Pitching is a rotational activity, and the hips and core are the chief couplers of power to the arm.  As the stride foot lands the internal rotators of the hips, along with the core, rotate the midsection to face the plate.  The hip external rotators, if tight and inflexible, will impede this rotation.  (Remember that the hip internal and external rotators are antagonist muscles, which means they oppose each other and that one must stretch while the other contracts.)

So while the internal rotators fire, the external rotators relax and stretch.  If the external rotators are tight and do not stretch to their full and normal range of motion, the whole kinetic sequence is impeded.  This, in turn, makes the arm bear an extra burden by being in the valgus position longer while trying to catch up and get in the proper position to deliver the pitch. Dr. Morgan and others told me that they believe this leads to elbow problems, including UCL tears.

Ed Bach's arm laying back in the valgus position

Having tight hips is a bad for arm health and detrimental to one’s throwing velocity.  Having loose and fluidly moving hips will make anyone a healthier and likely harder throwing pitcher.  Rotating against tight muscles causes a loss in transferred power, which in turn is a loss in velocity.  Get it back with just a few sets of stretches done daily.

Do you have a problem?

First thing’s first: You need to find out if your hips are tight.  Now, when I say hips, I really mean the singular hip on your stride leg.  Because of the constant rotation around that hip from so many throws, the stride leg will get tight but the back leg will remain normal.  

So, you compare.  At the doctor’s or PT’s office this will be done with a goniometer, but you can get a general Yes or No diagnosis without one.

Test # 1: Lie on your back, bend your knees to 90° and let them fall to either side as far as they will go.  Do this facing a mirror, or have someone assess you from behind.

This photo shows a significantly tighter left hip

If your hips fall like this (nearly symmetrical) you're in great shape.

Test #2 (and Stretch #1): Try the knee-in stretch, and self-diagnose any differences.  If one hip is tight, you’ll feel the difference and see that it won’t go down or over toward the midline very well.  

Note that while stretching, the left knee is higher revealing inflexibility

The goal in the knee-in stretch, which I feel is the best stretch to cure hip external rotator tightness, is to pull the knees down and in while maintaining your feet flat on the floor, toes pointed straight, and lower back flat on the floor.  You can vary the stretch by arching your back while on the floor, or sitting.  You’ll feel a difference each way.

Knee-in start

Knee-in finish

Knee-in angle variation

Stretch #2: Knee Cross-over

This is one where I feel a glaring difference between my left and right.  Start on all fours and cross your tight leg behind the other.  While maintaing good posture squat back until you feel the stretch in the side of your hip, while keeping your knees on the floor.

Cross-over start

Cross-over finish

Note that in the pictures the difference between start and finish is small.  I actually had to use my loose leg (my right) for the picture to show a difference.  On my left I can only squat back about 4 inches or so, which is hardly a perceivable difference on film.  It really takes a lot of stretching to gain symmetry on this one.

Stretch #3: Hip Mobilization

This mobilization drill was shown to me by my friend Nick Tumminello.  It works the hips in a similar way to the knee cross-over, and really shows the difference between legs.

To perform, you get on all fours with back straight and arms straight.  Point your off leg straight back, and then squat backward as far as you can while maintaining straight arms and a straight back.  Hold for a few seconds, then come back up. Dont let your body roll to either side, and go straight back, hinging at the knee. Repeat for 2-3 sets of 8-15 reps.  

Coach Nick's hip mobilizer start

Coach Nick's hip mobilizer finish

This exercise is easy on my right, looser hip.  I can sit back all the way with no problem.  It’s downright difficult on my left, both in range of motion and in stabilizing myself.  When an exercise is hard like this, though, it means you’re really going to benefit from it.

Stretch #4 : Seated piriformis stretch

The piriformis is a strong external rotator that also acts as a hip abductor (helps move the thigh bone away from the body).  This stretch and the next one I’ll show you target the piriformis.  To perform, sit in a chair and cross one leg over the other. GENTLY press the knee down, while pushing your chest out and sitting up very straight and you will feel the stretch.  It is important, as Coach Nick was explaining to me, to keep the knee within the body, so the piriformis can relax fully.  If the knee is outside the body, then the piriformis will engage as an abductor, thus preventing it from relaxing and ruining the stretch.

GENTLY press down to feel the stretch

Stretch #5: Wall figure-4 stretch

This is another stretch pioneered by Nick Tumminello, and stretches the piriformis better than the laying figure-4 stretch (not shown).  It is again imperative, as previously explained, to keep the knee within the body.  One slides up close to a wall, and with legs straight crosses one over the other at the thigh.  Then you press your butt into the ground and bend your knee.  Pull the crossing leg in to the chest if more stretch is desired.  The closer your butt is to the wall, the stronger the stretch will be.  

Coach Nick's improved figure-4

Final Thoughts

Be gentle with all these stretches, as they all involve the knees.  If your knees hurt on any, back off and maybe choose another that works for you. I recommend the knee-in, one on all fours and one of the piriformis stretches, but try them all and find out which ones work best for you.  The seated piriformis tends to give me some problems, but the knee-in and both on all-fours get me in great shape.  Everyone’s different.  

