Rotator Cuff | Shoulder Care
Rotator Cuff Exercises | Shoulder Care
Many athletes out there are lifting a lot of weight and hurting their rotator cuffs. As trainers, we see a lot of baseball players needing to protect their shoulders through rotator cuff exercises and football players needing to avoid lifting heavy weights when it comes to strengthening rotator cuffs. Without taking precaution, you can easily injure your shoulders.
You need to take care of your rotator cuff by using lighter weights. We recommend using upper body resistance bands. This will increase blood flow to the shoulder and allow you to be come stronger. In the event you are injured, it will help it heal quicker.
Upper body Resistance Band Exercises for Rotator Cuffs
Follow this recommended workout 3-4 times each week to keep your body safe and strong.
What you’ll need: upper body resistance bands, a strong pole to attach one side of the band to, YouTube access to follow video
Rotator Cuff Exercises
Warmups - Grab the upper body band and pull it against the chest. Externally rotate your shoulder, warm up the shoulder.
Straight Arms - Start with a straight arm and pull out the band. Return your arm to starting position during a 3 second counts on the way back. Repeat for 8-12 reps. Switch arms.
External Rotation - Concentrate on external rotators in this move. Place one hand under armpit and pull out the band. Don’t “chicken wing” your arm, keep it in a strong rotation. Return your arm to starting position during a 3 second count on the way back. Repeat for 8-12 reps. Switch arms.
External Rotation at High L Position – Create a high “L” with your arm. Position the resistance band at chest-level. Rotate shoulder, count to 3 and then back. Don’t overextend your shoulder. Repeat for 8-12 reps. Switch arms.
Finish with Straight Arms - Return to the initial straight arm move, except this time pulse the move for 5-6 seconds. Switch arms.
Take 2-4 minute break
Repeat.
ARE YOU GETTING YOUR STEPS IN? Daily Steps
It is not uncommon to go to the store or to the mall and drive around the parking lot several times until a close parking space becomes available or just to look for a parking spot close to the door. There are a lot of people that spend most of their day sitting behind a desk working at their computer rarely getting up unless it is to go to the bathroom or to lunch. People fail to realize that adding basic walking steps to their daily routine is a great way to increase circulation and improve overall health. Moving makes a lot more improvements to overall health than being stationery all day. On average, it has been estimated that most people need at least 10000 steps per day for a healthy lifestyle. Depending on body type, weight, height, age, etc. this number will vary. Why is this important? Your health depends on it.
There are simple ways to increase daily steps that most people do not even think about to try and reach the goal of 10000 steps per day. Begin by counting your steps for a day or a few days without consciously adding steps to find out the steps taken in a normal day. Many people are surprised how far they are from getting 10000 steps in. Wearing a pedometer to track the exact amount of steps each day is an easy and accurate counting tool. So many people complain about being too busy to exercise, but adding steps is a way to improve health without a lot of lifestyle change. When a person is able to visualize the increase in steps per day by keeping track of their steps then they begin to feel motivated and empowered to continue adding steps each day to reach 10000 steps and more. A lot of people go to the doctor and hear the doctor tell them that they need to be more active. These is why on any early morning a person can go to the mall and see a large number of seniors walking through the mall. They are keeping active while working on blood circulation, lowering cholesterol, lowering blood pressure, regulating blood sugars, manage their weight, and improve their morale Adding steps to a person’s day does not have to be difficult and time consuming. There are many things people can do that should become a routine to work towards getting in 10000 steps per day.
Simple ways to add steps:
- Take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator – whether going up or down it still adds steps
- Park at the back of the parking lot instead of as close to the door as possible
- Take the children, a friend, spouse or dog for a walk in the morning and/or evening -Many people walk during their lunch hour as well
- If your mailbox is not on your porch – walk to the mailbox instead of stopping at the mailbox in your car on the way home
- Mow, weed eat, rake, or work in the garden. These are extra steps that people generally do not think about
- Walk to the printer, copier, fax machine, etc.
Myosource Kinetic Bands are a great way to add resistance to daily steps. They are an easy, convenient, and inexpensive way to build muscle strength by simple taking steps. Myosource Kinetic Bands do not have any restrictions because a strap is put around each leg and the bands are clipped on to each strap. The lower bands are hands free and can be worn at anytime. Simply put on the resistance bands and go about your business. Many people are using them while doing housework, working in the garden, or while at their desk at work. This is a fantastic solution for those of you who saying you don’t have time to exercise. Let the Myosource Kinetic Bands work while you’re busy in your daily routine. The great thing about these resistance bands is that a person is able to walk, run, workout, do housework, do yard work, stretch, practice, or do skill specific drills. Whatever a person enjoys doing or would like to try in order to exercise and take adequate steps per day these resistance bands will speed up results. This isn’t about mountain climbing, marathon running, or body building. This is a daily lifestyle tool for staying active and decreasing possible health issues. Many people are lowering their blood pressure and blood glucose levels by the easy task of adding steps to their daily routine.
