Quarterbacks: High-Risk Exercises to Avoid for Injury Prevention

What Exercises Should Quarterbacks Not Do?

For quarterbacks, optimizing performance while minimizing injury risk requires a nuanced approach to strength and conditioning. Certain exercises, while potentially beneficial for other athletes, can place undue stress on the highly vulnerable throwing arm, shoulder, and spine, or promote movement patterns counterproductive to elite throwing mechanics.

Understanding the Quarterback's Demands & Risks

The quarterback position demands a unique blend of explosive power, rotational agility, precise control, and high-velocity arm speed. This repetitive, high-stress overhead motion, often combined with rotational forces from the core and lower body, places immense strain on specific anatomical structures.

Key Anatomical Areas Under Stress:

• Shoulder Complex: Rotator cuff, labrum, glenohumeral joint capsule, scapular stabilizers.
• Elbow Joint: Ulnar collateral ligament (UCL), flexor-pronator mass.
• Spine: Thoracic spine (for rotation), lumbar spine (for stability and power transfer).
• Core: Obliques, rectus abdominis, transversus abdominis (for rotational power and stability).
• Lower Body: Hips, knees, ankles (for drive, balance, and force production).

Common Injuries:

• Shoulder impingement, rotator cuff tears, labral tears.
• UCL tears (Tommy John injury), "Little League elbow."
• Lumbar disc issues, facet joint irritation.
• Muscle strains (obliques, latissimus dorsi, pectoralis).

Given these specific demands and vulnerabilities, exercise selection must be highly strategic.

General Principles for Exercise Selection (and Avoidance)

When considering any exercise for a quarterback, apply these principles:

• Does it enhance throwing mechanics or power without compromising joint integrity?
• Does it address specific muscular imbalances or weaknesses common in throwers?
• Does it place excessive, uncompensated stress on the shoulder, elbow, or spine?
• Does it reinforce poor movement patterns or limit range of motion crucial for throwing?
• Is the risk-to-reward ratio favorable for a high-performance, injury-prone athlete?

Exercises to Approach with Caution or Avoid Entirely

Based on the principles above, here are exercises that quarterbacks should generally avoid or perform with extreme caution, emphasizing perfect form and often lighter loads:

• Behind-the-Neck Overhead Press: This exercise places the shoulder in an extreme externally rotated and abducted position, significantly increasing the risk of anterior glenohumeral instability and subacromial impingement. The humeral head is forced forward, potentially pinching the rotator cuff tendons and bursa. For quarterbacks, who already endure immense overhead stress, this is an unnecessary risk.
• Upright Rows (Narrow Grip): Similar to the behind-the-neck press, the upright row, especially with a narrow grip, forces the humerus into internal rotation and abduction, leading to direct subacromial impingement. This compresses the rotator cuff tendons and bursa against the acromion, risking inflammation and tears.
• Deep Dips (Without Proper Scapular Control): While dips can build chest and tricep strength, going too deep can overstretch the anterior capsule of the shoulder, particularly if the athlete lacks sufficient scapular stability and control. This can lead to anterior shoulder instability, a significant concern for throwing athletes.
• Excessive Heavy Barbell Bench Press (Especially 1-Rep Max Attempts): While strong pushing muscles are important, the flat barbell bench press, particularly with very heavy loads, can put the anterior shoulder capsule at risk due to the fixed bar path and potential for excessive humeral extension. For quarterbacks, the focus should be on functional pushing strength that integrates core stability, not maximal 1RM on a flat bench, which can limit scapular freedom and external rotation. Dumbbell presses or incline presses often offer a safer, more sport-specific alternative.
• Kipping Pull-ups (for Strength Training): While used in some CrossFit methodologies, kipping pull-ups are primarily for efficiency in competition, not for building foundational upper body pulling strength. The uncontrolled, ballistic movement can place excessive, uncompensated stress on the shoulder joint and rotator cuff, especially during the transition phase. Quarterbacks need strict, controlled pulling strength for scapular stability and arm deceleration.
• Heavy, Unsupported Spinal Rotation with Axial Load: Exercises like standing barbell twists or heavy Russian twists with a weight plate, where the spine is rotated under significant axial compression (e.g., barbell on shoulders), can generate excessive shear forces on the intervertebral discs and facet joints of the lumbar spine. Quarterbacks need rotational power, but it must be generated safely through the hips and thoracic spine, with a stable core, not by torquing the lumbar spine.
• High-Volume, Uncontrolled Plyometric Box Jumps (with Poor Landing Mechanics): While plyometrics are vital, performing high volumes of box jumps with sloppy landing mechanics (e.g., knees caving in, stiff landings) can lead to excessive stress on the knees (ACL, patellofemoral joint) and ankles. Quarterbacks need explosive lower body power, but always prioritize controlled landings and proper biomechanics to prevent joint degradation.
• Any Exercise Causing Pain: This is a universal rule, but critically important for quarterbacks. Any sharp, shooting, or persistent pain during an exercise, particularly in the shoulder, elbow, or back, is a warning sign. Pushing through pain can lead to acute injury or exacerbate chronic conditions.

Focus on Smart Training: What to Prioritize Instead

Instead of the aforementioned exercises, quarterbacks should prioritize a training regimen that:

• Enhances Rotator Cuff & Scapular Stability: Exercises like face pulls, band external rotations, Y/T/W raises, and serratus punches.
• Develops Core Strength & Rotational Power: Cable rotations, medicine ball throws (various planes), planks, anti-rotation presses.
• Builds Explosive Lower Body Power & Stability: Squats, deadlifts (conventional or sumo), lunges, step-ups, controlled plyometrics (broad jumps, single-leg hops).
• Improves Thoracic Mobility: Cat-cow, foam rolling, thoracic rotations.
• Strengthens Deceleration Muscles: Eccentric exercises for the posterior shoulder and back.
• Promotes Overall Joint Health and Range of Motion: Dynamic warm-ups, consistent stretching, and mobility work.

Conclusion

Quarterbacks are elite athletes who demand a highly specialized approach to strength and conditioning. The goal is not merely to build strength, but to foster resilient movement patterns, optimize power transfer, and minimize the risk of career-threatening injuries. By understanding the biomechanical demands of throwing and the specific vulnerabilities of the throwing arm and spine, coaches and athletes can intelligently select exercises that support performance goals while strategically avoiding those that pose unnecessary risks. Prioritizing functional strength, joint health, and impeccable form will always be the winning strategy for the long-term success of a quarterback.