Professor Paddle: Forearm Pain? vanlinelogistics.com Seattle Washington (WA) Warehousing & Order Fulfillment vanlinelogistics.com Seattle Washington (WA) Warehousing & Order Fulfillment vanlinelogistics.com Seattle Washington (WA) Commercial Relocation vanlinelogistics.com Warehousing & Order Fulfillment
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Courtney
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  Quote Courtney Replybullet Topic: Forearm Pain?
    Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 8:52am
Anyone ever strained both of your forearms paddling?  Mine have been hurting for a month now and every time I go back out to paddle I re-injure them.  Any clue's, other than laying off of paddling, on how to heal them?  It hurts when I lift things and when I'm cuting the lawn when I move them as if I were lifting weights to work on my forearms.
 
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Jed Hawkes
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  Quote Jed Hawkes Replybullet Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 9:20am
does it feel muscular or in your tendons?
The line will become apparent
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  Quote chipmaney Replybullet Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 9:31am
almost assuredly tendinitis. rest, ibuprofin, ice....mine usually comes on strongest when the water gets really cold but goes away in the summer. usually, wearing an extra layer or two just on my elbows helps. also, google ways to stretch your forearms muscles and integrate that into your put-in warm-up routine.
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  Quote Ellingferd Replybullet Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 9:50am
Yep, probably tendinitis of the elbow, or what is commonly referred to as tennis elbow. I have had the problem before and I usually just take ibuprofen and lay off for a few days.
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  Quote dave Replybullet Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 9:53am
Courtney, I cant remember if you paddle with a bent shaft or straight? I used to get this exact same pain when I used straight shaft paddles, but not anymore with a bent shaft.
 
Also, a rudder may help......
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Courtney
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  Quote Courtney Replybullet Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 10:03am

I must need both cups of coffee in the mornings before I write something.  I meant my bicepts.  It feels like I keep tearing them.  It's a sharp pain when it happens and then it's really sore if I use them afterwards.  I know it's not tendonitis.  It's definitely an injury.  And yes I do use a bent shaft.

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  Quote water wacko Replybullet Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 10:28am
Courtney, have Jimmy rub your arms. Massage is a great way to get rid of muscle stuff like that. Mine would hurt around the connection points in my elbows, both above and below. I think of it this way: the muscles get stuck to each other and so doing some "cross-grain" massage helps break those adhesions apart. Stretching when I'm feeling tight, in general, helps out a lot, too. Just stretch when it hurts, adding massage when it keeps hurting. Anti-inflammatories are good in the moment, but not great for prolonged use. Hope this helps...
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  Quote jP Replybullet Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 11:15am
Great suggestions so far- especially stretching and massage. Also don't forget hydration. All those fibers and cables need lubrication to operate.
 
I went through a spell of really bad tendenitous foillowing a particular type of work I was doing a few years back. Acupunture helped, too.
 
But here's one thing you should really look at: Your forward stroke technique. If you perform it properly you shouldn't really be loading up those arm muscles that much. The power comes from your core. All your arms do is connect your engine block (your torso) to the paddle. They shouldn't be pulling on it, if you do the proper wind-up and rotate at your naval (according to Scott Shipley and lots of other top paddlers). It's something I never stop striving to perfect.
 
I mean, on the tail end of my repetitive stress injuries from work, in 2003 I got hit by a car (and I mean SLAMMED onto the hood- cracked my helmet and injured my back, neck and shoulders really bad). My old forearm and bicep issues came back with a vengeance that made me doubt if I'd ever paddle again.
 
But trying to observe proper technique has really helped hone everything again since about 2005. I also try to discipline myself to sit up straight, but I still catch myself slouching when I paddle.
 
Every body is different, but it may be worth examining these details or revisiting them.
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  Quote arnobarno Replybullet Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 12:19pm
When I injured my rotator cuff, a good amount of the pain was felt in the bicep.

More importantly, as much as I appreciate the advice of Dr. JP, Dr. Barton, Dr. D4, and the esteemed Dr. Arno, maybe there are some real doctors in Monroe that could look at this.
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Courtney
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  Quote Courtney Replybullet Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 12:45pm
I'm thinking I did something while doing a dufect or something to the like.  It doesn't hurt to do a forward stroke or brace or anything.  It's usually an odd stroke that sends it hurting again.  I could go see a doctor but all they're going to do is send me for some x-rays or MRI and then tell me to lay off of it and maybe give me some exercises to do and it would cost me alot of money.  I heard something about Jon Almquist having this happen to him too. 
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  Quote Jimmy Replybullet Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 1:44pm
[QUOTE=water wacko]Courtney, have Jimmy rub your arms.QUOTE]
 
HaHaHa!!!  That's pretty funny.  I'll poke them though .
 
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  Quote irenen Replybullet Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 3:25pm
I think Jon tore his biceps muscle, it detached on one end and from what I hear it formed a lump in his upper arm, but he did recover use of it I think (this is all just stuff I heard from other people so I could be wrong.)  My sister also tore a biceps muscle when she had a rotator cuff injury.  Apparently you can also just inflame that muscle.  Does any of this sound familiar in this article?
 
 
I know how frustrating it can be trying to get doctors to help out.  As part of therapy I agree that stretching and strengthening is huge for preventing future injury, hot yoga really helped me when I had tendinitis but if you have an actual injury like a tear I think they will tell you to take a strong anti-inflammatory (like probably prescription) and lay off of it for a while.  I can ask my sister what she was told to do that helped, she could barely raise her arm and is fine now so hang in there!
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