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Pickleball and the Rotator Cuff. Play Better and Prevent Injury.



Because of the critical role it plays in providing the shoulder with good control and stability, the rotator cuff is a very common topic in the world of pickleball. Unfortunately, it’s not often talked about fondly, as people usually only talk about the rotator cuff once it’s become injured or painful.


Today, I want to talk a bit about what exactly the rotator cuff is, why it’s important for pickleball, and some of the ways that players can ensure that they keep it as healthy as possible.


What Even is the Rotator Cuff?


Though it’s often referred to as though it’s one thing, the rotator cuff is actually a group of four small muscles that coexist on your shoulder blade. With names such as supraspinatus, infraspinatus, teres minor, and subscapularis, it’s really no surprise that most people just refer to it as the rotator cuff.


The primary purpose of this group of muscles is to provide stability to the shoulder. Since the shoulder has more motion than any other joint in the human body this is extremely important, as the shoulder relies on these little guys to ensure pain-free, full, and efficient movement. Without good rotator cuff function, the shoulder is more likely to experience pinching, locking, and tightness - other sensitive structures around the shoulder can also become overstressed and painful if the rotator cuff isn’t working as it should.


The other purpose is to create shoulder movement. One muscle helps us create a backhand movement, two help with forehand motion, and the fourth contributes to our ability to raise the arm up and out to the side.


The Rotator Cuff’s Role During Pickleball


I already mentioned above that the rotator cuff helps to generate forehand and backhand motions, but of course this isn’t the only critical role that this group of muscles has for pickleball players.


It wouldn’t be inaccurate to say that if your arm is moving or bracing against the impact of the ball on your paddle, the rotator cuff is actively doing its job. Whether you’re dinking, lobbing, dropping, executing a put away, or something else, your cuff is helping you do it with good control.


As a general rule, the rotator cuff takes on more responsibility when your shoulder is in positions where it has less structural support. For a very simplified explanation, your shoulder has more structural stability when it is positioned close to your body, and less when it is further away. As an example, the rotator cuff has much less work to do when you’re blocking a shot at your chest level as compared to when you’re reaching all the way overhead to take a whack at a pesky lob shot.


Rotator Cuff Health for Pickleball Players


There are many ways in which the rotator cuff muscles can become painful, injured, or otherwise problematic. Preventing an injury from happening in the first place is always preferable to having to take time off from your games to recover from an existing problem. In trying to keep a healthy and happy rotator cuff, here are a few things to consider out on the courts.


Don’t Play ‘Cold’:


I know, I know. Everyone wants the excitement of real games, and few people look forward to warming up or drilling. However, the whole point of doing a proper warmup is to ‘wake everything up’ in your body so that it’ll do well when you begin to play. When you do a warmup, your body begins the important process of increasing blood flow to working muscle, meaning that your body will be more prepared to react efficiently and properly.


If you choose to do a dinking warmup, that’s perfectly fine, but please, please, please don’t just hit the ball back and forth in a straight line. If you’re barely moving your arms (and legs, too), you aren’t getting much of anything out of it. Also bear in mind that a proper warmup is longer than just 1-2 minutes. Keep Tabs on Stiffness:


The shoulder can become tight in any direction for many reasons, and tightness will make the rotator cuff work less efficiently and may predispose it to injury You don’t have to devote a large amount of time to stretching before you play, but you should always ensure that the shoulder is moving well before you get out on the courts.


If something is getting tight or painful and you aren’t sure why, get it checked out! If the tightness hasn’t been there for a long time, it typically resolves quickly once the cause is deciphered and addressed. When it comes to the rotator cuff, you actually need to have good motion through three primary areas in order for it to work at its best: the mid-upper back, shoulder, and blade.


Don’t Hike the Shoulder:


If I ask you to bring your shoulder to your ear, this is what I mean by hiking. It’s pretty common for people to hike their shoulder when they reach overhead; most often, it’s actually a habit that people aren’t aware of. Most often, people begin to hike as a result of upper body pain, weakness, or stiffness. When people repeatedly do overhead movements while hiking the shoulder, it can contribute to injury or irritation to the rotator cuff over time.


_____________________________________________________________________


Okay, so truth be told, this was supposed to be just one post. However, this is becoming a little too lengthy (4 full pages so far, and I still have a lot I want to talk about), so I’m cutting this thing into two parts. I’ll post the rest sometime later this week or early next week, so stay tuned for that!


As the owner of Serendipity Physical Therapy and Wellness, I’m an avid pickleball addict player 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 or tightness, to helping with injury prevention and good technique. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!


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!

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