When we push our bodies to the limit, mimicking professional athletes, certain classic court conditions tend to crop up in the clinic. If you’ve been overly enthusiastic with your serve or backhand this week, look out for these common culprits:

Tennis Elbow (Lateral Epicondylitis)

You don’t actually have to play tennis to get this! It’s an overuse injury to the tendons on the outside of your forearm, usually caused by repetitive gripping or a late, off-centre backhand stroke.

Rotator Cuff Strains

Repetitive overhead serving requires a huge amount of explosive shoulder stability. If your shoulder muscles aren’t properly warmed up, you’ll feel a dull ache when reaching overhead.

Calf or Achilles Tweaks

Tennis is a game of sudden, explosive changes of direction. Sudden sprints and stops on a hard or slippery grass court are the perfect recipe for a muscle pull.

Your 3 Tennis Recovery Exercises

If you have tweaked something, don’t worry, you know where we are to get you summer-ready! In the meantime, here are three simple things you can do right now to help your muscles recover and reduce your risk of a longer-term injury:

1. The Eccentric Wrist Extension (For Tennis Elbow)

Rest your forearm on a table with your hand hanging over the edge, holding a light weight (or a tin of baked beans!). Use your healthy hand to lift the weight up, then use just your injured arm to lower it back down as slowly as possible over a 5-second count. Repeat 10 times.

2. The Staircase Calf Stretch

Yes, we’ve said it many times before—stretching is your friend! Stand with the balls of your feet on the edge of a step, holding onto the bannister. Slowly lower your heels down past the level of the step until you feel a lovely, deep stretch in your calves. Hold for 30 seconds.

A quick calf stretch at the bottom of the stairs before you go up them works wonders! An extra tip is to do the same stretch with a bend in the knees for a stretch into that deeper calf muscle.

Health & Safety note: Do this at the bottom of the stairs, not the top!

3. The Doorway Shoulder Opener

Stand in a doorway, placing your forearms flat against the doorframe with your elbows bent at 90°. Gently step one foot forward until you feel a comfortable stretch across the front of your chest and shoulders. Hold for 20–30 seconds to release the tension held from overhead smashing.

Take a deep breath in as you do this and lean into the stretch more as you exhale.