & chisel on my Lono carving. I've since learned to listen to my body, take many breaks, and to walk away even when I want to keep going.

I've also learned since that every strike of the mallet sends shocking vibrations through the arm, and it affects the joints and nerves themselves whether you feel it or not. It took me a good 6 weeks to get past the numbness and tingling, and that was after a couple weeks where the arm and hand would literally seize up like it had a zombie-mind of its own. It was weird and scary, beyond the pain..

NOT FUN.

Suggestions- Ibuprofen as mentioned, soaking in a warm epson salt bath (soothing), ice for 15 minutes twice a day (reduces swelling)... Even when it feels better, the injury is still present deep inside and can flare again quickly.. So give it a bit more time to heal than you think.

...And learning better positions to work in to minimize the wear and tear on your arms and back, which it sounds like you've learned/are learning.

Good luck and feel better.

~Skully

[ Edited by: Capt'n Skully 2015-03-17 10:42 ]

Thanks Skully... Sounds like you've been there on what I have right now. Hurts like hell. I took ibuprofen first thing this morning and iced it down. Epsom soak sounds like a good idea too. I'm thinking about maybe switching hands. Going lefty. Southpaw. They say it's good for your overall brain function to switch up the routine every once in a while. Maybe at some point I'll be a switch hitting carver? At least I would be able to get through some of these orders. Hate making people wait... Thanks for the advice!!

I'm not sure if this will work in your case but several years ago I pulled a muscle while surfing down at South Padre Island. I used Arnica cream which is a Mexican herbal folk remedy and was surprised by how well it worked. It was pretty easy to find down there being so close to Mexico. They actually had some in Walmart. It may be harder to find in your area but might be worth looking in to.

Surfin with the Mexican herbalists. You are an onion of many layers Amate! I'll look for it...

Aloha Tex I just know most of my body is going to ache and figure I must really like this carving thing.

So true Cy. After sitting around most of the morning I wound up carving in the afternoon. Had to make some adjustments on my approach but I was actually able to make some progress.

WOW! so much support I love TC !!!

When working on High voltage electric at OSU we had to tape splices with
rolls and rolls of tape for insulation.
And there were three phases for each circuit so this would be hours of
going round and round pulling hard and wrapping the splice.

Well this gave me Tennis Elbow they gave me muscle relaxers, did nothing.
So the pain went on for years, even though we did not do splices every day.

It did go away on it's own after leaving that job and no more tapping, but did take a year or so to go
away.

But there are many new pains now so there's always something.

Just think of the guys who used to carve huge stone carvings.
Excuse me Egyptian slave master "I seem to have a pain in my elbow and won't be able to work today"

some say you will get better some say your screwed, lol I say pray about it and the awnsers will come!

There could be several causing factors:
How do you carve? - are you hell bent on getting something done with one swing or do you tap your way through a carving?
How long do you carve? - when your done, are you done (meaning that you have exhausted all your energy) or do stop often?
Where are the logs that you carve in relation to body position? - WillCarve showed me that bringing you carving up to your own personal level will help with fatigue. We use a system of stacking cement blocks (to adjust the height) and using 4x4s as rails (so the logs can easily roll). Straining to reach a certain angle or position will add to the discomfort of your elbow, or back, or neck - so make sure to move around.
What type of mallet are you using? - Urethane mallets soften the blows. The mallets weight could also be affecting your injury - I use a 20oz mallet for the roughing an a 12oz mallet for detail, and a small homemade tapper for fine detail.
How sharp are your chisels? - Sharp blades means less effort in getting them to cut (Benzartism). Knowing how to sharpen a blade can not be stressed enough!
Is it a repetitive injury or something you did with one misguided blow? and kept working?
TOOLS - there are a million of them to choose from. Work smart, not hard. Good luck and feel better.

On 2015-03-18 05:30, tikiskip wrote:

Just think of the guys who used to carve huge stone carvings.
Excuse me Egyptian slave master "I seem to have a pain in my elbow and won't be able to work today"

So that's what happened to the Sphinx's nose. Mystery solved!

On 2015-03-18 06:43, AlohaStation wrote:
There could be several causing factors:
How do you carve? - are you hell bent on getting something done with one swing or do you tap your way through a carving?
How long do you carve? - when your done, are you done (meaning that you have exhausted all your energy) or do stop often?
Where are the logs that you carve in relation to body position? - WillCarve showed me that bringing you carving up to your own personal level will help with fatigue. We use a system of stacking cement blocks (to adjust the height) and using 4x4s as rails (so the logs can easily roll). Straining to reach a certain angle or position will add to the discomfort of your elbow, or back, or neck - so make sure to move around.
What type of mallet are you using? - Urethane mallets soften the blows. The mallets weight could also be affecting your injury - I use a 20oz mallet for the roughing an a 12oz mallet for detail, and a small homemade tapper for fine detail.
How sharp are your chisels? - Sharp blades means less effort in getting them to cut (Benzartism). Knowing how to sharpen a blade can not be stressed enough!
Is it a repetitive injury or something you did with one misguided blow? and kept working?
TOOLS - there are a million of them to choose from. Work smart, not hard. Good luck and feel better.

