| Is your training increasing or decreasing your risk of | | | | centered on the plate so the big muscles can produce |
| injury? Our goal is to function at the highest level | | | | the accelerating, decelerating and rotational forces |
| possible while reducing the risk of injury. Baseball is a | | | | while throwing. Muscles surrounding the shoulder blade |
| sport that involves strength, speed, endurance, flexibility, | | | | that provide stability for the shoulder joint include the |
| and mobility to name a few. What I have been seeing | | | | lower trapezius, serratus anterior and rhomboid |
| with baseball players from little league, early | | | | muscles. All these muscles not only provide support for |
| adolescence into their adult lives is the widely | | | | the shoulder but also are crucial in holding your posture. |
| accepted notion that to become a better athlete you | | | | Weakness in these muscles and focusing on strength |
| have to train for form, not so much function. What is | | | | training for the chest, arms and abdominals will create |
| the difference? | | | | an imbalance between the front and back of the |
| Form is what can be termed bodybuilding, building the | | | | shoulder girdle (upper body) possibly creating a |
| body with focus on big muscles or prime movers of | | | | rounded upper back, forward head appearance |
| the body. The chest, shoulders, abdominals, arms and | | | | (slouching). This imbalance places the upper back |
| quads, also known as mirror muscles, what we can | | | | muscles in a lengthened position, which will create |
| see in the mirror, are most commonly developed using | | | | greater stress on the rotator cuff during deceleration |
| machines and free weights. Bench press, crunches, | | | | phase (follow through) of throwing and altered |
| biceps curls and knee extensions are the exercises of | | | | throwing mechanics. Many times it can manifest as |
| choice. What is wrong with that, you may say? I | | | | soreness and pain in the shoulder, down into the upper |
| thought that to be involved in athletics, I have to | | | | arm, elbow and forearm. So how do I avoid this? Build |
| become stronger and condition the body for that | | | | your body like building a house. You wouldn't start with |
| sport? Yes and no. Let me explain, let's look at | | | | the roof and windows before having a solid foundation. |
| function. | | | | Then don't just jump into strength training, start with a |
| Function is what is useful, how the body is utilized | | | | strong stable foundation and proper alignment before |
| throughout different planes of movement for a desired | | | | packing on the muscle! |
| action. Baseball for example, involves throwing, hitting | | | | First use a foam roller to loosen tight muscles and |
| and running and must deal with forces that cause | | | | stretch the muscles around your shoulder for optimal |
| rotation, forces that distract a joint during acceleration, | | | | range of motion (For more information the foam roller, |
| and forces that must be decelerated, stabilized and | | | | look at Relieve Pain with Foam). Stretching the |
| transferred to produce the desired action. So you ask, I | | | | muscles in the front (chest, shoulders, and internal |
| thought that building my muscles stronger would | | | | rotators) and strengthening the muscles in the back |
| accomplish that? When we focus on form or | | | | (lower trapezius, rhomboids, and external rotators) will |
| bodybuilding only, you are creating an unbalanced | | | | help to balance your shoulder girdle. Next, because we |
| environment. | | | | transfer force from the lower body to the upper body |
| Let's take look at one of the most problematic issues | | | | while throwing and vice versa we target core stability |
| regarding baseball players, shoulder injuries. When an | | | | and strength. The core involves more than just your |
| athlete throws a baseball, force is generated from the | | | | abdominals and low back; it includes the deep muscles |
| lower body and transferred through the core into the | | | | along your spine down through your pelvis and hips. |
| upper body through the shoulder, elbow and wrist | | | | Most people think of core exercises as movements |
| providing the "speed" of the baseball. However, the | | | | such as crunches, twists and back extensions to |
| force does not stop there. Once the ball is released, | | | | name a few, however that is only one part of it. Core |
| that force does not disappear, it must be decelerated | | | | exercises can be split into stabilizing and movement |
| back through the wrist, elbow, shoulder, upper body, | | | | exercises. When we attempt to develop core strength |
| core and lower body. Simply stated, what you speed | | | | without core stability, we are forcing our bodies to rely |
| up, you must slow down. | | | | on the prime movers, such as the chest, abdominals |
| The shoulder is the most mobile joint in the body, | | | | and shoulders to do the stabilizing. We must be stable |
| however, what we gain in mobility we sacrifice stability. | | | | before we can move; otherwise energy is wasted |
| Picture the shoulder as a ball sitting on a plate, very | | | | while throwing, running and hitting, all baseball |
| mobile but not very stable. For the shoulder, or any | | | | movements. For a small range of exercises with a |
| joint for that matter, must be stable before moving. | | | | variety of uses from improving posture to sport |
| Stability of the shoulder is heavily reliant on the rotator | | | | specific exercises for throwing go to Does It Help |
| cuff muscles. The rotator cuff muscles originate from | | | | Does It Hurt on the fuel page at performance4life. |
| the shoulder blade and its goal is to keep the ball | | | | |