A weekly prevention plan for amateur racket-sport players should include: 3 short sessions per week, sport-specific warm-up, progressive strength and eccentric work, and clear load management rules. Combine this with basic recovery habits and early reaction to pain to reduce elbow and wrist injury risk while playing tennis or padel.
Core principles for preventing elbow and wrist injuries
- Use a structured weekly programa de fortalecimiento de muñeca y codo para deportistas amateur with defined days, sets and progressions.
- Prioritise mejores ejercicios de calentamiento para codo y muñeca antes de hacer deporte, not only general cardio.
- Include eccentric and grip-strength work to ayudar en la prevención de lesiones de codo y muñeca en deportistas.
- Adjust volume, racket, grip size and technique to reducir el riesgo de epicondilitis.
- Track pain and stiffness daily and modify sessions at the first warning signs.
- Apply simple recovery routines after play days to restore tissue capacity.
Weekly plan overview: session frequency, duration and intensity
This weekly programme is designed for amateur tennis and padel players without acute injury, who want prevención de lesiones de codo y muñeca en deportistas while keeping their usual matches and practice. It is especially relevant if you play racket sports two to four times per week.
When you should avoid this plan or get medical clearance first:
- Recent trauma to elbow, wrist, hand or shoulder (fall, hit, visible deformity).
- Numbness, tingling, marked weakness or night pain that wakes you up.
- Swelling, warmth or redness around the joint that does not improve with rest.
- Inability to grip the racket, push up from a chair or bear weight on the hand.
- History of surgery in elbow or wrist in the last few months.
General structure for the week (you can adapt days to your schedule in Spain, including club league days):
| Day | Main focus | Exercises | Sets x reps / time | Relative intensity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 (e.g. Monday) | Mobility + light strength | Warm-up sequence + wrist flexion / extension, forearm pronation / supination, light grip holds | 2 x 12-15 each | Easy, 4-5 / 10 effort, no pain |
| Day 2 (e.g. Tuesday) | Practice or match | Full warm-up + sport-specific drills | 10-15 min warm-up, then normal session | Moderate to high, 6-8 / 10 effort |
| Day 3 (e.g. Wednesday) | Eccentric + proprioception | Eccentric wrist extension, eccentric wrist flexion, ball squeeze, perturbation holds | 3 x 8-10 each | Moderate, 5-7 / 10 effort, mild discomfort only |
| Day 4 (e.g. Thursday) | Rest or light cardio | Walking, cycling, gentle stretching | 20-30 min | Very easy, 3-4 / 10 effort |
| Day 5 (e.g. Friday) | Strength + technique | Loaded grip, forearm rotation, push-up regression, swing mechanics work | 3 x 10-12 each | Moderate, 6 / 10 effort, no worsening pain |
| Day 6 (e.g. Saturday) | Practice or match | Full warm-up + points or match play | 10-15 min warm-up, then normal session | High, 7-8 / 10 effort |
| Day 7 (e.g. Sunday) | Recovery | Short mobility routine, self-massage, optional ice / contrast as tolerated | 10-20 min | Very light, 2-3 / 10 effort |
If you play more than two matches per week, reduce the number of strength sets (for example 2 instead of 3) and increase rest days as needed.
Mobilization and dynamic warm-up sequences specific to elbow and wrist
You need minimal equipment to perform these mejores ejercicios de calentamiento para codo y muñeca antes de hacer deporte. Most elements can be done on court in Spain just before your tennis or padel session.
- Optional elastic band (light to medium) for added resistance.
- Light dumbbell or a full water bottle (0.5-1 kg) for controlled movements.
- Tennis or padel ball for grip and proprioception tasks.
- Stable wall or net post to lean on during some drills.
- Comfortable space to move shoulders, elbows and wrists freely.
Dynamic warm-up sequence (5-10 minutes) before every on-court session and strength session:
- General activation (2 minutes)
Fast walk or light jogging plus arm swings to increase overall temperature. - Shoulder and scapula prep (2 minutes)
Large arm circles, shoulder rolls and scapular push-ups against wall to set a stable base for the elbow. - Elbow flexion and extension swings (1-2 minutes)
Alternating bending and straightening both elbows, first slow, then slightly faster, without locking the joint. - Wrist circles and figure eights (1-2 minutes)
With elbows bent at 90 degrees, perform controlled wrist circles both directions, then small figure eight patterns. - Forearm pronation and supination (1-2 minutes)
Hold a racket or water bottle: rotate forearm palm up and palm down, small range first, then larger, without pain. - Sport-specific prep (2 minutes)
Shadow swings for forehand, backhand and serve or smash, emphasising smooth acceleration and deceleration, focusing on cómo evitar epicondilitis y lesiones de muñeca al jugar al tenis.
