I always lift with the brace now, but that's because mine tendonitis got to be cronic, so it's always kind of there, even though I can go months on end without it hurting. Until you feel 100% back to normal, and able to lift like you did before the injury, go ahead a keep using the brace, it won't hurt a bit to keep it on. Then when you are 100% pain free, you can just put it away, and hopefully won't have to take it out ever again, good luck dude, O.M.G.