tennis elbow: Does the racket matter???

[ricardo]

if you can hit the Center of Percussion (COP) area of the sweetspot each time, your shots will be shock-free.

read more....(Shock (frame)
http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/LC/RacquetStringTerms.html

if you are prone to tennis elbow, which is better?

- learn to hit the sweetspot (COP) consistently and use any racket

or

- hit anywhere in the stringbed (including the frame) and use specialized rackets that helps absorb the shock that you create?

My personal choice if i were prone to tennis elbow is to learn how to hit the sweetspot consistently. however, An arm-friendly racket can help me get there.

In addition, using a compact, slow swing significantly helps in accuracy. It also reduces shock if you mis-hit the ball.

 

[meowmix]

IMO, use a specialized frame, or just a frame that's got a low flex. If you go with the pain-inducing racket, you might kill your arm while learning to hit the COP.

 

[Klatu Verata Necktie]

It's not always up to you whether or not you hit the sweetspot. There's usually an opponent across the net who's trying to keep the ball away from you, take away your time, break your rhythm, and otherwise make your life difficult.

 

[fortunecookiesjc]

I think strings matter more.

 

[cj6666]

Tennis elbow does not only comes from hitting the balls. If you swing your racquet fast and hard, you could hurt yourself too. I would first choose a racquet neither too light or too heavy. Lower string tension to produce comfortable feel. And of course, learn the proper technique.

I disagree with the comment that hitting COP will be shock free. Shock and vibration are simply part of energy transfer. The trick is to reduce the amplitude of vibration by using all of above.

Best luck

 

[movdqa]

You can get tennis elbow with too heavy a racket on the service motion.

 

[ClubHoUno]

I had severe TE for years.

What I did:

1. Bought a less stiff racquet
2. Started using Babolat VS Natural gut strings
3. Hit it hard after that, and since that haven't suffered from TE.

 

[martini1]

This is what my coach told me:

1. dampener
2. proper technique (don't bend your elbow when contact/just before contact, power from shoulder turn, no "forearm swing")
3. don't swing too hard before you get good technique
4. flexible rackets, softer strings

...and

Ice, Glucosamine,
rest if you are feeling it on your elbow.

 

[Bottle Rocket]

if you can hit the Center of Percussion (COP) area of the sweetspot each time, your shots will be shock-free.

Nope. Not quite...

No matter where you hit the ball with your racket, you are still hitting the ball. The vibrations after you hit the ball are secondary.

If you drive your car into a tree, whether you hit the sweet spot on the car or not, you still just hit a tree. The passengers inside are still going to go from 60 mph to 0 in a fractions of a second.

The shock they are talking about there on TW is the "Initial, high-amplitude oscillation (jarring) of the racquet during or immediately after ball contact. " This obviously has something to do with elbow friendliness, but still says nothing about the true shock to the frame and your arm the instant that you contact the ball. This is where the stifness, the mass, and other factors play such a huge role.

Besides the fact that hitting the COP isn't going to eliminate this huge impact shock, there is no way you're ever going to be able to consistently do this. The COP is a spot. Literally a spot, it has no area. Hitting this spot exclusively, or even once, is rather ridiculous to even consider, unless you're playing against the most perfectly calibrated ball machine which doesn't even exist yet in a world with no weather or any other variables.

This isn't to say that hitting a clean ball shouldn't be a major focus of all tennis players including those suffering elbow issues. This is a huge factor that shouldn't be ignored.

Finally, your advice for using a slow and compact swing is not so great in my opinion. You'll obviously have to muscle the ball around for this to work, in most cases, and make it extremely difficult to use the mass of a racket to do the work for you - to plow through the ball. A slow compact swing might help with accuracy if you're dinking the ball around the court, but you're going to have quite a difficult time controlling the ball against hitting heavy top spin at you while your arm/wrist gets knocked around.

The treatments and equipment changes for tennis elbow are pretty well established at this point and there is a large enough pool of data to confirm most of the accepted practices. Some searching on this website and others will brings up all kinds of great information for those suffering from TE.

 

[NYCEnglish]

I think it's mostly down to technique.

I use a very stiff racquet (PDR GT) and before that a PDR and have ever had TE issues.

How many pro's get TE?

 

[Zielmann]

I think that the racquet specs can make you more prone to tennis elbow if you have improper technique. But a really heavy or really stiff frame itself won't do it to you. If it did, companies wouldn't make them like that, cause nobody would want to use them...

But I think that everybody (TE concerns or not) should learn to hit the sweetspot consistently. I mean, that's kinda the goal of learning proper form.

 

[ebrainsoft]

I agree, it's technique. Try using an open stance forehand, use your legs to generate power, relax you arm and kinda throw your racquet at the ball. A qualified teaching pro should be able to show you the proper steps. Note: not many teaching pros know how to teach the open stance forehand, so good luck finding one.

