As the Sports Injury Clinic explains, the rotator cuff is not one muscle, but a group of muscles that work together to stabilize the shoulder joint, known as the glenohumeral joint, during rotation and other movements. The muscles that form the rotator cuff are the infraspinatus, subscapularis, supraspinatus and the teres major. Sports Injury Clinic notes that rotator cuff injuries are often experienced after powerful pitches, so it's essential for you to strengthen the muscles of your rotator cuff if you're a pitcher. There are a wide variety of exercises you can perform to do this.
Lying Dumbbell External Rotation
Because of the unique motion of the shoulder joint, you may have to adopt some unique positioning to strengthen your rotator cuff. One example of this is through the lying dumbbell external rotation, which fitness website AskTheTrainer.com explains is effective for strengthening your infraspinatus and teres major. This is a key exercise because the infraspinatus is the second most commonly injured rotator cuff muscle, according to AskTheTrainer.com.
To perform this exercise, lie on your side on the floor or on a weight bench. Hold a dumbbell in your top hand and rest your upper arm on your side and bend your arm at a 90-degree angle. Keep your elbow planted on your hip and rotate your arm externally, as if trying to bring your forearm perpendicular with the floor. Rotate as far as is comfortable and slowly reverse the motion.
Weight Plate Lift
In order to give yourself the best chance of staving off injury, you should perform a number of rotator cuff exercises that focus on moving your shoulder muscles in different directions. The weight plate lift works on horizontal rotation, explains the exercise website Sport Fitness Advisor.
To perform this exercise, you'll need to hold a weight plate in each of your hands. Stand up straight with your feet shoulder-width apart and hold your arms up and out to your sides so your elbows are level with your shoulders. Rotate your hands upward so that you lift the weights toward the ceiling. Rotate as far as you can without pain, then slowly reverse the motion and repeat.
Lying Front Raise
This exercise is recommended by the American Academy of Family Physicians and involves lying on a weight bench. To perform this exercise, lie on your stomach and hold a weight in one of your hands. Hold your weighted arm out to the side with your elbow bent at a 90-degree angle so that the weight is hanging down toward the ground. Keep your elbow bent and your upper arm straight out to the side as you rotate your forearm upward until it is parallel with the ground. Slowly reverse the motion and repeat.
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