Inner elbow pain & Static Climbing Lock offs

Hey guys,

My climbing volume per week has significantly increased this month, and I am starting to feel a pain at the elbow on the inside. Obviously a rest is in order but Im curious as it only happens when I am gripping and pulling myself into the wall, not when i bend the wrist in any direction. I read on another thread its possibly a strain of the bicep at that location, and i do have a bad habit of holding with a bent arm when im clipping at some points and i do alot of static lock offs. I just started leading so I am bent arm more often than usual due to the stability I get at some clips as opposed to being straight arm and relying on my “in progress” finger/grip strength (side note I am trying to eliminate bent arms as much as possible).

Dont worry im not asking you for medical advice, just asking if anyone has experinced this same thing as i dont see it having the same symptoms of either golfers or tennis elbow or an issue with the tendon.

Last question is should i dedicate time to training dynamic climbing movements to avoid constant deep lock offs from my solely static climbing style? Im guessing bouldering will help in this regard? I only free climb i dont really boulder but Im thinking I should dedicate some time to bouldeing to work on devloping some dynamic technique. Also I feel like finger and grip strength has alot to do with dynamic climbing which I am still building, so im not sure if i can effectively climb this way right now. 
Thanks for any feedback 
North Col

Stop climbing and give it a rest. When it feels good again take it slow. Massage it too. Ice it or not up to you.

One thing I’ve noticed recently is how much bad pulling form leads to elbow pain.  “Chicken winging”, and hanging so that my ears are touching my shoulders will put undue strain on my elbows.  Next time you climb pay attention to how your pulling mechanics are and see if you start pulling by bending your elbows first or by bringing your scapula down first  

(i know you didn't ask for advice but a reverse wrist curl protocol wouldn't hurt)

Yeah sounds like tendonitis, aka golfer's elbow (tennis elbow is on the outside of the elbow). I had serious problems with it, went through some various exercises and time off to no avail. One common story with golfer's elbow is time off not helping. Then I started doing reverse wrist curl negatives, and it resolved completely, very quickly. Sometimes I slack off and I'll start to feel a twang, but it has always disappeared again when I continue doing the exercises. There are a number of resources out there, but the KEY is doing the negatives. So you lower the weight, then reset the weight to the starting position using your other hand. I don't understand why this works, but for me it did, and I did regular reverse wrist curls for a while without any reduction in the tendonitis. Just my experience, but I read about the exercise first through Dave MacLeod who has a lot of experience and knowledge. Hope that helps.

Long Ranger wrote: (i know you didn't ask for advice but a reverse wrist curl protocol wouldn't hurt)

Im open to advice! only said that so I dont get "don't ask here go ask a doctor" answer lol

Don't ask here and see a doctor. :)  This is not a good substitute to save the money and hassle of visiting a doctor.

http://drjuliansaunders.com/dodgy-elbows/

worked for me. took about 4 weeks. 

North Col wrote:

Im open to advice! only said that so I dont get "don't ask here go ask a doctor" answer lol

In that case, do try those reverse wrist curls. I've had elbow problems off and on since I've bouldered as an adult, and just doing  3 sets of reverse wrists curls worked wonders. For me, I started at a neutral position and curled up until I couldn't, then returned to a neutral position. Started with 10lbs, do 15lbs now. One hand at a time. Fits nicely when resting a set of almost anything else. I don't necessarily focus on the lowering, but that wouldn't be a bad idea.

The last time I was doing them, someone passed me and said, "elbow issues?" I replied, "How did you know?". And they just laughed, and walked away. Common problem. Join the cult of the reverse wrist curl!

Mike Knight wrote: http://drjuliansaunders.com/dodgy-elbows/

worked for me. took about 4 weeks. 

Same.

figured it out - its from over extending my elbow in the open position when hanging from straight arms. Paid close attention today, need to bend a little bit and utilize the back more im guessing

B.S. Luther wrote: Yeah sounds like tendonitis, aka golfer's elbow (tennis elbow is on the outside of the elbow). I had serious problems with it, went through some various exercises and time off to no avail. One common story with golfer's elbow is time off not helping. Then I started doing reverse wrist curl negatives, and it resolved completely, very quickly. Sometimes I slack off and I'll start to feel a twang, but it has always disappeared again when I continue doing the exercises. There are a number of resources out there, but the KEY is doing the negatives. So you lower the weight, then reset the weight to the starting position using your other hand. I don't understand why this works, but for me it did, and I did regular reverse wrist curls for a while without any reduction in the tendonitis. Just my experience, but I read about the exercise first through Dave MacLeod who has a lot of experience and knowledge. Hope that helps.

So, what's the difference between reverse wrist curls and reverse wrist curl negatives? 

Alex Leykin wrote:

So, what's the difference between reverse wrist curls and reverse wrist curl negatives? 

again:  http://drjuliansaunders.com/dodgy-elbows/

scroll down to the Program  or download the pdf for the full writeup.

Golfers elbow is on the tendons going to the inside bump on the elbow.  But a better term is Medial Epicondylosis.  His program shows mainly doing the lowering normal curl extension (palm up), then lift the weight back up with your other hand.  Weighting while extending is also known as ECCENTRIC exercise.  
You may also want the other exercise shown which is a twisting lower with the weight only on one side of the barbell, similar to a frying pan.  see the picture.  Start with forearm in the thumb up position and lower the weight until your forearm is palm up.  Again lift it back up with the other hand.

Lateral epicondylosis, not an issue for the original post, is the tendons going to the bump on the outside of the elbow.  aka tennis elbow.
For that issue, the reverse (palm up) wrist curl lower is prescribed.  Again lift the weight back up with your other hand.