FREE 6-WEEK WORKBOOK · PDF INCLUDED
Return to Throwing: Free 6-Week Clinician-Led Planning Workbook
If you are searching for a free return-to-play throwing program after an injury, a generic four- or six-week schedule is not enough. This resource provides a planning and tracking workbook for use with your treating clinician. It does not prescribe throwing distances, counts, effort, or a date to return to games.
No email required · Athletes and families preparing questions for their treating clinician · By Pitch AI · 2026-09-07
Who this workbook is for
Do not begin or increase throwing based on this workbook. Obtain an individual plan and explicit clearance from the treating clinician. Pitch AI and a video analysis cannot provide medical clearance.
Healing status, the specific injury, strength, motion, symptoms, and the demands of the athlete’s position affect readiness. Being pain-free at rest or completing a calendar week does not, by itself, clear an athlete to throw.
Your weekly framework
Use these steps only alongside the treating clinician’s written plan.
| Day / window | Plan |
|---|---|
| Before throwing begins | Ask the clinician what criteria must be met and who can authorize progression. |
| Before each prescribed session | Record the clinician-approved task, limits, and stopping instructions. |
| After the session and next morning | Record the response and report symptoms according to the care plan. |
| Before any progression | Obtain approval when required; a completed log is not automatic permission. |
Clinical planning questions
Questions to bring to the appointment
| Exercise / task | Dose / question | How to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Readiness | What objective criteria must I meet? | Ask about motion, strength, symptoms, and tissue-healing requirements. |
| Starting dose | What exactly am I cleared to do? | Have the clinician write the ball, distance, count, effort, and frequency. |
| Response rules | What should make me stop or contact you? | Get specific instructions for same-day and next-day symptoms. |
| Competition | Who clears mound work and games? | Separate return to practice from return to competition. |
When to stop and contact your clinician
If pain returns, stop throwing and contact the treating clinician before continuing. Sudden severe pain, marked swelling, weakness, numbness, or loss of function needs prompt medical assessment. Do not use an app-generated mechanics finding to diagnose the tissue involved.
Six tracking windows—not clearance milestones
| Week | Decision |
|---|---|
| 1 | Tracking window only: document the prescribed phase, sessions completed, symptoms, next-day response, and clinician decision. No automatic advancement. |
| 2 | Tracking window only: document the prescribed phase, sessions completed, symptoms, next-day response, and clinician decision. No automatic advancement. |
| 3 | Tracking window only: document the prescribed phase, sessions completed, symptoms, next-day response, and clinician decision. No automatic advancement. |
| 4 | Tracking window only: document the prescribed phase, sessions completed, symptoms, next-day response, and clinician decision. No automatic advancement. |
| 5 | Tracking window only: document the prescribed phase, sessions completed, symptoms, next-day response, and clinician decision. No automatic advancement. |
| 6 | Tracking window only: document the prescribed phase, sessions completed, symptoms, next-day response, and clinician decision. No automatic advancement. |
There is no automatic advance from one row to the next. A clinician may hold or change the plan for longer than this workbook covers.
Keep a simple log
| Date | Work completed | Response / next-day notes |
|---|---|---|
| ________________ | ________________________ | ________________________ |
| ________________ | ________________________ | ________________________ |
| ________________ | ________________________ | ________________________ |
| ________________ | ________________________ | ________________________ |
| ________________ | ________________________ | ________________________ |
| ________________ | ________________________ | ________________________ |
Do not enter private medical details in shared team copies. Keep your personal log securely.
Common questions
Can I return to games after six weeks?
The six rows are for tracking, not a recovery prediction. Your clinician decides progression and clearance.
Can the app replace physical therapy?
No. The app can support organization and training records; it does not replace clinical evaluation or rehabilitation.
Evidence & source notes
These sources inform the principles, not a guarantee that this exact template produces an outcome. Coaching manuals are labeled separately from research. No proprietary program tables or illustrations have been reproduced.
- Sgroi & Zajac (2018): Return to Throwing after Shoulder or Elbow Injury
Return to throwing is a criteria-based rehabilitation decision, not a calendar deadline.