Injury Avoidance and Treatment

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A lot of table tennis players wind up with injuries as a result of excessive play, especially as they get older. This page provides a guide to the avoidance and treatment of the most common and problematic injuries that affect table tennis players.

Contents

Chronic injuries

Many of these injuries can become chronic injuries if not properly cared for (for example, don't play while injured), and you should consult a physician if an injury persists for more than a few weeks. A chronic injury is just what it sounds like, an injury that does not go away, and continued abuse of a damaged body part is the easiest way to end up with a chronic injury.

If you think an injury is becoming chronic, in addition to taking it easy on the injury, consider ways to "lighten the load" on that part of your body. For example, if you're suffering leg problems and you're slighty overweight, dieting and losing just a few pounds may be an effective way to decrease the amount of stress placed on the leg. Also, if you're a forehand-dominant attack player, you may want to consider developing your backhand strokes more, to reduce the amount of footwork required in your game. Similarly, if you're suffering arms problems, you may want to try a lighter racquet and also work on improving your defensive blocking game.

Common table tennis injuries

Shoulder joint (rotator cuff)

Tennis elbow (tendonitis at the elbow joint)

Hamstring tendonitis

Lower back pain

Numbness or tingling sensation in fingers (carpal tunnel)

Knee pain

Foot problems

Achilles tendonitis

Ruptured Achilles tendon

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