How to get started
- Invest in a pedometer – they are an inexpensive way to track daily steps without even thinking about it
- Invest in a set of lower body Myosource Kinetic Bands – Myosource Kinetic Bands an inexpensive and easy to use resistance training that a person can use during any type of movement
- Calculate normal daily steps – calculating daily steps allows a person to actually see their normal day step number in order to become motivated to increase that number – results motivate
- Begin to add steps in a variety of ways – there are a variety of simple ways to add steps throughout the day that do not take up a lot of extra time
It is no secret that people who are not active generally lack physical endurance and often feel sluggish and tired. The benefits of increasing daily steps are simple, inexpensive and produce results as well as satisfaction. It is not difficult to stand up and start putting one foot in front of the other but it has to become a routine and a person must choose to do so. Parents these days are finding themselves too tired to enjoy playing with their children when they get home from work and have a tendency to wake up tired after sleeping. It is worth the small amount of effort in order to live a healthier and more enjoyable quality of life. Begin today and make a positive impact on the way you feel, the waistline, and strive to prevent any unnecessary health issues. After a while a person will begin to notice that they have fewer aches and pains and their bones and joints feel better. When a person gets up and gets moving they feel less stressed and energized. A great quality of life is worth taking steps. Everyone in your life will be glad you did, especially you. It is as simple as putting one foot in front of the other and taking steps as a daily routine.
Baseball – Increase Speed & Effectivness in the Infield
It’s a full count, 1 out, bottom of the ninth, man on first and you’re a double-play away from the championship. As shortstop, if the ball comes your way, you can help turn a double-play and have the victory in hand. But your ability to make that play to help your team win the game depends on a variety of elements.
Training, fundamentals, mechanics, technique, instinct and yes – speed. Any infielder knows the pain of not getting to a ball quick enough. Don’t be the weak link in the chain. Increase your speed and effectiveness in the infield.
Resistance Band Training for Infielders
Adding resistance band training to your practice regime will help bring quickness to your position. Your hips are the driving force behind many of the movements you make in the infield. From snatching a ground ball, running down a base stealer or leaping for that line drive hit over your head – strong and stable hips will allow you to improve your reaction time regardless of the situation.
A simple lateral exercise with resistance bands will help build strong and stable hip muscles. It will also strengthen your glutes and hamstring muscles which are intricate components to moving quickly off the ball. With the bands attached slightly above the knees, begin lateral slides taking 3-4 steps in both directions. Have a coach or teammate roll a ball to you so you can react and get after that ground ball.
Here are several things to remember when doing this drill:
- Don’t Click Your Heels Together
You’re not Dorothy and this isn’t The Wizard of Oz so keep your feet apart as you slide laterally back and forth. Making sure your feet are apart improves the effectiveness of the exercise and keeps you from falling over. No one wants to waste time in the dirt let alone roll around in it. - Practice Like You’ll Play
Since the goal is for you to improve your quickness, you want to practice how you’ll play. Don’t just “go through the motions.” Go at game speed as you move from side-to-side. - No Hunch-Back
Resistance bands will cause you to naturally lean forward in this exercise by curling your back but keep your back flat as you are in a fielding position. It will give you better form, maximize your workout and help strengthen your core.
This simple exercise with resistance bands will work your hips, hamstrings and glutes. A strong lower body is incredibly important if you want to get the best jump on the ball you can. Remember these quick tips and get to work. A win could be up to you someday and you’ll want to do everything you can now to get ready.
Baseball – Catchers Build Muscle Strength with Resistance Bands
How’s your “Pop Time”?
Often a great deal of emphasis is put on a catchers “Pop Time”. This can result in a baseball catcher not being trained adequately to put just as much effort into control, velocity and accuracy. In evaluating a catchers throws in baseball it is important to remember not to overlook all the areas that may need improvement. Velocity and Accuracy matter.
