Arm Care 101:

It is time to rethink how we do arm care. Gone are the days of banded external rotations and wrist curls, now is the time for a holistic scientific approach.

Taking a holistic approach should include banded external rotations and wrist curls but it should also look at your posture, scapula movement, rotator cuff strength, strong and flexible lats, and adequate overhead range of motion.

Baseball players, your arm can be your golden ticket, here is how you can keep it healthy:

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1. Posture

Our posture can greatly affect the way we throw. Posture is simply the alignment of our body in which there are two types: static posture and dynamic posture…

• Static posture: how an individual physically presents themselves in stance, is the base from which an individual moves.
• Dynamic posture: posture that is reflected how an individual can maintain posture while performing a functional movement, for example, correct squatting form. If you Do Not hold your joints in a good position, you can’t complete a task such as throwing in a powerful athletic position. Posture is the foundation to which you move, if you have a weak foundation it might pose problems elsewhere. I always like to refer to posture like a foundation of a house. If you have a shifting foundation, it might be hard to notice until the cracks appear. Keep your foundational posture strong and be cognizant of how you carry yourself and build strength on top of correct posture and form.
• Tips for good static posture:
  • Screw your feet into the ground.
  • Squeeze and contract your glutes
  • Tuck your pelvis under (posterior tilt the pelvis to find a neutral position)
  • Engage your core musculature
  • Pinch your shoulder blades together, externally rotate arms so palms face outward
  • Tuck your chin

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2. Neutral Pelvis and Proper Breathing Patterns

Extension based posture can be a problem for baseball players. Anterior pelvic tilt of the pelvis and extension of the thoracic spine are usual signs of this posture.

Looking back to point #1. Our pelvis positioning plays a huge role in our posture, poorly position joints will have an effect on the joints above and below, such as the shoulder and elbow which take most of the force from throwing. Having an anterior pelvic tilt problem otherwise known as lower crossed syndrome is postural distortion syndrome which is a sign of muscle imbalances.

Lower crossed syndrome is usually a result of tight hips flexors, weak core stabilizers, and weak glutes/ hamstrings.

Teaching proper breathing patterns can reduce rib flare and lumbar hyperextension. Both can negativity affect the way you shoulder joint is oriented when throwing.

Try  these Exercises:
Pelvic tilts with adductor ball squeezes
All four belly lift with breathing
Single leg bridges
Stability ball shoulder rollouts

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3. Strong and Flexible Lats

The Latissimus Dorsi muscle is a big flat muscle on the posterior side of our body. The muscle insertion point is on the humerus and assists in internal rotation of the arm and also extends the arm behind us. The lats help translate energy from our lower body to our upper body, a major part of throwing.

Over active lats can put the shoulder in a vulnerable position. So it is important to keep them strong and flexible. Utilizing exercises that strength and stretch at the same time are a good way to do this. Incorporate eccentric chips or lat pull downs into your exercise routine.

Try these Exercises: 
Eccentric chip ups
Stability ball lat stretch

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4. Strengthen the rotator cuff

The rotator cuff consists of four different muscles attached to the Scapula and Humerus bone. The Supraspinatus, Infraspinatus, Teres Minor, and Subscapularis. These four muscles allow are arm to move into internal and external rotation as well as abduction of the arm.

The Supraspinatus muscle brings the arm into shoulder abduction, so bringing your arm up out at the side. A great exercise to strengthen this muscle are standing shoulder lateral raises. Use light weights around 2.5-5 lbs max.

The Infraspinatus muscle main motion is external rotation and transverse abduction (moving out from across the chest). The Teres Minor Muscle motion is external rotation as well. Banded external rotations will strengthen the teres minor and the Infraspinatus muscles.

The last muscle that is part of the rotator cuff group is the Subscapularis muscle. Unlike the previous three muscles, the Subscapularis sits on the anterior scapula and its main motion is internal rotation.

Try these Exercises:
Lateral Shoulder raises (light weight)
Banded External Rotations
Banded Internal Rotations

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5. Scapular upward rotation and stability

The scapula is a huge player in the throwing motion. To get your arm up and overhead, the scapula have to move through a motion called upward rotation. Consistently throwing every single day throughout the season can cause a  lot of wear and tear on the muscles that assist in upward rotation and will limit movement in the scapula.

Try these Exercises:
Forward/ Backward/ Lateral Bear Crawls
Banded chest press plus (shoulder protraction)
Serratus Wall Slides
Serratus push ups

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6. Establish Overhead Range of Motion and Stability

Throwing is an overhead motion. Being able to passively get into over head flexion can tell us a lot about the health of an athletes arm. Limited overhead motion can be due to a lack of thoracic mobility, inability to posteriorly tilt the scapula, tight lats, tight pecs, and weakness in the Serratus Anterior muscle.

Try these Exercises: 
T-Spine Rotations and extensions
Scapula CARs
Lat Stretch
Doorway Pec Stretch
Serratus Anterior Punches
Banded overhead press

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7. Forearm Strength

The muscles of the forearm can help protect the gap in the elbow. The Ulnar Collateral Ligament of the elbow (UCL) is a ligament that often gets injured with throwing and can lead to the infamous Tommy John Surgery, reconstruction of the UCL. This ligament connects the humerus and the ulna bone on the medial side. Studies show that strengthening the flexor muscles in the forearm can shorten the gap in the elbow and can protect the UCL ligament.

Elbow exercises to strengthen the forearm can protect the elbow joint.

Try these Exercises:
Wrist curls
Rice bucket
Grip holds
Ball squeezes

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8. Be smart in the weight room

The weight room is where you develop all your strength and power but it is also where you can incorporate your arm care program into your workout.

Exercises that expose more risk than reward for baseball players are overhead snatches and hang cleans. These two lifts are very technical and require a lot of practice to do them safely and effectively. There is a reason why these exercises are an Olympic Sport.

Time spent practicing these lifts takes time away from actually doing other lifts that are safer, less technical, and will give you the same benefit.

Try incorporating more asymmetrical exercises into your workouts. Asymmetrical means one side, so working one side of the body at a time,  this is a great way to clean up muscle imbalances, while also challenging medial and lateral balance, and building more core strength.

Example: Instead of power snatches try doing an asymmetrical split lunge dumbbell overhead press.

Other exercises to try:
Asymmetrical bench press
Reverse Lunges
Single leg squats
Single arm row
Single arm bench press

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9. Regain mobility after throwing

After throwing or pitching it is important to have a proper cool down with your active recovery. Try incorporating some mobility work to regain proper mobility of the shoulder joint, thoracic spine, hips, and ankle complex. Check out my post of mobility work here.

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Acknowledgments:

NASM