Use this warm-up even on days without matches when you perform strength or eccentric work for ejercicios para prevenir lesión de codo en tenis y pádel.
Strength, eccentric and proprioceptive exercises with progression
Before the detailed steps, consider these risk factors and constraints. If any of these appear, reduce load, regress the exercise or pause the programme:
- Localised sharp pain greater than 3 out of 10 that persists after finishing the set.
- Progressive loss of grip strength compared with previous week.
- Visible swelling or heat around the lateral or medial elbow or the wrist.
- Night pain or stiffness the next morning lasting more than one hour.
- Pain spreading from elbow to hand or from neck to hand.
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Step 1: Baseline isometric grip and wrist holds
Start with pain-free isometrics to gently load muscles and tendons around the elbow and wrist. This is ideal during early prevención de lesiones de codo y muñeca en deportistas or when you have very mild discomfort.- Towel or ball squeeze: Hold a rolled towel or ball in full-hand grip, squeeze at 50-70 percent effort for 10 seconds, relax 10 seconds. Do 6-8 repetitions per hand.
- Neutral wrist hold: With forearm supported on a table, hold a light dumbbell or bottle with wrist straight, 20-30 seconds, 3 repetitions each side.
- Regression if painful: Use empty hand squeeze or lighter object; keep duration shorter (5 seconds) and maintain pain below 3 out of 10.
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Step 2: Concentric wrist flexion and extension
Once isometrics are comfortable, add controlled up-and-down movements to build base strength before progressing to heavier or eccentric work.- Wrist flexion: Forearm resting on thigh, palm up, move hand from neutral to flexed position, lifting light weight. Lower back slowly. Perform 2-3 sets of 12-15 reps.
- Wrist extension: Same position, palm down, raise hand against gravity, lower slowly. 2-3 sets of 12-15 reps.
- No-equipment option: Perform the same movements without weight, emphasising end-range control and slow tempo.
- Pain-adapted regression: Decrease range of motion and load until pain is low and does not increase after session.
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Step 3: Eccentric wrist training for tendon resilience
Eccentric loading (stronger lowering phase) is especially useful as ejercicios para prevenir lesión de codo en tenis y pádel and to minimise epicondylitis risk.- Eccentric wrist extension: Use the healthy hand to lift the weight with both hands, then release and lower slowly (3-4 seconds) with the target side only. 3 sets of 8-10 reps.
- Eccentric wrist flexion: Same strategy but with palm up, assisting in the lift and lowering under control with 1 hand. 3 sets of 8-10 reps.
- Intensity rule: Mild discomfort is acceptable during the set, but pain must return to baseline within 24 hours.
- Regression: Lower the weight, reduce to 2 sets, or increase support from the assisting hand.
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Step 4: Forearm rotation and radial / ulnar deviation
These drills build stability for spin shots and off-centre ball contact, common in both tennis and padel.- Pronation / supination: Hold a hammer, racket or stick with elbow at 90 degrees; rotate slowly palm up and palm down, 2-3 sets of 10-12 reps.
- Side-to-side wrist movement: With thumb up, move hand towards thumb side and towards little-finger side, keeping range small and controlled. 2 sets of 10-12 reps.
- No-equipment option: Perform without weight, focusing on precision and avoiding compensation at the shoulder.
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Step 5: Proprioception and perturbation drills
These exercises improve joint awareness and control, completing a solid programa de fortalecimiento de muñeca y codo para deportistas amateur.- Ball dribble on the racket: Tap the ball gently on the strings, small amplitude, 20-30 seconds, 3 rounds each hand.
- Perturbation holds: In push-up position against wall, partner or other hand gives small unpredictable taps to the forearm while you keep wrist stable for 20 seconds. 3-4 sets.
- Regression: Perform in standing position with hands on a table instead of wall to reduce load.
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Step 6: Weekly progression rules
Progress slowly to avoid overload while still building capacity for cómo evitar epicondilitis y lesiones de muñeca al jugar al tenis.- Increase only one variable per week: either load (weight), volume (sets or reps) or frequency.
- If there is no pain increase after 48 hours, you may add 1-2 reps per set the following week.
- If pain or stiffness increases the next morning, repeat the same load or reduce sets until stable.
Load management: tracking, modifying and periodizing training
Use this simple checklist once per week to ensure the plan remains safe and effective:
- Match and practice count has been stable or increased gradually over the last two weeks.
- Pain during or after play stays at or below 3 out of 10 and returns to baseline within 24 hours.
- Morning stiffness in elbow or wrist is equal or less compared with the previous week.
