Eccentric Strength Training to Help with Tendonitis
Anyone who is physically active on a consistent basis runs the risk of developing a painful ailment called tendonitis, which is an irritation or inflammation of the tendon. This is often caused by overuse, and can create a lot of pain and misery for many people.
It’s a common myth that it’s an athlete’s issue for being so active and abusive to their bodies. But, it really isn’t. Physical therapists have helped several patients who have suffered with tendonitis simply as a result of gardening, painting, or any activity that produces a lot of repetitive movement from a particular tendon.
To give you a better idea of what happens, tendons are a thick chord that attaches your muscle to the bone. When that body part is consistently moving, it can irritate the tendon to the point of severe pain and sometimes even loss of motion. The pain can either build up gradually, or come on suddenly and unexpectedly.
Traditional Treatments for Tendonitis
Perhaps the most traditional forms of treatment for tendonitis start with resting the aggravated tendon by stopping all activity, applying ice to the area within the first few hours, and taking an OTC (over-the-counter) anti-inflammatory oral or topical drug.
After a while, and if it doesn’t drastically improve, your doctor will most likely send you to physical therapy, suggest corticosteroid injections, or both. The physical therapist can help you work through this with various techniques. One relatively new one is getting some attention.
Eccentric Strength Training to the Rescue
The above mentioned treatments are very helpful, and will remain so for a long time. However, there is a relatively new trend gaining in popularity to help with tendonitis. The reason for its popularity is that it addresses long term results, as well as aiding in prevention. And, since complete rest is nearly impossible for many, and ignored by others, it’s a good thing something else has come along.
Eccentric strength training is on the scene, and for a good reason. Rather than treating the symptoms, EST goes deeper than that and gets right into treating the actual problem, allowing the opportunity to not only heal, but strengthen the tendon to help prevent future problems.
Treating with eccentric training is basically removing the concentric element out of the movement, and concentrating more on the eccentric portion. An example of concentric and eccentric is when doing a bicep curl, lifting the weight (shortening of the tendon) is the concentric portion of the lift, while going back down and lengthening the tendon is eccentric. With eccentric, you would lower it slowly and purposely, rather than lifting in that manner.
The general idea is that by strengthening the tendon with lengthening movements, it will speed up the healing process. It’s a treatment program that is often followed by athletes for about 6-12 weeks, at least once a day.
Examples of Eccentric Strength Training
While tendonitis can occur anywhere there is a tendon, two common complaints are in the Achilles and elbow. And, there are specific exercises that can help both of these, as well as other areas.
For instance, eccentric standing calf raises can help Achilles tendonitis…
• Standing on the edge of a step, with the opposite foot off the ground, gradually lower or drop the heel you wish to work on, until you can’t stretch any further
• Put the opposite foot on the step to take the weight off the foot you just lowered, without using any strength to get it back in position
• Repeat these steps for approximately 15 or 20 reps
With elbow tendonitis, if both elbows are suffering with tendonitis, you should have a partner to help you through the following steps. If not, then your other arm can do the assisting. Take a look…
• Place a weight in your hand, keeping your elbow locked in a contracted position, angled with your arm in the air just above the face
• Gradually lower the weight until the tricep muscle is stretched to your limit
• Without lifting the arm back up, remove the weight, until you can get your arm back to the starting position
• Repeat this steps for approximately 15 reps
As mentioned earlier, the key to eccentric exercise and training to work best is that the concentric element of the move needs to be eliminated. By not doing so, it can put your current injury at more risk for further damage. An injured tendon typically responds well to eccentric strength training, and helps to reduce the pain and discomfort that you might normally experience when recovering from an injury.
The Results
Some physical therapists are finding that eccentric strength training is having positive results in rehabilitating tendonitis and getting people back to the level they were at before the injury, with the strength improving significantly.
And, with positive results in healing, along with reduced pain and discomfort levels, eccentric training and rehab will continue to grow in popularity.