I'm tired of fixing things with my body...

[puppybutts]

Small rant. not really any point lol, but if any of you out there want to relate...

• Had tennis elbow last year, fixed it over winter with months of rest/stretch/strengthen. It came back as I got more in shape and played longer, am in process of changing racquets since other demos don't give me TE over long sessions, but my racquet does.
• Tried to hit with more topspin. got shoulder pain in the front, which I fixed by reverting my form and shifting my grip since I was rotating my arm in a weird way on follow through.
• Was learning how to do a more effective slice serve, got shoulder pain the back from swinging my arm weirdly. eventually got the form down and now have a nice slice serve.
• got right knee pain, i realized i was slamming down on my right foot during my serve instead of landing gently on my left. fixed it.
• right knee pain came back. from moving around the court too fast/too much and changing directions abruptly. rested, stretched/strengthened legs, fixed it.
• woke up with some freak pain in my hip flexor/groin that hasn't gone away for months, but it's slowly getting better as i continue to stretch and strengthen and stand more throughout the day and reduce my sitting. funnily enough, a week after this happened, that's when andy murray withdrew from some tournament talking about freak groin injury he woke up with.
• got a blood blister for the first time in my life on my right foot, which has always been a little wider and more problematic to find shoes for. kept it clean, let it heal, started taping my toe, fixed it.
• through all this past year that I started playing tennis again, my left leg/foot has been fine. but now today both my knees started hurting with a new kind of pain, and got arch pain for the first time in my left foot, i stopped split stepping or running for points, and in doubles i would just stand back when my partner served instead of crouching at the net ready to poach. the pain wasn't excessive, but my knees would sort of mini-buckle even when walking...i was kind of limping around. now i have to figure this out.

some of these things are normal parts of learning tennis, or even fun to go through, figure out, and triumph over. but now i'm just like....please dear lord i'm a relatively fit person, just let me play pain free! what's gonna break next? MY EYES? MY BUTT? makes me feel very fortunate that most my life i haven't had too many health issues to deal with

 

[SystemicAnomaly]

Better shoes and a heavier racket?

Lot of novice and intermediate players use a racket that is far too light. Or has a very low swingweight. When you start hitting the ball harder or you play against those who hit harder, a frame that has a low mass (weight) or swing weight can result in a lot of shock with ball impacts. This can be very hard on shoulders, elbows, wrists, and hands. Also make sure that you are using a grip size that is appropriate for you.

Best thing I've done for my feet, ankles, knees and hips is to switch from a tennis shoe to a Nike x-trainer. The Air Monarch IV. Very good heel support and outstanding cushioning in the midsole and the insole. I use these with a quality semi-custom 3/4 orthotic insole that provides additional heel support and the appropriate arch support for my feet. Because it is not a full-length insole, I can use them without removing the existing insole of the shoe. This provides added cushioning and support.

 

[cha cha]

That is the beauty of life. Your body is a machine tuned for self preservation and self destruction at the same time. Every day is a new surprise.
The only thing you can do about it is do rehab exercises on a semi-daily basis and hope for the best.

* ok, I will admit that sleeping well, eating right and generally not being too stressed helps as well. And booze, that is simply toxic, and not just for sports performance.

 

[LeeD]

Back off just a bit on the hours until you get no pain, then slowly add a few more hours per week.
Your body needs to adjust to tennis.

 

[Turbo-87]

Wait until you get older and things just become the new normal. Problems are no fun but at least they can be addressed in some manner, unlike some chronic health problems that can affect one's ability to play at all. I definitely know where you are coming from. I feel fortunate to even be able to step onto a court and play a fun game since there are people who would love to be playing but can't.

 

[ChaelAZ]

Small rant. not really any point lol, but if any of you out there want to relate...

• Had tennis elbow last year, fixed it over winter with months of rest/stretch/strengthen. It came back as I got more in shape and played longer, am in process of changing racquets since other demos don't give me TE over long sessions, but my racquet does.
• Tried to hit with more topspin. got shoulder pain in the front, which I fixed by reverting my form and shifting my grip since I was rotating my arm in a weird way on follow through.
• Was learning how to do a more effective slice serve, got shoulder pain the back from swinging my arm weirdly. eventually got the form down and now have a nice slice serve.
• got right knee pain, i realized i was slamming down on my right foot during my serve instead of landing gently on my left. fixed it.
• right knee pain came back. from moving around the court too fast/too much and changing directions abruptly. rested, stretched/strengthened legs, fixed it.
• woke up with some freak pain in my hip flexor/groin that hasn't gone away for months, but it's slowly getting better as i continue to stretch and strengthen and stand more throughout the day and reduce my sitting. funnily enough, a week after this happened, that's when andy murray withdrew from some tournament talking about freak groin injury he woke up with.
• got a blood blister for the first time in my life on my right foot, which has always been a little wider and more problematic to find shoes for. kept it clean, let it heal, started taping my toe, fixed it.
• through all this past year that I started playing tennis again, my left leg/foot has been fine. but now today both my knees started hurting with a new kind of pain, and got arch pain for the first time in my left foot, i stopped split stepping or running for points, and in doubles i would just stand back when my partner served instead of crouching at the net ready to poach. the pain wasn't excessive, but my knees would sort of mini-buckle even when walking...i was kind of limping around. now i have to figure this out.

