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Understanding Forces, Torques, and Moments Found on Your Biomechanics Report

Last month we talked about how we leverage technology in the decisions we make on injury risk and performance. Coupling our strength, flexibility, and motion capture data acts as a road map to traversing through one’s mechanics, allowing us to see speedbumps and where they occur along the way. If our throwing velocity was in the form of water within a bucket, our goal would be to move from point A to point B as efficiently as we can without any water splashing out. Each speedbump, or movement inefficacy, causes water to splash out of the bucket. Our bodies often combat movement inefficiencies through compensations in our throwing mechanics. These compensations are essentially your body parts “cutting corners” to get to where they need to be to get the ball out on time. The more we cut corners, the more stress that’s placed on the body, especially the throwing arm. Below, we’re going to dive deeper into these stresses, what they mean, and how to go about understanding their effect on our health. Read the full article.

UNO Pitching Lab Tech Showcase

Obviously, a big staple within our lab is the vast range of technology we use. Here at the UNO Pitching Lab, we pride ourselves on the accuracy of our data. This makes it a no-brainer that we employ the most accurate technology out there which is what our athletes will often see as they receive their pitching evaluations. Within this post, I’ll be introducing you to everything we use and provide background information regarding its relevance in deciphering your pitching mechanics. Equipment will be introduced in the order athletes come across it within the lab, starting with the technology used by our certified athletic trainers during the clinical analysis. Read the full article.

A breakdown of what biomechanics really is and how we use it within our evaluations.

For years now, athletes, parents, and coaches alike have inquired about our pitching evaluation with a popular question always being “so what exactly is biomechanics, anyways?”. A quick web browser search gives us the definition as “the study of the mechanical laws relating to the movement or structure of living organisms”, or as I often explain it, essentially just coupling anatomy & physiology with physics. Examining how the body moves allows us to understand how we create force to accomplish a task, like pitching, and how forces are applied back to the body as a result of those movements. Read the full article.

Under the Hood of a UNO Pitching Lab Evaluation

It’s hard to ignore it, technology has gone from being “on the horizon” to being a staple in baseball across all levels. While some may have a harder time adjusting to today’s game than others, it’s almost impossible not to marvel at how much data can advance any athlete’s game. While numbers never lie, data in the baseball environment should be used to help guide coaching decisions and not the be-all-end-all. At the UNO Pitching Lab, we use a multi-faceted approach to analyzing one’s mechanics. The story behind a pitcher’s ability to throw hard or pain-free cannot just be told from one viewpoint, but rather from multiple perspectives to create an all-encompassing understanding of what is really happening. Read the full article.