Tennis is one of the best cardio workouts out there, working almost every major muscle group while incorporating fierce competition and challenging the most strategic of minds. It’s no surprise that it’s one of the most popular sports there is, though overplaying can leave you susceptible to elbow injuries. Whether you’re a seasoned tennis player, a pro, or a beginner, how do sports medicine experts suggest you reduce your chances of injuring yourself?
We spoke with Dr. Timothy Bain, founder of B3 Medical and sports medicine doctor who’s worked with athletes of all levels of competition from various sports and leagues including John Isner, record-breaking, four-time Newport champion!
A holistic approach to sports training
At our state-of-the-art training facility at B3 Medical Saddlebrook, Dr. Tim Bain, PJ Orgass, and other experienced medical staff and sports trainers work with elite athletes of all levels to improve their physical and cognitive performance, reduce injury, recover more quickly from injuries, in addition to providing a world-class nutritional support program.
“One patient I had, he had an old shoulder injury from years ago, playing tennis. I worked on his shoulder a little bit and got him better – even though others hadn’t been able to. But that’s because I approach things a bit differently. I added more of a holistic approach to the shoulder. It’s not just the shoulder that I looked, but instead, everything else and how these catch and world with the shoulder.”
True Preventative Care
Preventative care isn’t like taking a vaccine or a shot to prevent illness, according to Dr. Bain. True preventative care is practiced through improving physical performance, no matter what your sport or job is.
“Everything we do is based on how to maximize performance and get you moving – because I believe that movement is life. When you’re not able to move, you start to break down, and that’s when you start to experience health problems,” says Dr. Bain.
Through B3 Medical’s Sports Performance Medicine program, trainers work with athletes not only on a physical level to improve their strength and endurance, but also cognitively to help them develop faster reaction times and new responses to situations in tennis, hockey, figure skating, or whatever their sport may be.
Nutritional rehab
“Nutrition is of paramount importance not only for athletic life but for supplying your body with the right nutrients to recover after sustaining an injury like tennis elbow,” says Dr. Bain.
If you have sustained an injury and are in recovery, choosing the most supportive options for healing will make sure you don’t end up with chronic pain conditions or patterns of compensation that change the way your joints and muscles move. Proper nutrition that reduces inflammation, paired with physical therapy, can improve blood flow to the tendons in the arm, speeding healing of tennis elbow and the painful symptoms associated with it.
The sports medicine professionals at B3 Medical understand the value of holistic, rehab-based options for targeting specific sources of pain caused by injuries such as tennis elbow and apply these principles to help athletes, as well as everyday patients, recover more quickly.
Has tennis elbow impacted your game?
At B3 Medical, our focus is on helping our patients avoid surgery, and instead, get healthy by adopting a new approach to healthcare that focuses on wellness as opposed to sickness. Working with our trainers, we can help you develop your game while strengthening your body, recovering more quickly from injury, and improving your overall health and fitness. Contact the professionals at B3 Medical today for an appointment and personalized treatment plan!