According to the National Institutes of Health, over 57 percent of baseball pitchers suffer a shoulder injury during a season, including rotator cuff and labrum tears. Recent studies have disputed the common belief that shoulder injuries are confined to baseball pitchers. One study published in "The American Journal of Sports Medicine" concluded that the windmill technique of softball pitchers can result in overuse shoulder injuries. Arm band exercises that strengthen the rotator cuffs and surrounding shoulder muscles can minimize risk of pitchers' injuries.
External Rotation Exercise
Attach one end of a resistance band to a door knob or other sturdy object. Stand with your right shoulder facing toward the door knob. Hold the other end of the resistance band with your left hand. Keep your arm, from shoulder to elbow, pressed firmly against the left side of your torso. Bend your left elbow to 90 degrees and bring your left forearm across the front of your torso. You will start the exercise from this position. Pull the resistance band away from your body in the opposite direction of the door knob. Hold the position for three seconds, then relax. Perform the exercise 10 times on each arm, three sets per session.
Internal Rotation Exercise
Standing with your left shoulder facing the door knob, take the other end of the resistance band into your left hand. Press your left upper arm firmly against the left side of your torso and bend your left elbow to 90 degrees. Start the internal rotation exercise with your left forearm in the ending position of the external rotation exercise. Pull the band across your body and hold for three seconds. Do three sets, 10 times per set, on each arm.
Shoulder Flexion Exercise
Stand on one end of the resistance band so that the band comes straight out from the fronts of your toes in line with your left shoulder. Hold the other end of the band in your left hand. Start with your arm down in front of your left thigh and your palm facing your thigh. Keeping your arm straight, pull the band up in front of your thigh until your arm is at shoulder-height. Hold the position for three seconds and then relax. Perform the exercise on each arm 10 times for each set.
Shoulder Lateral Abduction Exercise
Stand on one end of the resistance band so that the band protrudes from the outside of your left foot. Hold the other end of the band with your palm facing your body. Start with your arm in front of your left thigh. Keep your arm straight throughout the exercise. Lift your arm to the left and slightly in front of your body, with the palm facing the floor. Stop when your arm is parallel to the floor and hold for three seconds. Repeat 10 times on each arm in each set.
Supraspinatus Exercise
Set up the exercise as you did in the shoulder lateral abduction exercise, except to prepare for the supraspinatus exercise, point your thumb out and toward our body. Lift from the outside of your hand, pulling the end of the resistance band toward the left and away from your body. Stop at a parallel position. Your thumb should face down toward the floor, as though making the negative thumbs down sign. Repeat 10 times on each arm for each set.
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