Minimalist Arm Care For Pitchers Part 1: External Rotation

This will be part 1 of an arm care series – geared towards throwers who have no equipment.

Training the posterior cuff to get strong into external rotation is very important for throwers.  Why?  The external rotators (infraspinatus and teres minor) need to work really hard as the arm goes into layback to keep the head of the humerus (golf ball) centred in the glenoid fossa (tee).

A golfball on a tee is a much more accurate depiction of the glenohumeral joint than a ball-in-socket. That’s because of how shallow the glenoid fossa is.  It better illustrates why  strength and stability of the rotator cuff is so important for throwers.  The true function of the cuff is to stabilize that golf ball!

One of the biggest red flags I see in throwers is a lack of active shoulder external rotation range of motion compared to their passive range of motion.  This is problematic because basically they don’t have the motor control to be strong and stable into max external rotation when they throw

These three exercise variations will work on improving active control of external rotation as well as build strength in the posterior cuff – and they require no equipment!

Thanks for reading!