Could Weak Grip Strength Be Contributing to Your Wrist and Elbow Pain?

Persistent wrist or elbow discomfort is a common complaint among people who work at desks, lift weights, play racquet sports, or do manual work. While the natural response is often to stretch, rest, or massage the affected area, these strategies may not address the root cause. Increasingly, clinical evidence and practice suggest that grip weakness — rather than muscle tightness — may be a key contributor to many of these issues.

Persistent wrist or elbow discomfort is a common complaint among people who work at desks, lift weights, play racquet sports, or do manual work

The Interconnected Nature of Wrist and Elbow Pain

The wrist and elbow do not function in isolation. They are part of a complex kinetic chain involving the hand, forearm, shoulder girdle, and trunk. Disruption or weakness in one area can shift stress elsewhere, often resulting in overload or compensation patterns.

When grip strength is reduced, the smaller muscles and tendons around the wrist and elbow are often forced to take on more work than they are designed to handle. Over time, this can contribute to common conditions such as:

• Lateral epicondylitis (tennis elbow)

• Medial epicondylitis (golfer’s elbow)

• Carpal tunnel–like symptoms

• Generalised wrist fatigue or instability

  
  

These conditions are often described as overuse injuries, but they may be better understood as load mismatch problems — where the capacity of the tissues is lower than the demands placed on them.

Why Grip Strength Matters

Grip strength is not simply a measure of how tightly you can squeeze an object. It reflects the strength and endurance of the muscles in the hand and forearm, and plays an important role in force transmission through the entire upper limb.

Research has shown that reduced grip strength correlates with:

• Lower forearm muscle capacity

• Reduced tendon resilience and recovery potential

• Altered force distribution through the wrist and elbow

• Reduced functional performance in activities involving load-bearing or coordination (Kallman et al., 1990)

  
  

In other words, if grip strength is lacking, the surrounding joints and tissues are more likely to become irritated during everyday tasks.

Strengthening as a Rehabilitation Strategy

In rehabilitation settings, targeted grip strengthening is often overlooked in favour of more general approaches like stretching, rest, or hands-on treatment. However, progressive strengthening of the hand, wrist, and forearm is frequently a key component of long-term recovery — particularly for tendon-related conditions.

An effective rehabilitation plan may include:

• Grip strength testing, using a dynamometer to assess baseline values and monitor progress

• Wrist and finger endurance training, focusing on both static holds and dynamic movement

• Shoulder and scapular stability exercises, to support load distribution through the limb

• Functional movement drills, such as weighted carries, hangs, and resisted rotations

This approach helps to increase tissue tolerance and reduce reliance on smaller structures, improving both resilience and performance.

Progressive strengthening of the hand, wrist, and forearm is frequently a key component of long-term recovery

A Whole-System Perspective

From an osteopathic standpoint, pain in the wrist or elbow may reflect a wider pattern of dysfunction or imbalance. For example, insufficient scapular control or trunk stiffness can lead to altered force transmission down the arm.

Rather than treating pain in isolation, a whole-body assessment is often needed to identify where the breakdown in load management is occurring. This aligns with the principle that structure and function are interrelated, and effective treatment must consider both.

Practical Steps to Begin Addressing Grip Weakness

For those experiencing persistent wrist or elbow pain, especially in the absence of acute injury, a shift toward strength-based rehabilitation can be beneficial.

Key principles include:

• Replacing passive stretching with progressive grip loading, starting with light resistance

• Using tools such as hand grippers, putty, or isometric holds

• Avoiding provocative positions while still maintaining activity within tolerable limits

• Considering a full kinetic chain assessment to identify contributing factors beyond the painful site

Summary

• Wrist and elbow pain are often the result of overload or compensation, not just local dysfunction

• Grip strength plays a central role in load management across the upper limb

• Passive approaches may not be sufficient to restore function or prevent recurrence

• Rehabilitation should target not just symptom relief, but the underlying capacity deficits contributing to pain

• A whole-body assessment can help uncover contributing factors and guide more effective intervention

References

Kallman, D. A., Plato, C. C. and Tobin, J. D. (1990) ‘The role of muscle loss in the age-related decline of grip strength: Cross-sectional and longitudinal perspectives’, Journal of Gerontology, 45(3), pp. M82–M88. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/geronj/45.3.M82