Releasing the baseball effectively with ball control is a necessity in being successful as a baseball catcher. It is important to get an accurate evaluation of how fast the catcher gets the ball into the air after receiving a pitch in secondary position. This is often accomplished by having a catcher throw into a fence, backstop or tarp. The ability to release a baseball quickly by a catcher is often a skill that goes on the backburner to throwing. Quick hands and quick feet need to be a priority for baseball catchers.
When developing a good catcher it is necessary to find out how close to 100% of their own maximum velocity a catcher is throwing. The baseball catching velocity training technigue should be set up for each individual to get to that 100% or as close as possible. An example of finding out a catchers maximum velocity is to have them throw whatever way they believe they will perform at their highest level. To compare the radar gun readings then give the catcher a specific throw other then the one they chose and have them throw to second base taking a pitch just as they did with the other throw. If there is a big discrepancy in the times then there are mechanics to improve.
Obviously, the accuracy of a throw is much easier to evaluate and find ways to improve on then release, efficiency and velocity. The eye can observe whether or not the target of a throw is being hit. Accuracy is easy to evaluate because there is a target. Coaches have different views on how many inches the throw should arrive off the ground and how far to which side of the bag it should be. Set those targets for accuracy and have them throw there in order to record accuracy. Practice and technique are the key to accuracy. Remember to stretch and warm-up adequately before catching.
This is not a picture of the entire game for a catcher but it is a way to detect the biggest weaknesses that individual catchers need to focus on. Some catchers may have great speed but low velocity. Other catchers may have a slower release but yet have a high velocity. These are simple ways to quickly evaluate what issue may be slowing a catchers release time and throw time down. The goal is to figure out and isolate things to improve on in order to have ball control, release efficiently, get maximum velocity and throw accurately.
The Benefits of Resistance Bands Training for Baseball Catchers: 
Catchers put intense strain on their hamstrings, quads, glutes, and hips in order to get up and down into a cathing squat position. Both the primary and the secondary catching positions and the up and down wear and tear for 7-9 innings can easily cause injury. Resistance bands training will enable baseball catchers to strength their legs so that they have the muscle capacity to withstand the pressure.
It is easy to see why catching puts so much pressure on the lower body. A catcher’s muscles get sore because of the intense practicing and amount of games they play. Working out with Myosource Kinetic Bands during off-season, stretching, warm-ups, and practice sessions offers catchers the added resistance to build the calves, thighs, hamstrings, glutes and hip strength as well as their core to endure many 7-9 inning games. A team depends on a great catcher in or to win games.
Catchers are also able to use resistance bands to perform plyometrics to prepare for the endurance, flexibility, agility, power, and strength necessary to withstand the demands of being a catcher. Catchers are able to mimic all of their cathing skills without restrictions while wearing Myosource kinetic bands. They are as easy to putting one of the straps on each leg and using the appropriate resistance bands to work full range of motion. When a catcher takes off the resistance bands their legs will feel light and explosive. Every athlete is looking for a way to excel and get ahead of the competition. Myosource Kinetic Bands are just the tool to build desired muscle strength to get to the next level.
Great Martial Arts Strength Training Exercises
Martial arts often requires grueling drill work and sparring. From striking to kicking, strengthening wrist, shoulder and hip joints is a must. In addition, improving hand and foot speed is of tremendous importance. By supplementing traditional workouts and practice strategies with resistance band training, you can isolate muscle groups, add variety and hopefully gain a competitive edge when you face your opponent. All of these exercises should be done with resistance bands.
Strengthen Your Wrist and Shoulders
- Upright Row- Perform upright rows until fatigued. Make sure you are standing with legs a little more than shoulder-width apart.Ensure your back is straight, put your hands together and start the row at your waist. Pull towards your chin ensuring your elbows flair out.
- Rear Raise - Stand straight, legs shoulder width apart. Keeping the arms locked, pull the arms backwards toward the ceiling. Hold for a one-count and then slowly return them to your side. The arms should stay shoulder-width apart during the entire exercise. Repeat until fatigued. Remember, control is key! Don’t rush through these exercises or you diminish the overall effect.
- Bent-Over Lateral Raise - Bend over at the waist 90 degrees, ensuring you have a flat back. Your eyes and chin should be up. Your arms will start at your side. With locked arms raise your arms laterally from your side until your hands are parallel to your hips. Do as many as you can until muscle failure.
- Side/Lateral Raise- Standing straight, legs slightly more than shoulder-width part, start with one arm resting at your side. Raise your locked arm 90 degrees so it is parallel with your shoulder. Then slowly return your arm to your side. You’ll want to do this until you feel fatigued and do the exercise one arm at a time. Maintain a slow, smooth, controlled motion.
