Forward pitching causing a loss in flexibilty?

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Thedude3170
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Forward pitching causing a loss in flexibilty?

Post by Thedude3170 »

This is my first post but i am a long time poster from ballreviews.com

Situation:

I have been using 3/16 foward and 1/8 right ( right handed) in my thumb for about 5+ years now. My span is around 4 11/16 x 4 11/16 so based on the standard charts for IBSPIA i am using close to 1/2 inch in the wrong direction when it comes to pitching for my flexibilty. I have never been able to use any kind of reverse in my thumb since going to forward more than 5 years ago. But now admitting my body is aging, lol altho i am only 25 i am loosing flexibilty in my hand.

Query:

Am I the only one that has noticed a loss of flexibilty over time using forward in the thumb? I used to be able to easily push my thumb back past 105 degrees, but now its a tight 90 degrees. I will say that over the last 5 years my thumb has progressively gotten smaller and smaller with less callusing, but in general my swelling has remained constant, and frequently if i stop bowling for 20-30 minutes my thumb shrinks very quickly.

Anyone else have this experience?
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Mo Pinel
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Re: Forward pitching causing a loss in flexibilty?

Post by Mo Pinel »

Thedude3170 wrote:This is my first post but i am a long time poster from ballreviews.com

Situation:

I have been using 3/16 foward and 1/8 right ( right handed) in my thumb for about 5+ years now. My span is around 4 11/16 x 4 11/16 so based on the standard charts for IBSPIA i am using close to 1/2 inch in the wrong direction when it comes to pitching for my flexibilty. I have never been able to use any kind of reverse in my thumb since going to forward more than 5 years ago. But now admitting my body is aging, lol altho i am only 25 i am loosing flexibilty in my hand.

Query:

Am I the only one that has noticed a loss of flexibilty over time using forward in the thumb? I used to be able to easily push my thumb back past 105 degrees, but now its a tight 90 degrees. I will say that over the last 5 years my thumb has progressively gotten smaller and smaller with less callusing, but in general my swelling has remained constant, and frequently if i stop bowling for 20-30 minutes my thumb shrinks very quickly.

Anyone else have this experience?

Aging is a bitch! With that change in flexibility, you have two choices: reduce the spans or decrease the forward pitch in the thumb. Since changing pitch changes the release, I would first suggest reducing the spans. Try reducing both spans by 1/16" to see how that works. After that, if you want to try changing pitch, try 1/16" forward thumb pitch with the same span.
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Re: Forward pitching causing a loss in flexibilty?

Post by JMerrell »

The IBPSIA chart is for reference nothing more nothing less.
True fitting artist like Mo, and I'll have to through in my good friend Moony first fit what they see and then adjust the baseline for performance.

I see nothing in your post that states you are having any release issues.

You did say: Over the last 5 years my thumb has progressively gotten smaller and smaller with less callusing.

Sounds like whoever fit you for the the forward pitch grip also did a good job of matching span and holes sizes with the pitch. Hopefully you have thanked him repeatively.

If i stop bowling for 20-30 minutes my thumb shrinks very quickly. .

Forward thumb pitch requires less grip pressure to deliver the ball, which can allow you to get by with a slightly larger thumb hole size. Swelling can be a result of friction between hole size and the thumb. I suggest you try taping the thumb hole slightly tighter and relaxing your grip pressure to a level you've never tried before. It is amazing how little grip pressure is required to keep a proper fitted ball on the hand.

Just my take on the matter, educate me where necessary Mo.

Jim
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Mo Pinel
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Re: Forward pitching causing a loss in flexibilty?

Post by Mo Pinel »

JMerrell wrote:The IBPSIA chart is for reference nothing more nothing less.
True fitting artist like Mo, and I'll have to through in my good friend Moony first fit what they see and then adjust the baseline for performance.

I see nothing in your post that states you are having any release issues.

You did say: Over the last 5 years my thumb has progressively gotten smaller and smaller with less callusing.

Sounds like whoever fit you for the the forward pitch grip also did a good job of matching span and holes sizes with the pitch. Hopefully you have thanked him repeatively.

If i stop bowling for 20-30 minutes my thumb shrinks very quickly. .

Forward thumb pitch requires less grip pressure to deliver the ball, which can allow you to get by with a slightly larger thumb hole size. Swelling can be a result of friction between hole size and the thumb. I suggest you try taping the thumb hole slightly tighter and relaxing your grip pressure to a level you've never tried before. It is amazing how little grip pressure is required to keep a proper fitted ball on the hand.

Just my take on the matter, educate me where necessary Mo.

Jim
As always, yours is a very good approach. I like it. What I was doing was giving him the technical info so he could try some accurate changes, if he chose to.
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Re: Forward pitching causing a loss in flexibilty?

Post by Thedude3170 »

Well, as for the person that has fitting my hand 5 years ago, its been me the entire time. I took over a proshop 5 years ago and my first experiment was myself when it came to more forward in my thumb. I haven't have any release issues in the past, lately i probably could say i am because my timing is out of wack a bit.

As for cutting my span down a 1/16th i think thats likely the solution. I drill everything cut to cut using inserts and switch grip so I'll just reduce 1/16th off the cut to cut. The only other notable thing on my hand that indicates im a bowler is a bit of peeling of my skin on the first crease on my fingers from using inserts. I have gone no inserts in the past but my fingers go down alot through the summer.

thanks for the help so far.
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Re: Forward pitching causing a loss in flexibilty?

Post by JMerrell »

Mo,
You answered his inquiry perfectly! My pespective was just from a coaches viewpoint and as always seeking knowledge myself.
I was just curious as he mentioned no difficulty in the execution of the physical game. He appears to be doing an excellent job. Kudos to him!
Often, I find that even the highest level athletes often neglect to pay enough attention to the tape / feel relationship of the thumb hole and execution. Oops wrong forum.

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Re: Forward pitching causing a loss in flexibilty?

Post by fufu »

I think excess forward pitch causes extreme stress on the finger tips. I was using 3/8 more fwd than the chart showed as well. Now, I have lost some flexibility in my finger tips and have some pain in my fingers.

I've had to completely revamp my fit/pitches. Much like too much reverse, too much fwd can cause problems too.
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Re: Forward pitching causing a loss in flexibilty?

Post by Mo Pinel »

fufu wrote:I think excess forward pitch causes extreme stress on the finger tips. I was using 3/8 more fwd than the chart showed as well. Now, I have lost some flexibility in my finger tips and have some pain in my fingers.

I've had to completely revamp my fit/pitches. Much like too much reverse, too much fwd can cause problems too.

Adjusting the span appropriately almost always offsets pitches. There are practical limits, but knowing the span/pitch relationships allows people to accommodate a wide variety of pitches. Keep in mind that comfort is an issue, also.
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