Preventing Little League Elbow with the exercise of the month for June

Want to know a better way to strengthen your elbow for baseball and other throwing sports?

The Palm Press: The Surprisingly Powerful Grip Exercise You’re Probably Not Doing
At first glance, the palm press doesn’t look like much. No weights. No fancy equipment. Just you, your hands, and a little bit of pressure.

But don’t let the simplicity fool you. Some of the athletes with the strongest grips on earth—gymnasts, rock climbers, boulderers—swear by this exercise. And once you try it, you’ll understand why.

Here’s how to do it properly:

1. Get into a quadruped position—hands and knees on the ground, shoulders over wrists. If you move your shoulders towards your hips, it will make this exercise easier, forwards makes if more challenging.

2. Spread your fingers slightly and make sure they’re completely straight throughout

3. Keep all four fingers in contact with the floor (no pressure through the thumb).

4. Now slowly press through your fingertips and lift the palm of your hand off the ground

5. Hold briefly, then lower back down with control.

This variation of the palm press targets the deep finger flexor tendons, the intrinsic hand muscles, and the forearm flexors all the way up to the medial elbow. This will strengthens everything from your fingertips to your inner elbow, and everything in between.

It’s especially effective for developing control in the hands and forearms, something that’s often overlooked in traditional lifting. And because your fingers are straight, the tendons are placed under tension in a lengthened position—a key for tendon health and durability.

This is the exact type of slow, controlled work that builds resilience in tissues that are prone to overuse or irritation—like the ones involved in golfer’s elbow, rock climbing, throwing sports, or high-volume gripping.

Here’s one of the coolest things about the palm press: everyone feels it in a slightly different place.

For me? Right below the wrist.
For others, it’s deep in the fingers, the meat of the forearm, or even at the inner elbow.

It reveals where your weak link is in the gripping chain—which makes it a great diagnostic tool as well as a strengthening one.

Who Should Be Doing Palm Presses?

This drill is fantastic for:

• Rock climbers and gymnasts looking for connective tissue durability

• Overhead athletes and throwers trying to build medial elbow resilience

• Lifters and CrossFitters with forearm or wrist tightness

• Office workers managing finger or wrist discomfort from high computer use

• Anyone rehabbing tendinopathy in the hand, wrist, or elbow

Start with:

• 2 sets of 12 - 15reps

• Perform 2–4 times per week

Make sure to move slow and stay strict: no bending at the knuckles, and no press with the thumb (or else you will be sorry).

As you get stronger, you can progress by:

• Shifting more weight over your hands

• Increasing the hold time

• Adding reps or performing it dynamically