Even though no two players are the same, there are definitely trends that exist when it comes to areas of the body that are commonly tight, weak, or otherwise problematic during pickleball play.
Upper body weakness can have a distinct impact on a player’s game. It’ll influence a player’s ball control, the consistency of effectively performing drives, the ability to maintain proper body mechanics, and the likelihood of experiencing an injury. That’s a lot!
Where do I tend to find that many pickleball players have a lot of weakness that influences all of these things?
The rotator cuff (AKA muscles of the shoulder blade).
The rotator cuff is made up of four muscles that help provide stability and movement to the shoulder. You’ve got your supraspinatus (this little guy is the most commonly torn by far), infraspinatus, teres minor and subscapularis. Given that each one of those muscle names is a 4 to 5 syllable mouthful of misery, you can probably understand why most sensible people just call it the rotator cuff.
Even though these four muscles are often referred to as one group, they actually don’t all create the same motion. It’s not uncommon for there to be some weakness in all four of them, but for pickleball players, the infraspinatus and teres minor take the cake.
Both of these little muscles help to generate a motion called external rotation. Even if you don’t know the movement by its medical jargon title, it’s one that you use all of the time. It’s the motion that you make in order to get a forehand shot (if you can imagine your paddle ready position, this is the movement that you do when you’re moving your paddle away from your body in preparation for a hit).
Weakness or a lack of control in these muscles can cause a lot of issues, from both an injury and quality of play standpoint.
Injury wise, an individual could experience something such as a muscle tear due to an excessive amount of force being placed upon tissues that aren’t properly conditioned for it. Or, there’s also the potential for injuries elsewhere, because other muscles and joints are going to work harder to compensate for the lack of strength. Common issues include shoulder impingement, shoulder instability, bursitis, tendinitis. Long term compensation can lead to issues such as nerve impingement in the neck and tennis elbow.
What about the quality of your game? As I mentioned earlier, the entirety of the rotator cuff plays a major role as a shoulder stabilizer. A weak teres minor and infraspinatus may contribute to less precise placement, and less control over how much force you’re putting into your returns. Since most players use their forehand way more than their backhand, it’s a big deal!
How do you go about strengthening these muscles? As with anything else, there are many options, but ultimately the goal is to progress towards increasingly pickleball-like movements in order to get the best effect. Examples include sidelying dumbbell rotations, kettlebell presses, body blade control drills, and resistance band rotations in various positions.
It’s worth a major mention that these two muscles are tiny! You’ll likely find that it takes considerably less resistance to experience a challenge or feel fatigued than you would with a strengthening exercise such as a bicep curl or chest press, for example.
Regardless of your selected exercises, the best ones are those that:
You can consistently do with good form. No exercise will help you if your form falls apart, and you’re more likely to get hurt as well.
You can complete for at least 20 repetitions to begin with. Pickleball is an endurance based sport, and your exercises should reflect that if you want them to serve you best.
Is as relevant to what you want to want to work on as possible. It’s okay if you find that a side lying shoulder rotation is a good starting point, but recognize that this positioning is not very similar to anything you do during the game. Eventually, your goal should be to progress towards sports specific movements.
Does not aggravate or cause pain, numbness, or tingling. Know the difference between typical muscle soreness and pain. A proper exercise should result in soreness alone. Other types of symptoms indicate that that exercise is not appropriate for you at the moment.
It’s important to mention that exercises that target the infraspinatus and teres minor are ones that are very easy to do incorrectly without realizing it! Because you want to make sure you’re getting the most out of your exercises, make sure to look out for any unintentional ‘cheating’ that your body may try to do. Having a spotter is always a wonderful idea, because they can point things out that you may not notice.
I do also want to mention that performance of these muscles can be impacted by other things such as stiffness of the spine and shoulder joint, current or past injuries, or nerve issues. If you think you’ll run into issues with any of these things, a few visits with a knowledgeable professional such as myself can be immensely beneficial.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As the owner of Serendipity Physical Therapy and Wellness, I’m an avid pickleball addict in Naples, Florida, with a goal of keeping pickleball players moving at their best and injury free. I work with players for anything ranging from reducing shoulder pain, weakness, or tightness, to helping with injury prevention, proper conditioning, and good technique.
If you’re new, you can check out more of my advice and content here: https://www.serendipityptw.com/blog.
If there is anything I can help you with or you have questions, please give me a call at (239) 232-8155, or send me an email at Contact@SerendipityPTW.com. I would love to see how I can help get you moving at your best!
Comments