If your hips are far from symmetrical like mine once were and sometimes still are, it’s necessary to do a few of these stretches everyday, 3x each for 30 seconds.   Remember that the goal is symmetry and not hyperlaxity.  We’re ballplayers, not dancers, so don’t go overboard. There are also a few dynamic stretches for the the same symptoms that I’ll post in the future.

One major adaptation of the pitcher is in shoulder range of motion (ROM). Pitchers have incredible, otherworldly external rotation.  The average person couldn’t dream of contorting his arm in such a way.

My buddy Andrew Germuth showing off his external rotation

My buddy Andrew Germuth showing off his external rotation

And what price do we pitchers pay for enjoying such lavish external rotation?  You guessed it! A tight rotator cuff and a subsequent deficiency of internal rotation. (there is always a catch!)

So what?  Does it matter if a pitcher has poor shoulder range of motion internally?

The answer to this question is unequivocally “yes.” Any trainer or physical therapist will tell you that a lack of ROM in any joint is pathological and indicative of underlying problems.  Normal ROM should exist in all one’s joints, and if not, there is a probably a problem as to why.  In many populations these imbalances in flexibility might not impair day-to-day functioning, but for athletes and especially pitchers, inflexibility poses major problems.

Dr. Craig Morgan and colleagues are researching the link between elbow pain (up to and including full blown ligament tears requiring Tommy John surgery) and internal rotation.  What he is finding (as he found in me) is that a huge amount of pitchers coming to him have significant GIRD (glenohumeral internal rotation deficiency), and once that GIRD is reduced to an amount within 20 degrees of the internal rotation of the non-throwing shoulder, the pitchers very often return to throwing without pain.  Internal rotation deficits are caused by posterior shoulder capsule tightness, which can be alleviated using the sleeper stretch.  Restore your internal rotation ROM and you will be throwing healthier and harder.

The Sleeper Stretch

The basic form is as follows: lay on your hip with knees bent, with ankles in line with your spine.  Prop your head (or don’t if you like being uncomfortable) under a towel or pillow, your glove or whatever.  Extend your throwing arm out in front of you at 90°.  Keep your chest out and don’t lean back.

Sleeper Stretch Starting Position

Next you need to pinch your shoulder blades together, hard, and hold them that way throughout the stretch. This is crucial, and the stretch is useless without pinched blades because your shoulder will be in improper position.

The WRONG Way – Blades not pinched, shoulders misaligned

The CORRECT way - blades pinched, shoulders in better alignment

CORRECT – blades pinched, shoulders in better alignment

I held a pencil in the middle of my back for effect – think about holding something there while you perform the stretch.

Once your blades are held together, take your other hand and GENTLY push your arm toward the ground.  Don’t force it, just give it enough of a push to feel a stretch. I have to stretch mine 3 times daily to keep it loose, and from the beginning it will take a few weeks to really loosen up.  Forcing it won’t help, it will just cause more problems.

A good sleeper stretch

A good sleeper stretch

Notice how much internal rotation I have in the above picture: about 45 degrees. Once I go through this I gain about 10° more, but that’s it.  Watch what happens when I don’pinch and hold my blades together:

The WRONG way. If you look like this, your shoulder blades are not pinched

The WRONG way. If you look like this, your shoulder blades are not pinched.

If you see someone at the field doing the sleeper with their palm almost on the ground, correct them, because they are doing it wrongly.  Try it the right and wrong way so you feel the difference.  In proper position with blades pinched, if you have 45 degrees like I do, then you are looking great.  When I go in for checkups I measure symmetrical to my left. Everyone has a different setpoint, but no one can put their palm to the floor. It looks about the same, though, which is why players so often do it incorrectly.

Variations and Reps

So now you’ve mastered the form in the 90° position.  The three positions from which you will stretch are 90°, 70°, and 110° from your shoulder to your body. Stretch your arm for 3 sets of 30 seconds at each position.  Even at 70 and 110, keep a 90° angle with your forearm and upper arm.

Correct angle between forearm and upper arm

 Correct angle between forearm and upper arm

INCORRECT angle between forearm and upper arm

INCORRECT angle between forearm and upper arm

Proper stretch at 70 degrees from body

Proper stretch at 70 degrees from body

Proper stretch at 110 degrees from body

Proper stretch at 110 degrees from body

The orientation of muscle fibers in your rotator cuff varies, which is why stretching three positions is recommended.

So do your sleepers daily, and do them correctly.  If you do, you’ll be taking a huge step toward both keeping yourself injury-free, and picking up some MPHs. Flexibility plays a big role in velocity, and I picked up 3-4 from increasing my ROM in my shoulder and in my hips.

Additionally, check out my great new article and video on Sleeper Stretch Variations!

