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Tight forearms (Read 5447 times)

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Tight forearms
October 19, 2016, 12:11:52 pm
I have stupidly right forearms.

If I put my hands on a wall in front of me (straight arms), I cannot keep my fingers straight - they bow.
This also makes doing pressups annoyingly difficult.

Has anyone used an armaid or similar? Any other tips other than regular stretching?

sheavi

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#1 Re: Tight forearms
October 19, 2016, 01:50:11 pm
Commit to regular & correct stretching.  Look at your climbing style ie over gripping, and your work or other bobbies that may be contributing.  No quick or gimmicky fix. You've likely got long term adaptive shortening. It will take a long time to correct.

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#2 Re: Tight forearms
October 19, 2016, 02:02:11 pm
I use to suffer from having stupidly tight forearms (for years I just thought it was normal).

Brief background: I saw a physio about elbow issues and was diagnosed with Carpal Tunnel syndrome caused by my tight forearms and he gave me various ulnar nerve flossing exercises to do alongside vigorous massaging to break up the scar tissue which was causing the problems.

Anyway, on a UKB thread that I can't seem to find, someone posted this video



which is something I did using a theraband and, unlike in the video, I would also wrap it 1/3 of the way down my forearms. I also did this as well:



after a while I noticed that my forearms were way looser and squidgier than they have ever been. 

As a side note, the day after a heavy session of flossing I couldn't pull that hard, since I suppose my forearms were recovering (similar to having a heavy weight lifting session).

Usual caveats, I'm not an expert, perhaps the youtube guys aren't either, your results may vary, I still have slight elbow issues. :)


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#3 Re: Tight forearms
October 19, 2016, 02:21:32 pm
I have stupidly right forearms.

Has anyone used an armaid or similar? Any other tips other than regular stretching?

Stretching regularly will be more effective than arm number of plastic forearm toys. Stretch from your MCP joints, not pips or dips, hold for 20-30 seconds at a firm, but not painful point.
Do you crimp a lot? Are you getting pumped out of your mind every session?

Also try to do more work on your antagonist muscle groups to avoid major imbalances.

sjw

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#4 Re: Tight forearms
October 19, 2016, 04:24:03 pm
I went to the physio with a similar problem and he pointed out that stretching was much more effective after massaging the muscle. He gave the analogy that stretching an elastic band with a knot in the middle will only stretch the elastic (muscle) either side of the knot. Makes sense.

I had a Theraband Flex Bar lying around that I use for wrist curls which works amazingly well as a mini foam roller for forearms and elbows. It looks like something that Ann Summers should sell. I massaged with this before regular stretching and it worked a treat.

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#5 Re: Tight forearms
October 20, 2016, 01:00:32 pm
Thanks for your responses...

Commit to regular & correct stretching.  Look at your climbing style ie over gripping, and your work or other bobbies that may be contributing.  No quick or gimmicky fix. You've likely got long term adaptive shortening. It will take a long time to correct.

Yeah, I think you're right. This is exactly what it feels like. Long road to correction!

Do you crimp a lot? Are you getting pumped out of your mind every session?

No, but I think i did spent years crimping *everything* when i started climbing.

Stretch from your MCP joints, not pips or dips, ...

What do you mean by this, exactly?

I went to the physio with a similar problem and he pointed out that stretching was much more effective after massaging the muscle. He gave the analogy that stretching an elastic band with a knot in the middle will only stretch the elastic (muscle) either side of the knot. Makes sense.

Good tip, thanks!

36chambers, thanks. I haven't seen voodoo flossing applied to forearms. Guess it can't help it give it a go. I have a theraband...

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#6 Re: Tight forearms
October 20, 2016, 01:11:52 pm
I have suffered the same condition almost chronically for the last couple of years and found nothing really worked for me, even dedicated stretching which I did very regularly for quite some time - so thanks to the OP and all contributors!

Find 2 of the suggestions above especially interesting:
- combining massage and stretching (as stretching alone did not do the job in my case)
- flossing the forearm

Will give this a go!

(Edited for clarity)

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#7 Re: Tight forearms
October 20, 2016, 03:51:08 pm
A few weeks ago had discomfort around the wrists, when in plank position.
This had never been a problem before so a bit bothered.
However did a few of the stretches from the clip below and seems to have done the trick.
Most of the stretches are easy and can be worked into warm-up/down when climbing.

Maybe this might help?

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#8 Re: Tight forearms
October 20, 2016, 05:04:40 pm
I also have chronically tight forearms which I think have got a bit better through doing a mix of stretching and massage. 

There's loads of good suggestions above, two more to add would be to maybe identify what specific muscles are tight if this is relevant. For me it was the pronator quadratus and pronator teres, both involved in rotating the hand inwards, so when I figured this out I just tried to find stretches to isolate them because the generic wrist back and forth ones didn't do anything. Second I got a good sports massage which made a huge difference. In fact the physio didn't get around to doing much work on the left arm before the time ran out, and I still feel the difference months later.

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#9 Re: Tight forearms
October 21, 2016, 08:38:59 am
Stretching the elbow, wrist and forearm flexors (can include pronators and supinators etc) as a single unit will help but you may need to be a bit more specific. For example certain finger tendons may be tighter than others and if you stretch as a collective unit you may not hit the problem areas well enough. I think this is what was meant by PIP (proximal interphalangeal).  Volker Schoeffl's One Move Too Many book has some details on this.  Either that or see a good physio who can show you these techniques.
Nerve flossing, or tissue mobilising depending on your viewpoint, may be useful.  As for massage this could help and it may produce a relaxation response in the tissues to facilitate greater range. The same can be achieved with warming up sufficiently and relaxation/diaphragmatic breathing.
No shortcuts really - get to it ;)

You may have to look slightly wider too - tight biceps, pec minor, lats etc.
« Last Edit: October 21, 2016, 08:46:11 am by sheavi »

 

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