8 Best Exercises to Relieve Tennis Elbow

Tennis elbow, or lateral epicondylitis, is a painful condition caused by overuse. It occurs when repetitive strain triggers inflammation or microtearing in the tendons at the elbow. As the name suggests, it commonly affects people who play tennis. But it can affect anyone who regularly does repetitive arm and hand movements. 

When you have tennis elbow, rest from aggravating movements is an essential first step to reduce inflammation. Then, targeted exercises can help heal and strengthen the affected tendons and muscles.

What are the best exercises for tennis elbow? 

Stretching and strengthening your forearm muscles may reduce the pain from tennis elbow. And the right exercises can also improve muscle function, allowing you to keep up with necessary activities. 

Just make sure you talk to your healthcare provider before you start an at-home exercise routine to help your tennis elbow. Once they’ve signed off, try these eight exercises to manage soreness and restore function. 

1. Wrist extension hold

The wrist and finger extensors help keep your wrists stable during movement. So it's important to keep these muscles flexible and strong. An exercise that involves contracting them for brief periods can help you build strength. 

1. Sit with your forearm supported on a table. Bend your elbow at 90 degrees, with your palm facing down. 

2. Without moving your arm, lift your hand and fingers off the table. 

3. Keep your hand and fingers lifted for 10 seconds, then relax them back down on the table. 

4. Repeat 10 times, holding for 10 seconds each time. 

2. Wrist extension (elbow bent)

This exercise can help decrease strain on your forearm tendons over time, as your muscles will be able to support more force. 

1. Sit with your forearm supported on a table and your elbow bent at a 90-degree angle. (Your hand should be hanging over the edge of the table.) 

2. Hold a small weight, water bottle, or can of soup in your hand, with your palm facing down. 

3. Without moving your arm, lift your wrist up as far as you can. 

4. Hold this position for 1 second, then slowly lower your wrist for a 3-second count. 

5. Perform 3 sets of 10 repetitions, taking 1 second to hold your wrist up and 3 seconds to lower your wrist each time. 

3. Wrist extension (elbow extended)

Your wrist extensors have to work harder to stabilize your wrist when your elbow is extended. Like the above exercise, this move helps strengthen those muscles. 

1. Sit with your forearm supported on a table and your elbow extended straight. (Your hand should be hanging over the edge of the table.) 

2. Hold a small weight, water bottle, or can of soup in your hand, with your palm facing down.

3. Lift your wrist up as far as you can without moving your arm. 

4. Hold this position for 1 second, then slowly lower your wrist for a 3-second count. 

5. Perform 3 sets of 10 repetitions, taking 1 second to hold your wrist up and 3 seconds to lower your wrist each time. 

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4. Wrist flexion

Strong wrist flexors and wrist extensors are important for wrist stability. This exercise helps strengthen your wrist flexor muscles.

1. Sit with your forearm supported on a table and your elbow bent at a 90-degree angle. (Your hand should be hanging over the edge of the table.)

2. Hold a small weight, water bottle, or can of soup in your hand, with your palm facing up. 

3. Without moving your arm, bend your wrist toward you as far as you can. 

4. Hold this position for 1 second, then slowly lower your wrist for a 3-second count. 

5. Perform 3 sets of 10 repetitions, taking 1 second to hold your wrist up and 3 seconds to lower your wrist each time. 

5. Towel twist 

In this exercise, you will alternate between bending and extending your wrists. This will help strengthen your forearm muscles and grip. 

1. Sit in a chair and hold the ends of a small, twisted-up towel in both hands, with your palms facing down and your elbows extended. 

2. Twist your hands in opposite directions as if you are wringing water out of the towel. When one wrist moves up, the other should move down.

3. Repeat 20 times in each direction. 

6. Supination and pronation

In addition to the wrist extensors and wrist flexors, other forearm muscles help the wrists with supination (turning palms up) and pronation (turning palms down). Strengthening these other muscle groups can improve your overall wrist stability. 

1. Sit with your forearm supported on a table, your elbow bent at a 90-degree angle, and your thumb facing up. (Your hand should be hanging over the edge of the table.) 

2. Hold a small weight, water bottle, or can of soup in your hand with your palm facing inward. 

3. Without moving your arm from its position on the table, turn your wrist and forearm so that your palm is facing up.

4. Hold this position for 1 second, then slowly return your wrist to the starting position.

5. Next, turn your wrist and forearm so that your palm is facing down.

6. Hold this position for 1 second, then slowly return your wrist to the starting position.

7. Perform 3 sets of 10 repetitions, alternating between turning your palm up and down.

7. Ball squeezes 

If the muscles in your hands aren’t strong enough, gripping objects can aggravate tennis elbow symptoms. By strengthening your grip, you’re less likely to worsen the injury, preventing additional discomfort. 

1. Hold a rubber stress ball in your hand. 

2. Close your hand and fingers around the ball and squeeze as hard as you can. 

3. Hold this squeeze for 10 seconds, then relax your hand. 

4. Repeat 10 times, holding for 10 seconds each time. 

8. Wrist and finger stretches 

When you have tennis elbow, the tender, inflamed tendons pull on your muscles, creating tension. Stretching your wrist and finger extensors helps release this muscle tension and the resulting discomfort. 

1. With your palm facing down, extend your arm in front of you so that your elbow is straight. 

2. Bend your wrist toward the floor so that your fingers are pointing down. 

3. Use your other hand to pull your fingers down toward your body, without moving your extended arm. You should feel a stretch along the top of your hand and forearm.

4. Hold for 15 to 30 seconds, then relax your arms.

5. Repeat three to five times. 

What causes tennis elbow? 

Tennis elbow is one of many common repetitive strain injuries. When muscles are overworked, the tendons that attach muscles to bone can become inflamed. With tennis elbow, this inflammation affects the tendons that attach to the outer side of your elbow joint. 

Tennis and other racquet sports often cause tennis elbow. But it also results from other activities that involve repetitive hand and arm motions. 

The finger and wrist extensors help move and stabilize your wrists when you’re gripping and doing hand and arm movements. These muscles are easily overworked among people in certain professions. This includes painters, plumbers, carpenters, construction workers, auto mechanics, and chefs. The amount of gripping, repetition of movement, and heavy lifting involved in these jobs increases the risk of injury.

Are there other at-home treatments for tennis elbow?

In addition to stretching and strengthening exercises, there are various at-home treatment methods to help decrease tennis elbow symptoms, like soreness and weak grip strength. These include:

• Resting from aggravating activities to reduce strain on your elbow

• Applying ice to the outside of your elbow to decrease pain and inflammation

• Taking medications like NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) to reduce pain

• Wearing a counterforce brace, which applies pressure to the forearm muscle near the elbow to disperse stress away from the tendons

Why trust our experts?

Written by:

Kristen Gasnick, PT, DPT

Kristen Gasnick, PT, DPT, practices outpatient rehabilitation focusing on orthopedic injuries and post-operative recovery.

Edited by:

Lauren Savage, MA

Lauren Savage, MA, is a health editor at GoodRx, where she focuses on movement, exercise, and healthy aging. She aims to provide readers with the information they need to live healthier, more active lifestyles.

Reviewed by:

Sanjai Sinha, MD

Sanjai Sinha, MD, is a board-certified physician with over 20 years of experience. He specializes in internal medicine.

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