Build Your Speed and Speed Endurance
- Straight Punch or Jab - Punch with correct form as you use the resistance band to provide tension. Try not to lock out the elbows as you punch to avoid undue stress on your joints. Do these at full speed for as many repetitions as you can until muscle failure. This will improve your speeds endurance and give you the ability to remain fast longer into your matches.
- Straight Punch Combinations - With Kinetic Bands you don’t need a training partner. Our bands fasten to straps the fit snugly around you. Adjust the band to the tension you desire and throw punches in multiple combinations.
Strengthen Your Lower Body
- Straight-Leg Raises – If you have traditionally weak hips or want to ensure you have endurance through a long match, you’ll want to add straight-leg raises to your routine. Combined with resistance band training, the exercise is very targeted and effective. Lie on your side and raise your leg upward 45 degrees, keeping your leg straight. Return your leg to its starting position. Try to keep your ankle and foot at a 90 degree angle. Remember, slower is better. Do 15-20 reps.
- Walking Lunges – With a straight back do 4-6 lunges in one direction. Then turn around and do 4-6 lunges in the other direction. You will have a tendency to lean forward as you get more tired. Fight this tendency and maintain a straight, upright back the entire time. Go deep in the lunge but ensure your knee does not track out over your toes. If it does, you’re going too far in your lunge and causing undue stress on your joints.
Incorporating resistance band training into your martial arts workouts can give you added variety and the ability to target the areas you want to strengthen. In addition, it can add endurance so you fatigue less quickly and last longer in matches. Use resistance bands in your training and you will hopefully be the one with the arm raised in victory.
Power up with Food – Is This For Real?
It’s Springtime and Summer is Coming….People are looking for great ways to boost their energy levels and burn fat to lose weight to wear those summer clothes – bikinis, shorts, and tank tops.
Why is eating Breakfast Important:
Breakfast is essential for starting the day out right. The body and mind need food power to get going and stay stimulated. So many people feel that skipping breakfast is a way to cut calories and lose weight, but in reality skipping breakfast denies the body the nutrition that it needs to stay strong and be powerful. The tendency seems to be to grab a donut and a cup of coffee or skip breakfast all together. Skipping breakfast is neither healthy nor beneficial. A person will pay for it down the road. Healthy Nutrition includes breakfast because a healthy breakfast provides energy and the brain and body count on it in order to function properly and not bottom out around mid-morning. Eating a nutritional breakfast of foods that give the body the nutrients and vitamins if necessary for aiding in the prevention of LDL which is the “bad” cholesterol level. People do not realize that when they skip breakfast they are more hungry throughout the day and tend to eat more so they are really hindering them self instead of helping. One of the benefits of eating a healthy breakfast is eating less throughout the day and weighing less in the long run. Studies have also found that those who do not eat a healthy nutritional food breakfast are more susceptible to insulin issues and diabetes.
Small Meal or Snack after Working Out:
People get really confused when someone tells them they should eat food after working out. They feel like eating food after wor
king out will lose the impact of their workout. The body uses the time after a workout for building back up muscles and it needs food for rebuilding in order to continue enduring the impacts that the muscles need to battle. This is not to say that a person should have a great workout and then go eat a cheeseburger and French fries. The key is eating a healthy and nutritionally balanced small meal or snack to benefit the muscles for rehabilitation after a workout. Protein is a great choice because protein strengthens muscles and helps them rebuild after a workout. Just like a car needs gasoline to function the body needs healthy food for rebuilding and getting stronger in a combination with beneficial workouts. There are many great healthy and nutritional food choices for after a workout. Eat food like raw vegetables, steamed vegetables, chicken, fish, and other lean meats.
Small Meal or Snack before Working Out:
A great workout program utilizing resistance bands is a great way for the body to gain strength, power, and endurance. The problem often tends to be that people do not realize that the body wants energy to burn and the energy to burn during workouts comes from healthy and nutritional food. There is a time frame before working out that eating a small meal of protein and complex carbs provide the energy necessary for reaping the benefits from working out. Eating between one hour and two hours before a workout will greatly supplement the body for muscle gain and burning fat. The time frame is important because many people develop a stomach ache if eating right before exercising. Stick to a small amounts of foods like fresh fruit, turkey, eggs, and whole grains for the most benefit. No two people are exactly the same so figuring out which healthy nutritional foods work best for each individual is important.