- You can perform all planned strength sets without compensating with shoulder or trunk.
- Grip strength feels similar between both hands and stable throughout the week.
- You can open jars, carry shopping bags and type without new or worsening symptoms.
- At least one full rest or very light day per week is respected.
- Every 4th week, you slightly reduce total volume (for example, one fewer set per exercise) as a deload.
- Any spike in playing time (tournament weekend, extra matches) is balanced by cutting back strength volume that same week.
- If you need more than common painkillers or ice to manage symptoms, you stop progressing and seek assessment.
Technique adjustments and sport-specific drill integration
The following common technique and training errors increase stress on elbow and wrist for racket sports in Spain and should be corrected during your programme.
- Using a grip that is too small or too large, forcing excessive wrist deviation at impact.
- Hitting late, with the ball already past your body, which overloads the lateral elbow.
- Overusing the wrist for topspin or slice instead of using full-body rotation and shoulder.
- Serving or smashing with a stiff arm and locked wrist rather than smooth acceleration and follow-through.
- Practising heavy balls or wet balls for long periods without adjusting volume or intensity.
- Skipping structured warm-up and jumping straight into powerful serves or smashes.
- Training only forehand or only backhand cross-court, creating asymmetric load on one side.
- Changing racket weight or string tension abruptly without an adaptation period.
- Doing on-court conditioning (sprints, ladders) while still holding the racket, which increases repeated gripping time.
- Ignoring early discomfort on the lateral elbow or dorsal wrist and continuing points or sets without modification.
Integrate technical work into your plan by dedicating 10-15 minutes once or twice per week to specific drills focusing on smoother swing paths, better timing and relaxed grip, alongside your ejercicios para prevenir lesión de codo en tenis y pádel.
Recovery protocols, monitoring metrics and red-flag responses
When symptoms are present or after very demanding weeks, you can apply these alternative strategies or modifications, always prioritising safety and clarity.
- Alternative 1: Load reduction and exercise regression
Cut match time, remove one training session, and use lighter versions of each strength drill (less weight, fewer sets, smaller range). This is suitable when pain is mild but clearly linked to increased load. - Alternative 2: Switch to low-load isometrics plus mobility only
Use only isometric squeezes, gentle range-of-motion and the warm-up sequence for 1-2 weeks while avoiding heavy eccentric work. Appropriate when pain appears during everyday tasks such as carrying or typing. - Alternative 3: Cross-training and partial rest
Temporarily substitute one or more racket sessions with cycling, walking or swimming while continuing light forearm work. This maintains fitness while respecting tendon recovery. - Alternative 4: Immediate stop and professional assessment
If you experience loss of strength, visible deformity, intense night pain, spreading numbness or rapid swelling, stop play and strength training and consult a sports physician or physiotherapist. Do not self-manage these red flags with this home programme.
Monitor simple metrics weekly: pain score during and after sport, morning stiffness duration, perceived grip strength and ability to complete the planned sets. Adjust the programme conservatively whenever these indicators worsen.
Practical clarifications on risks, adaptations and warning signs
How long should I follow this weekly elbow and wrist prevention programme?
Use this structure for at least 8-12 weeks to build capacity, then maintain 1-2 strength sessions weekly during your playing season. You can cycle the volume depending on competition periods and holidays.
Can I apply this plan if I already have diagnosed epicondylitis?
You can often use parts of the programme, especially isometrics and gentle mobility, but intensity and progression must be supervised by a professional. If pain is moderate or severe, prioritise a personalised rehabilitation plan.
What level of pain is acceptable during the exercises?
Use a 0-10 scale and aim to keep pain at or below 3 during and after exercises. Any increase beyond this level, or pain lasting more than 24 hours, means you should reduce load or skip that exercise temporarily.
Do I need specific equipment or can I train at home without a gym?
You can perform the full plan using only a ball, towel, water bottle and your racket. Small dumbbells or elastic bands help progression but are optional. Focus on movement control and tempo rather than heavy loads.
How should I combine this plan with my current tennis or padel schedule?
Place strength sessions on non-consecutive days and avoid heavy eccentric work right before competitions. On tournament weekends, prioritise warm-up and recovery and reduce strength volume to prevent overload.
When is it necessary to stop playing completely?
Stop playing and seek evaluation if you have constant pain at rest, loss of strength, visible deformity, large swelling, or neurological signs such as tingling or numbness. Do not continue training or competition through these symptoms.
Can changing racket or grip size reduce my elbow and wrist symptoms?
Yes, adjusting weight, balance, string tension and grip size can significantly change the load on your arm. Work with a coach or technician to test gradual changes rather than multiple big modifications at once.