Pain on the outside of the elbow where the tendons that straighten the wrist and fingers attach to the bone. The tendons wear down or develop tiny tears, and the pain starts mild and builds over weeks.
Repeating the same gripping or wrist movement many times, in racket sports, weight training, gaming, or playing an instrument. It is most common in adults between 30 and 50, but teenagers get it from the same repeated movements.
Pain on the inside of the elbow in young throwers, where the growth plate is irritated by the repeated pull of the forearm muscles. It only happens while the growth plates are still open.
Throwing too much, too hard, or with poor technique before the elbow has finished growing, most often in baseball pitchers, but also in cricket, javelin and tennis serving.
A stretch or tear of the ligaments that connect the bones of the wrist, causing pain, swelling and bruising, and sometimes a popping feeling at the time of injury.
A fall onto an outstretched hand, common in skateboarding, snowboarding, basketball, gymnastics and simply tripping.
If something hurts, stop. These exercises support recovery and prevention; they do not replace a doctor or physiotherapist.
In anyone still growing, pain on the inside of the elbow that comes on with throwing, a drop in throwing speed or accuracy, or pain that persists after rest, should be checked by a doctor before returning to throwing. Growth-plate injuries can cause lasting damage if you throw through them.
For the first few days, rest from the activity that caused it and ice for 15 to 20 minutes at a time, a few times a day. After that, gentle movement and the exercises above help the tendon or ligament recover. Complete rest for weeks makes the joint stiff and weak, but returning to full activity before the pain has gone is the main reason these injuries come back.
You cannot always tell without an X-ray. See a doctor if the wrist is very swollen or out of shape, if you cannot move it, if there is numbness in the fingers, if pain is severe, or if it has not improved after a few days. Wrist fractures are common in teenagers who fall on an outstretched hand, and some are easy to miss.
Had an Elbow/Forearm injury? Share it in the Injury Archive, open from 30 October to 30 November 2026.