After reading an article on a professional baseball player, I couldn’t help but wonder what kind of conditioning or training he was doing. This particular player has only been able to play a minimum number of games the last three years.
The rest of the time he had been injured or undergoing rehabilitation which included some playing in the minors. Prior to joining the team he was injury free for many years.
His first debilitating injury was plantar fasciitis after first being diagnosed with a strained foot arch. The following year he was diagnosed with a strained right elbow for which he had to have reconstructive surgery. The following year he had a strained left shoulder which ended up with shoulder surgery. This year he tuned up for the season by playing winter ball in Puerto Rico.
With this history we must question his training. He is a big man standing 6’6″ tall and weighing 260 pounds. My guess would be that he is naturally strong based on his growth and development. I would venture to say that he was able to play well most of his life when playing against equal or weaker opponents.
It now appears that when he came up against stronger opponents his injuries started. Without going into reasons for this, it seems fairly obvious that his strength training, if any, was not specific to the skills he must perform.. For example, plantar fasciitis is typically caused by improper running technique and a lack of strength.
Strained elbows, shoulders, etc., are typically caused by ineffective technique and/or insufficient strength of the muscles that are involved in throwing and possibly in hitting. More specifically, he probably had insufficient strength in the ranges of motion in which the strength had to be displayed.
It seems like he has not had any technique analyses to determine if there was something wrong in his throwing or hitting patterns that might be the cause of his elbow and shoulder injuries. Nor was he was doing specialized strength exercises so that the muscles would have been capable of withstanding the stress placed on them during the hitting or throwing actions.
If he had technique analyses by a technique specialist, it would have been possible to predict whether an injury was about to happen. In such cases preventive measures could have been taken to correct the flawed technique.
Most effective in this regard are specialized strength exercises that are a combination of proper technique and strength developed in the necessary range of motion. In other words, the strength exercises duplicate (use the same neuromuscular pathway) the movements involved.
Technique analysis and performing specialized strength and explosive exercises is the key to injury prevention. With effective technique and strength of the muscles as they are involved in the specific joint and limb actions, the body, and more specifically the muscles and joints, will be prepared to handle the forces that are experienced during execution of the skill.
This is the key to injury prevention. It should also be noted that it is also the key to improved performance and proper and effective rehabilitation.
For more information see Build a Better Athlete and other books in the Explosive series.