Written by Coach JT Kotowski.
In a sport like baseball, you need a healthy arm.
With the right arm care protocol, you can prevent injuries, decrease recovery time, & improve performance.
Here’s the very first technique you can start using to give yourself the proper arm care as a baseball player: Rhythmic Stabilization
Why Use Rhythmic Stabilization?
For baseball and softball players alike, it is very important to carefully train and strengthen the muscles that control and are responsible for the throwing motion. Not only do these specific areas generate the power to accelerate the ball out of your hand, but, more important, they play the role of quickly and safely decelerating the throwing arm.
Rhythmic stabilization trains these specific muscles, so that they can do a better job at acceleration and deceleration.
How to Perform the Rhythmic Stabilization
- First, find a responsible partner to assist you.
- Then, assume a half kneeling stance with the knee of your throwing-arm side down on the ground.
- In various arm positions, have your partner add manual resistance (using gentle pushes) from various directions along your upper arm (between the elbow and the shoulder).
- As your partner applies these random pushes, you should resist the force and prevent your arm from moving – this is what will strengthen the necessary muscles used in accelerating and decelerating the arm during throwing.
- Try this exercise in various positions that your arm would be during a throw (e.g., cocked back, released forward, and anywhere in between)
What to Avoid When Performing the Rhythmic Stabilization
Most importantly, avoid using too much manual resistance (this is why you need a responsible partner!) or giving into the force being applied by your partner in which you would be doing the drill wrong and wasting your time.
As the responsible partner, avoid slapping your buddy’s arm around with immaturity. Gentle pushes from random areas along the upper arm is the only acceptable mode of added resistance.
