Osteopathy and Tennis
01 June 2025
Osteopaths are privileged to treat a wide variety of people with different interests and passions.
Sometimes, these hobbies can leave the body open to injury and/or overuse of specific structures.
This article focuses on tennis, but the theory is the same for many physical activities/disciplines.
At whatever level you play, tennis can bring some injury risks, as does any sport. The most common injury in tennis is a forearm injury known as “tennis elbow” (or lateral tenosynovitis).
Shoulder and rotator cuff injuries, lower back irritations, and calf strains are common—this list is not exhaustive!
Tennis involves quick movements, impact, and a lot of rotation of the lower back, which people don’t tend to enjoy. Including gentle rotation exercises in your tennis warm-up is a good way to ensure that this movement is practised regularly and prepares the lower back for this activity.
Tennis also requires the player to be able to extend their spine (think the serve), side-bend (lean to one side), and flex (bend forwards)—ensuring good spinal health and movement could help them have a good tennis game.
Ways to work on this are shown in the video below:
When you warm up with your racket in hand, it is a good idea to start close to the net. This allows low levels of impact with gentle rallies, which you can gradually increase by increasing the distance between you, your net, and your opponent, thus increasing the force you receive and hitting the ball back as your warm-up progresses.
It is important to consider the physicality of tennis; both fitness and flexibility need to be present (as well as concentration).
If your body is not used to receiving impact and physical demands, your chances of injury are increased.
This can be frustrating if you wish to play tennis to improve your fitness.
However, doing court-based exercises with your coach is a great way to introduce these demands to your body rather than just hitting tennis balls and hoping your body forgives you.
When considering flexibility, having a good stretch routine is key.
This can be done daily (even if you have not played tennis or a sport) to ensure your muscles are lengthened and in good health. Again, this reduces injury risk and improves performance (to name a few benefits of stretching).
The most important thing to remember is to enjoy your tennis.
As we know, exercise has many physical and mental health benefits, and tennis's social aspect offers another layer of benefits.
Other things to keep in mind are:
- Get your clothes right — this is not a throwaway comment! Wearing suitable clothing is the difference between playing comfortably and not.
- Get your shoes right — like clothes, your trainers need to be appropriate for the surface you are playing on and support your feet and ankles.
- Ensure you are playing with a racket that is right for you in terms of size and weight. It is worth speaking to a specialist supplier for further guidance.
- Ensure the grip on your racket is the right thickness. If it is incorrect, it can predispose to forearm and elbow pain.
- Make sure you warm up and cool down! See the videos below. If you want specific exercises, please make an appointment so I can design a plan for you.
Warm up - video
Stretch down - video
If you are experiencing an injury, do not ignore it! Seek help, support and guidance from a qualified health care professional.
Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Wishing you a happy, healthy day!
Emily