Update – Here is a video from the Morgan-Kalman clinic, where I was taught this stretch. Watch it!

**I am a strength coach and pitching instructor in the Central Illinois area. Personal training, pitching lessons, and custom training programs are among my available services. If you liked this post, please subscribe to my monthly newsletter – you will receive member-only tips, tricks and/or special offers on services and products.**
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Thanks for reading! -Dan Blewett

Bikram Yoga makes a lot of health claims, some of which may or may not be true, but overall I think it’s a great practice and will improve the health, flexibility, and recovery time of those who might bring a chronic injury into the studio.

The Basics

My sister wrote a nice piece for school explaining the Bikram phenomenon, and it’s a good read.  But the class is relatively straight-forward : 90 minutes in a 105 degree, 40% humidity room which consists of 26 postures, each repeated twice.  If it sounds difficult, that’s because it is.  However, nothing worthwhile is easy and Bikram is no exception.  

To class one brings a large jug of water, a yoga mat and towel to cover the mat, and a scant outfit to allow ease of movement and a cooling effect.  One class costs about 14-20 dollars depending on the studio, which is actually pretty reasonable considering the length of the class (most yoga classes are an hour) and the intensity of the workout.  Buying class cards brings down the cost per class down even more.

My Reason for Sweating

I turned to Bikram Yoga to help both with my hip and inflexibility and my elbow rehab.  I needed something drastic to loosen up my hips and quads, which were very tight and limiting my torso rotation in my pitching motion, which in turn was adding to my elbow pain.  I needed my hips to loosen, but my own stretching wasn’t making a dent.  

I also hoped that the extensive bloodflow promoted by the heat would aid my elbow recovery, as well as reduced the chance for tightness in the surrounding muscles. Tommy John patients notoriously get tricep tightness, yet I never had any.  Maybe it was the yoga.  

The Postural Procedure

Bikram Yoga is hot and intense.  The postures are demanding, as many are balance oriented.  Check out 30dayyogi’s blog for some good pictures and insight into all of this.

This pose got my heart rate soaring

The above posture, the standing head-to-knee, is just one of many that challenge by requiring balance, strength and flexibility at the same time.  For this reason athletes can really benefit, as sports are performed on the feet, not laying on the ground.  My balance was amazing after just a week or two.

I can’t really say that I enjoyed the yoga- it was so demanding that it just wasn’t something that I looked at as fun.  Many people really enjoy it, but I wasn’t one of them.  However I did believe it was good for me, and I definitely saw results.  I also felt great when the class was over.  These reasons were enough to keep me coming back for a while.  My hips, quads and hamstrings loosened tremendously, and I still enjoy the enhanced flexibility to this day from maintenance stretching.  

The Shrinking Yogi

I once wore a heart rate monitor to the class, and my heart rate averaged 140 for the entire 90 minutes, peaking at 184 during the standing head-to-knee pose.  I burned over 1000 calories, though I can’t remember the exact number.  While this large energy expenditure is great for those who want to lose weight, it was not a good thing for me.  Ever wonder why yogis are thin? I don’t.

I eat 4000-5000 calories each day to maintain my 185 pound bodyweight.  I work out an awful lot, which when combined with a naturally voracious metabolism, requires me to eat a ton while staying lean.  Add on another 1000+ calorie deficit from yoga and I was getting into the stratosphere of calorie intake to prevent weight loss. 185 is the playing weight I have settled on, and while I can easily add on, I try not to dip below it too much.  So going to Bikram Yoga while in the same week running intervals, lifting 3-4 times, having 5 practices and additional conditioning was just too much activity.  I found I could maintain my newly gained flexibility through a daily stretch routine, and so I left Bikram behind.

For many, Bikram Yoga is their only form of exercise, and that is perfectly fine.  But it couldn’t replace any of my training, and so as an add-on it was too much.

A Problem of Instability

One thing that concerns me about Bikram Yoga and yoga in general is the stretching of the lumbar spine, or lower back.  From all my weightlifting experience, I was always told that keeping a tightly arched lower back is crucial to preventing back problems when lifting.  Roman arches were used to support great weights, and the principle is much the same with your lower back.  If it arches (not round like a cat) and stays short and strong, it keeps the lower back stable, and the ligaments and muscles from straining, stretching and becoming injured when lifting.  

If one stretches the lumbar spine too much, it can put the back at risk.  Much of this was brought to light by this article by Mike Robertson, who is a top strength coach, and a chiropractor with whom I had a conversation.   

The Bottom Line

Bikram yoga is pleasant for some, but a tradeoff for others. The heat is oppressive, but also works wonders.  The postures are demanding, but make you stronger in different ways than other exercise.  The class is long, but you leave feeling accomplished and refreshed.  I don’t think it is perfectly suited to everyone, but can be great for many populations. For athletes, it can be that jumpstart that is needed to loosen up severely tightened joints, which is often the ticket to higher performance.  And if you want to lose weight, it’s definitely the ticket.  Take some ice water and give it a go.