• Fitness
• Sports Medicine
• Pain Management

How to Manage and Prevent Tendonitis

By: Luis Palacio, MD

May 04, 2023

Tendonitis occurs when a tendon in your body is inflamed or irritated. This painful condition can impact your day-to-day activities, but can be managed and prevented. Luis Palacio, MD, shared some insights into how to manage tendonitis.

Overuse and Repetitive Motion

Tendons are complex tissues in our body that connect muscles to bones, allowing us to move. Unfortunately, sometimes these tendons become inflamed, worn down or injured, a condition called tendonitis. Symptoms of tendonitis include pain or dull ache, tenderness and mild swelling at the site.

While tendonitis can be caused by a sudden injury, it is more commonly seen in frequent motions, including:

• Repetitive motions in exercise, work or other physical activities.
• Awkward positions in a movement, including poor posture.
• Forced movements that strain your body.
• Sudden increase in frequency of movement or level of difficulty, including little to no recover time between new activity.
• Shoes without proper support or hard surfaces, such as concrete floors.

Evaluation is Key

If you suspect that you have tendonitis and it does not resolve on its own after a few days, you should get it evaluated by a primary care or sports medicine doctor. They can make recommendations to aid your recovery and refer you to the right sub-specialist if needed.

With some intentional actions, you can help reduce the risk of tendonitis with the following suggestions:

• Add variety: Mixing up the type of exercise you do will help prevent repetitive motions that can result in overuse.
• Stretch and condition: Make sure the keep up with proper stretching and muscle strengthening to support your physical activities.
• Do it right: Make sure that the way you are completing exercise or work-related physical activities is correct. Seek out a professional for lessons or guidance if you are unsure.