Arm Care Program for Throwing Athletes

Have you suffered an arm injury and want to get back to throwing without pain? Many baseball player’s experience arm pain at one point or another in their career and try almost anything to help alleviate their pain. Shoulder and elbow pain for throwing athletes are some of the most debilitating injuries due to the repetitive high stress placed on these structures. At Performance Plus Physical Therapy, we take pride in addressing the tissue at fault and will customize a program so that you do not have to take pain killers prior to throwing. 

 Are you currently wondering why your arm hurts when you throw or even wonder when to start a throwing program?  At PPPT, we can perform functional movement analysis to help determine the tissue that is causing pain and prescribe specific exercises to address the impairments. What this means is that the physical therapist can examine your throwing mechanics in order to manage the loads placed on the elbow and shoulder. Once the tissue and the biomechanical fault are discovered, we can utilize treatments like:  therapeutic exercise, cupping, KT tape, postural corrective exercises, plyometric  throwing exercises, weighted ball programs, elastic band programs, and can design interval throwing programs to help optimize movement specific to the individual. 

A customized throwing program is the best way to prepare your arm before the season starts. Many athletes have felt arm fatigue early in the season when they do not properly strengthen their arms to withstand the demands of pitching. At PPPT, we structure specific throwing programs for the athletes to perform following injury recovery. The throwing program would include number of throws, days of throwing and distances based on the level of the athlete and which part of the season the athlete is currently in.

Prior to beginning a throwing program, the athlete should have at least a two-week break from throwing and should mainly focus on an elastic band routine with sport specific therapeutic exercises based on the physical therapist evaluation. Elastic band routines are quite common in throwing athletes but could lack structure and purpose. Here at PPPT, we can develop a shoulder program with elastic bands that is specific to your goals and impairments. (Band is provided at first visit)

If you are interested in learning more about throwing programs and how physical therapy can help decrease pain with throwing, please click on the “contact us” tab to schedule your discovery appointment.

Written By

Giovanni Villanueva  PT, DPT

Doctor of Physical Therapy