Strength in Numbers #203
In sports performance, residual training effects refer to the physiological capacities an athlete retains after ceasing training for a specified period. Understanding how strength, speed, power, and endurance decline during training breaks is crucial, especially for throwing athletes who require precise control over fatigue, capacity, and recovery to maintain their health and perform at a high level.
Now, as collegiate summer leagues get underway, managing training and throwing through carefully constructed tapering, deloading, and strategic reloading becomes a critical performance edge.
Right now is a highly sensitive time – players have finished a grueling year, disgruntled that their teams are out of contention for the College World Series. They have had to travel across time zones to be home with their families, get reacquainted with friends who may not have the best intentions for their careers, and want more fun than Disneyland in a short unit of time.
The same player who has been effective all year going 100 pitches or more in games is the same one who is entering their junior year and wants to be out there to show the world what they can do – but it comes at a price if they are not doing the things to prioritize STRENGTH MATTERS MOST and that comes from prioritizing rest and recovery.
Read more to learn about how our bodies handle lowered workloads and how impactful taking your foot off the gas and coasting is for overall health and performance as our players get ready for yet another season that will roll right into the Fall.
What Are Residual Training Effects?
When you plan instances in the competitive and training schedule where your athlete lowers their training, and in some cases stops training the throwing arm, do not fear that your athlete will experience significant strength loss or any kind of cognitive bias around the body weakening with rest. It can be just the opposite.
In our Eliminating Arm Pain and Soreness Course, we cover an important algorithm for distinguishing between pain and soreness, and how to act quickly to prevent further injury and jump-start the recovery and regeneration of the throwing arm.
This flow chart that is discussed in the Eliminating Arm Pain and Soreness Course, and even deeper look in our in-person Return-Beyond-Performance Education Events, walks the athlete, coach and clinician through the process to determine the extent of the pain sensed by the body and brain and provides a method by which to monitor, reload, and alleviate the problem.
In general, here are the typical timelines for performance attributes associated with loss after training stops:
| Capacity | Residual Time (days) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Speed | ~5 days | Decreases rapidly without a neuromuscular stimulus |
| Endurance | ~30 days | More resilient, especially in well-trained athletes |
| Strength | ~15–30 days | Strength is lost slowly, but it depends on training history |
| Power | ~7–14 days | Sensitive due to reliance on both speed and strength |
These numbers are based on established sports science research (e.g., Issurin, 2010) and serve as a general guide for managing workloads and deload phases.
You can see that speed qualities are tough to maintain, but the good thing is that speed is also impacted by strength. When force is maintained, the training concentration on increasing speed will bring it back up and contribute to power, which is the second feature to degrade – the intersection of force and velocity.
What Happens to the Throwing Arm?
The exact physiological rules apply to the throwing arm, but with even greater nuance. Pitchers and position players rely on fine motor control, joint stability, and dynamic force transmission. If training is stopped completely, especially in-season or mid-season, residual qualities can deteriorate fast if the arm is not strong.
- Loss of strength in the rotator cuff or scapular stabilizers can lead to control issues upon resuming throwing.
- Loss of eccentric power affects arm deceleration and increases stress at the elbow and shoulder, potentially impacting arm deceleration.
- Shoulder imbalances can manifest as a drop-off in velocity or command late in games.
- Increased fatigue and recovery can occur.
This is why we always advocate for structured deloading, rather than total rest, to avoid injury and provide the right amount of loading at the right time.
Two different arms. The athlete with the lower ArmScore will have more issues compared to the athlete with the higher ArmScore. Despite taking time off and losing strength relative to their previous record, the ability to rewire the nervous system and regain residual strength is much easier for the athlete on the right.
The Role of Deloading & Tapering
A deload isn’t about doing nothing — it’s about reducing training volume and/or intensity to allow the body to recover and adapt.
A well-planned deload and taper:
- Helps reduce central and peripheral fatigue
- Preserves neuromuscular adaptations
- Enhances readiness for higher training or competitive phases
In the throwing arm, deloading enables soft tissue recovery, resynchronization of motor patterns, and reduction of joint inflammation, without compromising key performance capabilities.
This clip is from our Data-Led Throwing Programs course, where we discuss the dangers of the current format of throwing programs and the acute rise in throwing arm stress that occurs right before Spring Training and the beginning of the season, the most risky time of the year due to training errors.
Jordan Oseguera, our Director of Pitching Performance, has extensive experience working with talent of all levels and has worked with me in Los Angeles, holding various roles in pitching development, analytics, and scouting.
Here, in our Data-Led Throwing Programs course, he discusses understanding the field, as distance either increases or reduces intensity and throwing volume. Knowing the dimensions of the field helps manage the load, especially when guided by the ArmCare platform.
Transitioning Into Collegiate Summer Leagues
As college players head into summer ball, it’s essential to incorporate recovery phases between the end of the school season and the start of summer competition. Jumping right into games with lingering fatigue from the college season is a fast track to injury, and collegiate summer league teams have to be dynamic and have a more individualized plan to succeed all summer long.
The Prospect League Podcast opened our eyes to a league that understands the value of evaluating throwing arm strength, managing pitch counts, and controlling throwing workloads. Best of all is how they rest and progress athletes.
The Pistol Shrimp, last year’s Prospect League Championship team, has been successful in converting relievers to starters in the summer season, adding value to their players in return to their teams.
A Few Strategic Tips:
- Short deload (5 days) with reduced throwing intensity (Activation Throwing is what we call it) and cut training down to 1 set in strengthening the throwing arm
- Test the throwing arm after 5 days and reload with two sets of training and a short bullpen of 20 pitches for the first bullpen and 30 pitches for the second.
- If the exam data is good to go, start with 2-3 innings of pitching in the summer league and cap it at 60 pitches.s
- Return to regular strength training, and the following week, increase the pitch count to 5 innings or 75 pitches and continue to monitor strength.gth
- About 3 weeks to a month in, use the individualized pitch count feature on the ArmCare app to make accurate pitch count decisions.
Summing it Up
Understanding and planning for residual effects and recovery windows are essential, not only for health but also for maximizing performance. As summer leagues kick off, give your throwing arm a chance to recharge, reset, and return better than ever.
Through regular testing, individualized planning, and collaboration among coaching and medical staff, athletes can stay ahead of breakdowns and continue to push their limits even higher.
Strength Matters Most, and when you build in periods of recovery with a strategic re-loading sequence, players improve durability and performance together.
Have a great weekend!
Ryan,
Ryan@armcare.com
