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Golfer's Elbow · Problem-Aware

You Rested It for 6 Months and It Still Hurts. 5 Reasons Golfer's Elbow Keeps Coming Back

The ache on the inside of your elbow starts when you carry the shopping, lingers through the evening, and is waiting for you again the next time you grip something heavy. You have rested it, strapped it and iced it, and it keeps coming back. That is not bad luck. It is a tendon that was never rebuilt.

By Dr. Richard Calloway

Sports Medicine Physician · Oct 23, 2026 · 7 min read

Rest makes golfer's elbow quiet. It does not make it strong. That is why one heavy lift brings it back.

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The Golfer's Elbow Fixes, Rated Honestly

Approach

Calms Pain

Rebuilds the Flexor Tendon

Trains All 3 Wrist Planes

Stops It Returning

Verdict

Complete rest

✓

✗

✗

✗

1 of 4

Elbow strap or sleeve

◎

✗

✗

✗

½ of 4

Ice & anti-inflammatories

◎

✗

✗

✗

½ of 4

Cortisone (rarely used here)

◎

✗

✗

✗

½ of 4

Therapy flex bar alone

◎

◎

◎

✗

1½ of 4

Progressive 3D loading (Gripzilla Tornado)

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓ 4 of 4

✓ Yes · ◎ Partial · ✗ No

TLDR: Straps and rest take the edge off. Only progressive loading in the planes your wrist actually moves rebuilds the tendon, so the next heavy day does not undo the last month 👇

Reason #1✗ The Rest Trap

1.Six Months Off Fixed the Soreness. It Did Not Fix the Tendon.

Taking time off is the first thing everyone tries, and it is a sensible first move. The sharp pain settles because the tendon is no longer being asked to do anything.

But golfer's elbow is not an acute strain that heals and goes away. Clinical sources describe a tendon that, without the right loading, does not repair. It slowly degenerates. Rest removes the symptom while the weakness stays exactly where it was.

That is why so many people report the same thing: they are fine for weeks, then the first heavy lift or long grip brings it straight back.

The elbow wrap gives me no pain at all. Resting has helped however. All it takes is one swing of a club and the sharp pain comes right back.

GolfWRX forum user, Golfer's Elbow thread

Reason #2✗ Symptom Management

2.The Strap, the Sleeve and the Ice Take the Edge Off. That Is All.

Credit where it is due. A strap can get you through the day, a sleeve keeps the arm warm, and ice after a long shift helps the ache. None of that is wasted.

But none of it changes what your forearm can handle. And unlike tennis elbow, golfer's elbow is usually not injected with cortisone, because the ulnar nerve sits right beside the tendon. That removes one of the usual quick fixes and leaves many people with a strap and a prayer.

Most people stack these things up for months, then end up wondering why nothing has moved.

I tried different stretches. I tried taking a few weeks off in a row, which helped for a few holes and then the pain returned. I tried little sleeves and tape. Nothing had a significant impact.

GolfWRX forum user, Tendonitis cure thread

Reason #3✓ The Real Cause

3.Golfer's Elbow Is Not Inflammation. It Is a Tendon Failing Under Load It Was Never Trained For.

The pain on the inside of the elbow comes from the wrist flexors and forearm pronators where they attach at the medial epicondyle. Gripping, lifting, carrying and twisting all load them. Repeated loading with too little capacity leads to microscopic tearing and slow degeneration.

Many patients are surprised because they have done the same tasks the same way for twenty years. Age-related tendon change between 35 and 55 is part of it, and so is the fact that most people never train their forearms. Forearm strength falls with age, and the tendon takes the difference.

That is the gap the Gripzilla Tornado was designed for. It is a friction-resistance trainer with two brass handles and a steel body. You rotate it slowly and under control, loading the whole forearm from near-zero resistance upward, at a pace the tendon can cope with.

Repeated loading of the flexor tendons leads to microscopic tearing, chronic inflammation, and progressive tendon degeneration if the tissue is not allowed to recover.

Hoag Orthopedic Institute, Golfer's Elbow overview

Reason #4✓ Why It Is Different

4.Your Wrist Moves in Three Planes. A Flex Bar Only Moves in One.

Flex bars and wrist curls are fine tools, and many physios use them. But real life takes the wrist through pronation, supination, flexion, extension and ulnar deviation, often all at once.

The Tornado trains those planes together, under friction resistance you set yourself. Because the friction is smooth, there is no sudden load spike on the medial tendon, and nothing heavy to drop. You begin as light as the tendon needs and add resistance only when it is ready.

That is the point most people miss. The question is not whether to load the elbow, it is how to load it safely.

For over 1.5 years, nothing helped me until I tried eccentric loading. I really did try almost everything.

StrongFirst forum user, Golfer's Elbow thread, 2023

Reason #5✓ Back to Normal

5.Back to Normal Means the Last Grip of the Day Feels Like the First.

People talk about the elbow, but what they actually lose is the end of the day. Grip pressure creeps up as the forearm tires, and over-gripping costs wrist mobility and power long before the pain shows up.

A forearm trained to last under rotational load does not need to strangle the handle by the afternoon. You hold things lighter, the wrists move freely, and the arm you had at breakfast shows up in the evening.

A few minutes a day with the Tornado is the whole routine. It is easy to keep, which is what actually matters over six to eight weeks.

Tried cortisone twice. Tried resting for months. Six weeks on this and the pain was gone.

Alex J., verified buyer

6 wk to 6 mo

typical golfer's elbow recovery, longer if neglected (Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic)

90%+

of cases are not sports-related, they come from everyday repetitive gripping (MedicalNewsToday)

40 to 50

the peak age range for golfer's elbow (Orthopedic One)

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This article is an advertorial. Individual results vary. The Gripzilla Tornado is a forearm, wrist and grip training tool and is not a substitute for advice from a qualified healthcare professional. If you have had surgery or have a diagnosed injury, check with your clinician before starting any new exercise. Statistics and quotes are drawn from the sources named alongside them.

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