The best way to eat healthy and combine food and exercise to develop a healthy body and mind is to eat 5-6 meals per day. Spreading out healthy food eating throughout the entire day keeps the body satisfied and fueled up. Energy and Stamina are essential because people are busy. Saving some of those daily calories for a mid morning snack, mid afternoon snack, or bedtime snack with smaller breakfast, lunch, and dinner meals will provide the energy when it is needed. This is also a great way to feel full throughout the day instead of just three times a day. Eating smaller amounts of healthy food more times during the day takes away those longings to pig out. Do not forget to drink a lot of water. Hydration is an essential part of health and drinking water before and after workouts provide the hydration for the body to sweat. Many people drink a low calorie sports beverage to maintain the electrolytes they need. The body needs a sufficient amount of water for getting rid of body wastes.
Healthy living is a combination of eat a healthy and nutritional diet with the right foods, right amounts, and at the right times combined with an adequate workout program as well as a sufficient amount of water drinking. Nutritional Food consumption is a way to power up with food.
The Benefits of Full Body Workouts
Benefits of Full Body Workouts: 
Total Body Workouts are a great way to work all the muscles in the body instead of just isolated area(s) of concern. Simple exercises like stretching, walking, dancing, aerobics, and swiming work on the muscles throughout the entire body instead of just one or two. So many people spend the majority of exercise time focusing on certain muscles, generally the larger ones and many of the other muscles do not get the proper workout that they need to get stronger and increase endurance. A full body workout is for the purpose of increasing mobility, flexibility, and strength in the core, legs, hips, glutes, shoulders, biceps, and triceps all at the same time. The great thing about a total body workout is that a person doesn’t have to spend hours working each muscle individually because in a small amount of time a full body workout will accomplish what people spend hours in the gym trying to do. Resistance Body Training offers an inexpensive way to do full body workouts in your own living room. Why not work the upper body, the core, and the lower body all at the same time in a full body workout? It just makes sense.
Full Body Workout Exercise Examples:
Mountain Climbers:
- Use lower body resistance bands
- Start in a regular push up position
- In a jumping motion bring the right knee forward towards the chest with toes pointing forward and the right heel will be lifted slightly up
- Jump pulling the right leg back to the starting position and while staying in motion bring the left knee forward towards the chest as before
- In a continuous motion keep switching legs
- Complete 3 sets of 15-20 reps
Lunge and Curl – Lunge and Lift 
- Use upper body and lower body resistance bands. Start in a standing position with feet a little more than shoulder’s width apart, toes facing forward
- Lunge to the right and then slowly to the left
- Flex curl biceps and triceps upward and then back down – keep elbows touching body
- After 3 sets of 12-15 reps get back into standing position with the right foot out in front of the left foot
- Bend the right knee and step into a forward lunge position - make sure to keep back straight at an angle aligned with the back leg then switch and lunge forward with the left foot
- While lunging forward lift both arms straight up overhead and lower back down when stepping back to starting position to change lunging legs
- Complete 3 sets of 12-15
Total Body Workouts are full of movements that are considered multi-joint. The resistance bands provide continuous tension that is placed on all the muscles to keep them activated in a short period of time but at an aggressive level. Full body workouts increase muscle tone and build muscle strength by performing reps and sets of a variety of exercises to activate all the muscles instead of focusing on just the larger muscles that the majority of people spend most of their time on. Another great thing about total body works outs with resistance bands is that the variation of exercises is practically endless. From jumping jacks, lunges, shuffles, leg lifts, walking, jogging, stretching, and all other body movements the lower body bands and upper body bands provide stable resistance for an intense full body workout. Full body workouts do not have to be completed every single day. 3 days a week is sufficient for building strength and getting the heart rate elevated to improve health as well as burn fat. A lot of people do not have the time to go to the gym and are looking for a great way to do a total body workout in a short period of time in order to burn fat and get in shape.
Working a combination of muscles all at the same time instead of isolated muscles is something that more people are starting to do because full body workouts takes less time and actually works the muscles that a lot of people are leaving out in their workouts.
Convenience is another reason that a full body workout is the way to go. The great thing about resistance bands Full Body Workouts is that they are convenient and easy to pack and go or use at home. Many people these days have jobs where they have to travel frequently and resistance bands are small enough to fit in a suitcase or in a carryon bag. For those of you who do not travel the resistance bands are quick and easy to use in your own living room or while you are walking in your neighborhood. People complain about not having enough time in the day to get everything accomplished, especially exercising and full body workouts are a great solution to saving time and money while still getting what they need in order to look and feel good. Eat healthy and try full body workouts this spring and summer.
