Baseball Arm Care that Athletes Actually Want to Do

The Big Takeaway 

Mixing arm care in during rest periods and gamifying movements leads to better athlete buy-in and adherence.

The Value of Arm Care 

Arm care has been a staple part of baseball athletes' programs for years now, mostly due to the year-long demanding schedule that many young baseball athletes face and the subsequent rise in shoulder and elbow injuries associated with this (1,2). Beyond managing the pitch count, types of pitches, and days off between games, pitchers should be performing a progressive resistance training program that improves strength in relevant musculature to the pitching action (3). This is a vital piece to a pitcher's overall health and performance.

The unfortunate reality of these arm care programs is that most athletes find them boring to complete. This has driven coaches to find creative ways to get kids bought in. Here are two awesome examples from Shawn McDermott, founder of Synergy Performance Rehab.

How Synergy Performance Rehab Got Their Athletes Bought In on Arm Care 

Synergy Performance Rehab is a Tampa-based performance and rehab center for athletes of all levels. They value data on their athletes and use this to inform their training. They have worked with several high-level baseball athletes and have had success getting players to buy into the thing they typically hate the most… arm care.

Bake it in the Program 

One of the simplest ways to increase adherence to any arm care protocol is to simply work it into the primary training blocks during the day. For example, if the athletes are going through a lower body training session, arm care can be used during the rest periods between the main and assistance movements. This is a perfect spot for them as they are not overly fatiguing to the system and do not take long to perform. This strategy can also help with the flow of the session, especially for coaches dealing with large groups of athletes. Below is an example of how this comes to life in the weight room during a Synergy Performance Rehab Session:

A1. Primary Lower Body Strength Movement (Heavy Squat, Hinge, Lunge, etc.)

A2. Arm Care Exercise

A3. Core Assistance Exercise

A4. Arm Care Exercise

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B1. Secondary Lower Body Strength Movement

B2. Arm Care Exercise

B3. Assistance Lower Body Strength Movement

B4. Core Assistance Exercise

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Gamify Movements 

Coaches have long utilized games and competition to drive intent and improve performance during jumping, sprinting, throwing, and resistance training exercises. Output users have frequently reported this as one of the major impacts on their athletes while testing jumps and tracking bar velocity. This same concept of objectively measuring to drive competition can also be applied to arm care. At Synergy, they utilize Output Sports free motion throw mode to track peak velocity on reverse throws. See highlights in this video:

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By gamifying a movement like this, it gets athletes fired up to compete and, more importantly, complete their arm care work. Reverse throws are a great tool for training the external rotators of the shoulder that decelerate the arm when throwing. Once athletes have shown the prerequisite strength and mobility to perform the movement, they’ll start with a 4-6 lb ball for sets of 20 reps and progress in load as their peak velocities increase above 4 m/s.

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Wrap Up 

While arm care can get tedious for athletes, stepping outside of your typical programming box can lead to changes that both improve buy-in from your athletes and reduce headaches for you. If you haven’t yet, try baking in arm care to your workouts and gamifying movements with your athletes for better outcomes!

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References 

1. Andrews JR, Fleisig GS. How many pitches should I allow my child to throw? USA Baseball News April, 1996:5.
2. Lyman S, Fleisig GS, Andrews JR, et al. Effect of pitch type, pitch count, and pitching mechanics on risk of elbow and shoulder pain in youth baseball pitchers. Am J Sports Med 2002; 30:463-46

2. Kerut, EK., Kerut, DG., Fleisig, GS., & Andrews, J. Prevention of Arm Injury in Youth Baseball Pitchers. J La State Med Soc 2008; 160:95-98