Optimizing Performance for The Rotational Athlete

A rotational athlete is an athlete whose sport specific skills rely on the proper execution of the rotational movement pattern.

Although all sports require rotational movements, there are certain sports where the rotational demands are higher than others such as Tennis, Baseball, Lacrosse, Golf, and Volleyball.

Athletes who play these sports must prioritize proper training of the rotational movement pattern to prevent injury and perform at a high level.

To achieve high quality athletic movement the development and progression of a specific series of 5 movement and performance components must be followed:

1)      Mobility

2)      Stability/Motor Control

3)      Strength

4)      Power

5)      Sports Specific Skill

You can watch this video for a more detailed breakdown of this movement developmental process but in this article we're going to go through how to follow this process specifically to develop the rotational movement pattern.

Rotational Mobility:

All mobility and training in general start with proper breathing function which allows you to achieve the proper nervous system state to most effectively improve joint range of motions and develop fundamental core function. The 90/90 Breathing Exercise is great exercise to start with.

Rotational mobility consists primarily of ankle, hip, shoulder, and thoracic spine mobility. Each of these joints/segments of the body must have adequate range of motion in all planes of motion to allow for efficient rotation and prevent over-compensation at other areas like the lumbar spine (lower back), knees, elbows, and even wrists.

Exercises like Half Kneeling Ankle Dorsiflexion, The Band Assisted Hamstring Stretch and Leg Lowering Exercise, Half Kneeling Hip Flexor Stretch, 90/90 Hip Mobility, The T Spine Rotation and Reach, The Trunk Stability Rotation.

Stability/Motor Control for Rotation:

Stability and motor control for rotation starts with training anti-rotation, anti-extension, and anti-lateral flexion of the lumbar spine. This will develop the abdominal muscles and allow them to stabilize properly to prevent excessive motion of the lumber spine during rotational movements, which is a major cause of low back injury for rotational athletes.

When a rotational movement is completed the key is to keep the lumber spine stable and rotate through the ankles, hips, thoracic spine, and shoulders. Bird Dogs, Dead Bugs, Planks and their variations and progressions, Pallof Presses, Cable Chops, Lifts, and Thoracic Rotations, Double and Single Arm Farmer’s Carries, are all great options for developing these qualities.

Strength Development for Rotation:

Strength development for the rotational athlete begins with the same principles of strength development for any athlete. Once an athlete has adequate mobility and stability, they need to build their Hip Hinge, Squat, Lunge, Push, and Pull movement patterns with exercises like Double and Single Leg RDLs and Deadlifts, Double and Single Leg Squats, Forward Lunges, Lateral Lunges, Overhead Presses, Cable Rows, Dumbbell Rows, Dumbbell Bench Presses, Push Ups, Pull Ups etc.

The specific exercises chosen and HOW they are prioritized and practiced meaning how much volume (sets, reps) intensity (load/weight), and tempo for each athlete will differ depending on their sport and individual needs.

For example, a tennis athlete may be better suited focusing on less sets (3-4), lower intensity/weights, and higher rep ranges (10-15) in most of their workouts since a lot of their sports demands are about muscular endurance and stamina vs a baseball player who in many cases will likely be better off focusing on more sets (4-6), more intensity/weights, and lower rep ranges (2-8 reps) as their sport requires more power production. Both approaches will likely be used for both athletes over different progressive training periods and even undulated throughout a training week.

Power Development for Rotation:

Closely intertwined with strength development, power development for the rotational athlete consists of the multi-directional speed, agility, and plyometric training techniques that allow an athlete to take the force production they have gained from developing their strength and express it with velocity hence the Power equation (Force) x (Velocity) = Power.

Exercises like Double and Single Leg Jump Landings/Decelerations, Lateral Bounds, Broad Jumps, Squat Jumps Pogo Jumps, Depth Jumps, Medicine Ball Throws and Slams are all great options. For rotational athletes the medicine ball may be the most important power training tool. The variation of medicine ball throws that can be practiced provide a plethora of options that can help increase rotational power production.

Sports Specific Rotational Skill:

This last component is all about going out and practicing the actual sports specific skills that an athlete needs to execute at a high level to be successful at their sport. If you are a baseball player go practice throwing, swinging, and sprinting the bases.

If you are a tennis player go work on your serve, back hand, and crossover step. If you are a volleyball player go practice spiking, digging, and your jumping approach. If you are a lacrosse player go work on shooting, face offs, and your moves to go by a defender. If you are a golf player go and practice that swing! They key here is to go and practice your skills, so you can carry over the improvements you have made the 4 previous components right into your game.

This process and progression of developing these 5 components is the path to becoming an elite rotational athlete or simply being able to enjoy a sport or activity without having to fear injury.

If you’re a competitive athlete committed to optimizing your performance or someone who simply wants to enjoy playing the sports you love without the fear of getting injured, pain or limitations then tap here to request a free success session.

From there you can schedule your session and answer a few questions so I can learn more about you and your goals before we meet and make the most of our time together.

During your session, we'll clearly define your health, performance, and fitness goals, identify what’s holding you back from achieving them, and outline a holistic, individualized roadmap for you.

Then, based on your goals, if PHP Coaching is a perfect fit for you, we can review our program options and discuss working together.

And if it's not, you'll still walk away with clarity on your goals, limiting factors, and what you need to focus on to achieve them on your own.

I look forward to speaking with you soon and guiding you to sustainably achieve your best health, performance, and fitness. Here's the link again.

John Calarco B.S., CSCS

Unleash Your Power, Achieve Your Potential