some of these things are normal parts of learning tennis, or even fun to go through, figure out, and triumph over. but now i'm just like....please dear lord i'm a relatively fit person, just let me play pain free! what's gonna break next? MY EYES? MY BUTT? makes me feel very fortunate that most my life i haven't had too many health issues to deal with

I feel you. It has been very much the same for me over the last 5'ish years as the body does some natural attrition, but also from the fact I am just plain sick and tired of trying to make the best choices for my health, forgo over-indulgence, and keep fit. The combination has been easily seen in my stats and play. While I am working to get back on track physically and mentally, some crap just won't ever correct like the eye issues and chronic neck/back issues that started a few years ago. That shizz is just deflating anymore.

 

[LeeD]

Yeah, 70+ is no picnic.
Worse, senility hasn't quite set in yet, so we remember our late teens, and remember what we could do then.
Even almost worse again, we see what the 20 year olds can do in our sport, and how seamlessly they progress..

 

[LeeD]

You know what's really weird about old age and not playing much?
I used to have a decent serve. Now, my backhand is faster than my 1st serve.
That must mean my serves dropped 20 mph + in the past 5 years.

 

[sureshs]

Switch to Pickleball, the true lifelong outdoor sport.

 

[SystemicAnomaly]

Switch to Pickleball, the true lifelong outdoor sport.

Better option = ソフトテニス
Sofutotenisu.

 

[jeep2008]

Change shoes or even better start using custom orthotics . Play only on clay.Take one or two private lessons to see if you have any major technical issues that causes all these upper body injuries.Finally do 2 times per week resistant-band training and play tops two times per week Rest ,recover,swim,walk for the rest 3 days.

 

[SystemicAnomaly]

Change shoes or even better start using custom orthotics . Play only on clay.Take one or two private lessons to see if you have any major technical issues that causes all these upper body injuries.Finally do 2 times per week resistant-band training and play tops two times per week Rest ,recover,swim,walk for the rest 3 days.

Does the OP live in a part of South America or Europe where clay courts are common? They are extremely rare in most parts of the US &, probably, Canada. Where they are available here, it's usually at exclusive clubs that might have only one (or a few) clay courts.

I have not had the opportunity to play on clay courts for something like 35 years. The club that had these clay courts took them out long ago (too time consuming & expensive to maintain) and replaced them with several indoor hard courts.

Don't know how common clay courts are in Asia.

 

[Soul]

I was quite pleased here of late in that a long term knee and hand arthritis type issue has resolved once I stopped eating all beef, pork and dairy products. I'm eating a lot of fish. I'm not entirely sure what happened, but I'm pleased about it not having that pain. Avoiding mammal meats seems to be doing me good.

With that said, i believe i accidentally consumed some milk products the last two days and as a result this morning I'm a little bit ill.

 

[FiddlerDog]

Tennis is brutal and unhealthy for the aging body.
Pickleball is a legit suggestion.

 

[Dartagnan64]

Tennis is brutal and unhealthy for the aging body.
Pickleball is a legit suggestion.

Pickleball is very hard on the back. Swimming is the best activity for the aging body.

 

[SystemicAnomaly]

Tennis is brutal and unhealthy for the aging body.
Pickleball is a legit suggestion.

I agree with the post above. I tried pickleball once a few months back. I found it way too stressful to my lower back. Ping pong is probably a much better option. Pickleball using a foam (qst 36) training ball might be somewhat easier on the back than the standard plastic pickleball.

 

[ChaelAZ]

I was quite pleased here of late in that a long term knee and hand arthritis type issue has resolved once I stopped eating all beef, pork and dairy products. I'm eating a lot of fish. I'm not entirely sure what happened, but I'm pleased about it not having that pain. Avoiding mammal meats seems to be doing me good.

With that said, i believe i accidentally consumed some milk products the last two days and as a result this morning I'm a little bit ill.

There is a lot of new and upcoming science looking at the food programming we take in for our bodies. Food is genetic code that tells our bodies what to do, and a big part of that is inflammation. Dairy, meats, and even particular plants have been shown to affect people in negative ways depending on their genetic code. The general rules in this infancy of study are helpful and it will be interesting to see what things go. Still leary of the science of food since it balances between capitalistic efficiency and true optimal health, so thing like 3D printed meat products and even current meat substitutes that are genetic modified plants are not on my plate. lol

Anyway, keep doing what works and trying new things. A lot of folks just write it off without testing it on themselves to see how their own body reacts.