 

[Zielmann]

I agree, it's technique. Try using an open stance forehand, use your legs to generate power, relax you arm and kinda throw your racquet at the ball. A qualified teaching pro should be able to show you the proper steps. Note: not many teaching pros know how to teach the open stance forehand, so good luck finding one.

The guy I took from for years back in high school taught it to me. Also an open-stance backhand (and I use a two-handed). I'm not a huge fan of the open stance, especially for the backhand, but I learned them well enough to use them if I need to. Basically, I use the closed stance by default, and if I'm running wide for a shot, I go open stance. Also use the open stance for inside-out forehand. Just my experience though. Maybe I just got lucky to find a guy that taught it.

 

[Deleted member 25923]

It's not always up to you whether or not you hit the sweetspot. There's usually an opponent across the net who's trying to keep the ball away from you, take away your time, break your rhythm, and otherwise make your life difficult.

I agree. It's the same as saying use a 13 oz racquet to get your technique better so you don't have TE. Well, how can I get my technique better with a 13 oz racquet if that 13 oz racquet gives me TE!!!!!

It's a catch 22. I agree w/ meowmix. Get an arm friendly racquet within spec range that allows you to play with minimal plain so you can learn COP.

 

[squints]

It's the same as saying use a 13 oz racquet to get your technique better so you don't have TE. Well, how can I get my technique better with a 13 oz racquet if that 13 oz racquet gives me TE!!!!!
COP.

I get what you're saying. But I think what the question should be: what am doing that is still giving me tennis elbow? Why would switching to a heavier racquet make me focus on having better technique? If you're still getting tennis elbow then you have to realize you are in all likely hood doing something wrong and your technique is obviously incorrect in some way.

I never had TE till i switched to a heavier stiffer players racquet. and like any players racquet it rewarded me for good form and technique and punished me for having bad form or being lazy. If you consciously think about your game and make the necessary corrections, it'll make you a better player, and hopefully save your arm from falling off at the elbow.

though admittedly, some racquets are just beyond harsh.

 

[Steve Huff]

Heavier, shorter, and more flexible are better for the elbow (provided you have decent strokes), but too heavy is hard on the shoulder. You have to find the right balance. Shock is only one cause of stress on the elbow (and other joints). Just the stress of swinging can cause tennis elbow as you tire out the muscle in your forearm. Longer rackets have higher swingweights and add more leverage on you arm at ball contact. This can hurt your elbow too. Strings do make a difference too.

 

[Deleted member 25923]

Heavier, shorter, and more flexible are better for the elbow (provided you have decent strokes), but too heavy is hard on the shoulder. You have to find the right balance. Shock is only one cause of stress on the elbow (and other joints). Just the stress of swinging can cause tennis elbow as you tire out the muscle in your forearm. Longer rackets have higher swingweights and add more leverage on you arm at ball contact. This can hurt your elbow too. Strings do make a difference too.

I remember almost the exact words you spoke when I had my shoulder issue. It was like: "Too light, elbow problems. Too heavy, shoulder issues"

I had shoulder issues earlier.

I get what you're saying. But I think what the question should be: what am doing that is still giving me tennis elbow? Why would switching to a heavier racquet make me focus on having better technique? If you're still getting tennis elbow then you have to realize you are in all likely hood doing something wrong and your technique is obviously incorrect in some way.

I never had TE till i switched to a heavier stiffer players racquet. and like any players racquet it rewarded me for good form and technique and punished me for having bad form or being lazy. If you consciously think about your game and make the necessary corrections, it'll make you a better player, and hopefully save your arm from falling off at the elbow.

though admittedly, some racquets are just beyond harsh.

I agree. Actually, I typically don't even use frames that are stiff.

 

[Steve Huff]

Well, was the advice correct? I hope your shoulder problems are long gone.

 

[Deleted member 25923]

Well, was the advice correct? I hope your shoulder problems are long gone.

Some rest helped my shoulder, and the pain is gone. But, your advice also helped me realize that the Radical tour is just too much frame for me. I can't dictate play the way I would like to.

I'm demoing several frames come Monday. Aerogel 100, Aerogel 4D 300tour, Babolat Pure storm tour, and the microgel radical mp.

I choose higher 11s and lower 11s.

 

[Steve Huff]

I've been playing with a ki 10 PSE lately. Thursday, I pulled out a Ceramic Destiny (12.7 oz). My shoulder is dead today and in dire need of a massage. I'm playing with the 10 now, which is about 12 oz even strung, which is about the max I can handle now. I have a coupleof ki 5's also, which weigh about 11.7 oz strung. Sometimes, I'll go back to them for 6-7 weeks.