Prevent padel injuries deliberately: protect the three hotspots elbow, shoulder and ankle — with prehab, the right gear and load management.
Straight talk on injury prevention in padel: the three trouble spots that really matter are the elbow, shoulder and ankle — and all three you can protect deliberately. The elbow is the most common injury site of all, and the tricky part: it usually doesn't get hurt by a single stroke but creeps in through overuse. In one cohort, about 86 percent of elbow complaints were gradual onset. What creeps in you can stop early — if you know how.
Padel is overall a safe sport (around 3 injuries per 1,000 training hours), but as an intermediate your playing load rises, and with it the overuse risk. That's exactly why a real prevention program pays off now instead of just "a bit of warm-up". The surveys agree: structured warm-up and strength training are the core recommendations, and coach supervision lowers the elbow odds.
Important is the honest framing: there's no RCT yet on a padel prevention program — we derive from risk factors and sports medicine. In this guide you get a practical prehab set for the three hotspots.
One thought that carries this whole chapter: prevention is unspectacular but it works. No single miracle protects you, but the sum of small habits — the two minutes with the band, the loose grip, the gradually increased playing load. Because the typical padel injuries arise gradually through overuse, you win here with regularity rather than intensity. See your prehab not as a tiresome duty but as the insurance that lets you play years longer and pain-free — exactly what ultimately separates ambitious players from each other.
The "padel elbow" is an overuse tendinopathy and the sport's most common injury. Protect it with a loose grip, clean technique instead of force and a fitting racket weight — high or unknown weights (356–375 g) are associated with more injuries. Strengthen the forearm extensors with the band and increase your playing load slowly.
The overhead shots (smash, bandeja, víbora) demand large ranges of motion and risk SLAP lesion, impingement and a glenohumeral internal rotation deficit (GIRD — reduced internal rotation of the hitting shoulder). Build rotator-cuff strengthening and scapular control firmly into your program; correct technique stabilizes the humeral head dynamically.
The lower extremity is the most common injury region in several surveys, driven by the fast changes of direction. Protect your ankle with stable shoes, balance training and reactive strength. A proprioceptive program (single-leg stands, unstable surfaces) absorbs the lateral forces before you roll your ankle.
Structured warm-up is the most clearly recommended preventive measure, and supervision raises warm-up adherence and lowers elbow problems. On top, manage your load: age over 30, little experience and poor sleep are documented risk factors. Increase your volume step by step and schedule recovery.
Take early warning signs seriously: a creeping elbow or shoulder pain is almost always beginning overuse, not a trifle. Don't play through it — a day or two off plus targeted strengthening is cheaper than months of tendinopathy. Always warm up structured, increase your playing load gently and get professional help for persistent complaints. Honestly: prevention in padel isn't yet proven by RCTs but is well derivable from risk factors.
Invest two minutes per warm-up in a band for forearm and rotator cuff — the two regions that overload most often in padel. This tiny, consistent prehab routine is your best insurance against the padel elbow and shoulder problems. Because both injuries creep in, you win here with regularity, not intensity.
An overuse tendinopathy at the elbow, the most common injury site in padel. It usually arises gradually — in one cohort about 86 percent of cases were gradual onset. Prevent it: grip loosely, play with technique instead of force, choose a fitting racket weight, strengthen the forearm extensors with the band and increase your playing load slowly.
Because overhead shots demand large ranges of motion that favour SLAP lesion, impingement and a glenohumeral internal rotation deficit (GIRD). Behind it there's often faulty scapular or rotational mechanics. Strengthen your rotator cuff, train scapular control and watch for clean technique that stabilizes the humeral head dynamically.
With stable padel shoes, targeted balance and reactive-strength training and an active ready position. The fast changes of direction drive lower-extremity injuries. A proprioceptive program with single-leg stands and unstable surfaces makes your ankle more resistant to the lateral forces before it rolls.
Structured and complete: mobilize shoulder, elbow and wrists, activate hips and ankles, a few sprints and band exercises. Structured warm-up is the most clearly recommended preventive measure, and those who do it consistently (ideally with supervision) have fewer elbow problems. Take a fixed 10 minutes for it before every session.
No, padel is considered comparatively safe — around 3 injuries per 1,000 training hours, most of them overuse rather than acute accidents. The risk rises above all with playing load and poor warm-up. Those who warm up structured, play cleanly and manage load keep the already moderate risk small.