Thanks Alohastation. To be honest, my mallet and chisels are all pretty cheap. In fact all my tools are cheap even my chainsaw. I guess I'm just not ready to drop 40 or $50 on one chisel you know? I'll get there but I'm not quite ready to make that kind of financial sacrifice. As far as how hard am I working and how long do I work? I only spent about an hour yesterday. I wouldn't say I was swinging exceptionally hard. I was striking with a rubber mallet at about chest height. Trying to hollow out the top of a piece of cedar to place a tiki torch canister in for a Disney Pele order. I was picking up the log quite a bit. I bet that is what led to the injury. Who knows. I've seen pictures of your set up and it looks pretty optimal. I may try my own version of that. I really appreciate you chiming in and lending me your advice. I think you're right on the better the tools the less the stress on your body.

Medicinal Marijuana's the go :D

A you sure you dont secretly play tennis, no one will judge you here.

"not ready to drop 40 or $50 on one chisel"

If you do this to make money I would buy the best or at least close to the best.
Why beat your self up with bad tools?

I hate Harbor Freight tools, don't know why people tell me I would love that place.

A great tool will last longer and make working with it not such a chore.
And hey look at all the pills you may save by not killin yourself with dull chisels.

nah tennis ain't my bag Watango. Medicinal Marijuana in Texas? not yet... For now I'll just hit the vegemite...

Skip what brand of chisel or (set of chisels) would you recomend?

If you are carving palm or soft woods, I recommend the Flexcut Sculptor Set (about $100 for 4 large chisels and they are warranted for life). Be sure to buy from a reputable dealer - don't buy the cheap chinese stuff. The quality of metal chisels are made from is what you are paying for. Learn how to sharpen! Chisels don't need to be expensive to be sharp (the better ones will hold a sharp edge better). Dropping money on quality tools is returned in how well they perform. Toss that rubber mallet in the nearest trash can as soon as possible and invest in a real carving mallet - that alone may cure your bad elbow!

On 2015-03-18 13:21, Watango productions wrote:
A you sure you dont secretly play tennis, no one will judge you here.

LOL!!

Back on the subject of remedies, I'm sure a Google search will pull up all kinds of info but I'll give a quick summary of what works for me (and I've tried just about everything.)

• Do an online search for Tennis Elbow Brace. It's pretty much like a guitar capo for your tendon. It relieves pressure at the elbow.
• Ibuprofen.
• Ice. Wrap an ice pack in a towel and ice often.
• Acupuncture. I was somewhat skeptical but I was getting desperate; I couldn't hold a shaver without shooting pains in my arm and could barely turn a doorknob. 5 minutes after the guy starts putting needles in my legs (yup, needling the legs to fix the arms) the pain magically subsides. It's actually the thing that works best for me but insurance will only allow me so many sessions.

Everybody's different though so what worked for me may not map 100% to you.

• fm

Hey FM thanks for chiming in. Yeah of course I did a Google search -learned a little bit but as far solutions I didn't find much. I guess I didn't look hard enough. Part of me likes communicating with people who've actually experienced what I'm going through. Anyway yeah I'd I guess I need to go get that brace, my father-in-law swears by it. I'm really intrigued by the acupuncture though I think I might definitely look into that. I've heard stories of acupuncture working magic on all types of things. Thanks again for your input!!

It may take a while to clear up (sorry) I got a good case of tennis elbow land paddling my longboard (skate). Took about 6 months AFTER I stopped paddling for it to go away.

Yeah Mike, I hear yas. It's still sore although it's improving slightly. I've even been carving too. Maybe not so smart but this Pele ain't gonna carve itself! Anyway I have an old friend who specializes in oriental medicine and he's gonna give me an acupuncture treatment this weekend. We'll see...

I teach tennis for a living and tennis elbow is caused from something different that you are doing and then tennis aggravates it. It's repetitive motion of the elbow that causes it. So a few times I will get a zing in my elbow when I teach but because of what I did on the weekend. Like vacuum, hammer, clean windows or brush the pool. But it's the repetitive motion. So when I play tennis I will get a zing in my elbow but that makes me think more on better technique when I hit and it goes away. I ask people i teach if they had done something differnt, they always say no but with a few questions we figure out that they painted or they started lifting heavier weights and then that is the caus But there are straps that go on the forearm that work great because they stop the vibration from going to the elbow. Rang from 15 to 50 bucks. And you wear them all time while you are injured. To take care of tennis elbow use the Dixie cup method after every use. Get Dixie cup fill it almost filled of water freeze it. After frozen rip top inch of paper cup to get to the ice and rub it all over the elbow basically 3 to 4 times a day along with taking anti inflamitory. To work out tennis elbow get a small bouncy beach ball the cheap ones in the tall cage displays. With your hand wide using your fingure tips squeeze the ball higher than your head against a wall and bounce as fast as you can for 20 secs but like less then a inch of the wall really close and do a couple of reps a day to strength it but only do this if your arm is feeling fine don't do while injured. Then if non of that works what the hell do I know.