Softball Training: How to Keep Those Shoulders Happy
As a softball coach, one of the last things I want to hear is a player complaining about shoulder pain. Their mechanics start to change, velocity decreases, and the players start to suffer when their issue was likely preventable. In this day and age, athletes become more specialized due to the demands of high school and club athletics. So, instead of playing a sport 3-4 months of the year, athletes now play for 9+ months which is leading to more overuse injuries. Unfortunately, I don’t see a lot of preventative strategies taking place to prevent this. That’s where we come in ;)
Any overhead athlete needs rotator cuff strength, but especially the softball/baseball population who throws repeatedly overhead nearly every day. It’s common sense that throwing athletes need good shoulder strength, but it’s amazing how many athletes lack this foundational strength. The good news is there are simple exercises to strengthen the rotator cuff.
But first, what is the rotator cuff?
Four extremely important muscles that help stabilize the shoulder, more specifically, they stabilize the humerus in the glenoid cavity/shoulder socket
Provide acceleration and deceleration with throwing movements
Weaker muscles tend to be on the back of the shoulder - supraspinatus and infraspinatus are the most important!
Softball Strengthening Exercises
Recommendation is 3-4x/week if the goal is to get stronger!
If a player is in more of a maintenance phase, 2x/week is adequate
3 sets of 10-15 repetitions with the goal of being TIRED, so pick enough weight/resistance
Sidelying external rotation Sidelying horizontal abduction Standing external rotation
The best way to prevent shoulder pain in softball athletes is to strengthen the rotator cuff. In my opinion, all softball athletes should be performing these exercises throughout the year to prevent shoulder issues. If you have pain currently, it is even more important so get after it!
If you are a softball athlete struggling with shoulder pain, or are an active adult with shoulder pain, contact Breathe in Motion and we can help!