Batting Training

Many studies have been done that say training must correlate directly to the movements that take place in sport. This is a wordy definition for the phrase: sport-specific training.

If we want greater bat speed we must replicate our swing dynamics using resistance to build strength, and speed training to build power. Strength and Power are directly related. Power in definition is really just fast strength.
With these two points being made, we now need to understand the mechanics of a swing.
When we swing a bat, the swing starts from the ground, up. Think of this ground up theory as a rubber band that is fully stretched and twisted as well. When a rubber band is fully stretched, it is filled with what we refer to as potential energy, meaning if we let go, that band will move. So if our rubber band is now fully stretched and twisted as well, if we let go, the band will move in a rotational manner. In essence this is what happens to your body, your body is this rubber band. As a hitter, prior to the pitch we load up and put our rubber band on stretch. Then just prior to our swing, we put force into the ground, the ground then pushes force up through our legs, hips, and abdominals. At that moment our rubber band (body) begins to un-stretch in a rotational manner pushing the force and energy we created towards to ball. The amount of force and energy that is put into the ball will determine the distance and speed in which this ball will travel.
Now that we have a basic understanding of the swing, we are able to tailor exercises to enhance our force and energy output. I recommend in terms of equipment all baseball players purchase a medicine ball of 4-10 pounds depending on your age and body size. I usually recommend starting with a 6lb ball for athletes over 100 lbs. I would also strongly encourage purchasing some resistance tubing with handles. With these two recommended pieces of equipment you can complete a comprehensive baseball development workout.
These exercises should be done 2-3 days per week. I recommend 2-3 sets of 8-10 repetitions.
Core Bridges- This is one of the best core stability exercises. This exercise will help with the transfer of force and energy from your lower body to your upper
How? While lying on the ground face down, bend your arms and place them directly under your shoulders. From this position, you should be able to lift your body up as if you were doing a pushup while resting your weight on your forearms. Hold this posture for 15 seconds to start and as you get better, increase the time of your hold.
Seated Bent Knee Med Ball Rotations- This exercise will begin to develop rotational speed and strength
How? While sitting on the floor, bend both knees so just your heels are on the floor. From this position grab your medicine ball. With the ball close to your body, begin to rotate by turning your shoulders side to side and tap the ball on each side of your body each repetition. When using the medicine ball you will have more of a strength focus. To enhance the speed of muscle contraction, let go of the ball and rotate side to side as rapidly as possible.
High to Low Standing Band Chops- This exercise will also be used to build strength and speed depending on the resistance of your band.
How? Prior to beginning this exercise, it is important that your band is fixed to an object that is a few feet taller than you are. This object could be a pull-up bar, doorway, or a partner standing on a table or bench. While standing in your batter stance, weight should be equally distributed on both feet. Grab the handle of the band with your front hand, or the hand that would be closest to the pitcher, then place your other hand on top of the other. From this position you are going to chop down on the same plane you would if you were going to hit the ball off a tee. The movement should be slow and controlled if strength is your goal, if speed is your goal, use a lighter resistance band and speed up the movement to a rapid pace while still maintaining good mechanics.
Low to High Standing Band Chops- This exercise will also be used to build strength and speed depending on the resistance of your band. In addition this will enhance upper body trunk flexibility
How? Prior to beginning this exercise, it is important that your band is fixed to an object that is even with your back foot. This object could be a chair, leg of a table, or even the trunk of a tree. While standing in your batter stance, weight should be equally distributed on both feet. Grab the handle of the band with your front hand, or the hand that would be closest to the pitcher, then place your other hand on top of the other. At this point you will pivot your front foot and rotate your torso towards the object that is holding the band in place. From here, you will immediately begin to chop in an upward direction with your arms extended outward. While this is going on, your front foot will pivot to open up, while your back foot will pivot as if you were hitting and squashing the bug. Upon finish, your arms will finish high and you will look very similar to a golfer when they finish their swing.
Rotational Pushup- This upper body exercise will help develop upper body strength, stability, and flexibility all at the same time.
How? From the top of a pushup position, you will start a slow descent bringing your chest to the floor. Directly following you will push up from the floor while at the same lifting one of your hands and arms up towards the sky.
Utilize these 5 exercises three times each week and you will slowly but surely see improvements.

Vision and Hitting

As it relates to your stance, seeing the ball better means how you initially stand in the batter’s box to look out at the pitcher. There are basically three different types of stance. The neutral stance is one where your feet are square to the plate. This means that they are an equal distance from the plate. A stance like this affords you a good, comfortable look at the pitcher without straining yourself or otherwise becoming uncomfortable in the batter’s box. Most Major League hitters use a neutral stance. Ken Griffey, Jr., for one. Remember, we are only talking about how you place your feet in the batter’s box. We want to build that solid foundation from the ground up.

The second stance, and also a very popular one with Major League hitters, is the closed stance. On the closed stance, the foot closest to the pitcher’s mound is placed slightly closer to home plate than the other foot. The key word here is slightly. You can overdo most anything, and getting too closed with your stance will definitely hamper your hitting. The great Tony Gwynn believes this is probably the best stance for most hitters.

The open stance is just the opposite. The foot closest to the mound is pulled away from home plate. Jay Buhner of the Mariners is one of the more notable hitters that uses the open stance. Fewer Major League hitters use this stance, because of the obvious distance it takes you from the hitting zone. An open stance requires you to do more during the time the pitch is on its way to the plate, in order to get in the proper hitting position. More on that later.

So, which stance is right for you? Well, each one has its advantages. Before you choose one though, I’d like you to take a little test. Because it is important to see the ball well, we need to find out which of your eyes is the dominant eye. The dominant eye is the one that does the majority of the work when you look at something. It sends the messages to the brain about where the ball is as it relates to the space around you. Your other eye does the same thing, but your dominant eye sends more precise information. Remember, you want every advantage on your side, not the pitcher’s.

Extend your hand out in front of you with your thumb up as though you are giving a friend the "thumbs up" or "good job, way to go," sign. With both eyes open, pick an object about twenty feet away from you and position your thumb so that the end of it covers that object. Now, close your left eye. Did your thumb seem like it moved over to the left? If it did, your left eye is your dominant eye. If nothing happened and your thumb is still covering the object, close your right eye. Did your thumb seem to have jumped over to the right? If so, your right eye is the dominant eye.

Why is all of this important to you? The answer is simple, you want to make use of your dominant eye when you are hitting. Choosing the proper stance to help put that dominant eye to work is important. Ideally, your dominant eye would be the one closest to the pitcher. The left eye for the right handed batter, the right eye for the left handed batter. Unfortunately, most people are just the opposite. Right handed batters generally are right eye dominant and vice-versa.
Having your dominant eye closer to the pitcher contributes to better tracking of the ball to the hitting zone. This is one of the factors that helps explain why switch hitters hit better from one side or the other. Not having this luxury does not mean you can’t be a good hitter.
What it means is, by knowing which eye sends the more precise messages to the brain, you should position yourself so that you see the ball with that eye.
This is the reason most Major League hitters choose the neutral position as their stance of choice. I doubt, however, that many of them consciously know which of their eyes is dominant. It probably came about from years of trial and error and they finally settled on that position because they felt they saw the ball better. You can wipe out years of trial and error just by knowing which of your eyes sees the ball better! From the neutral stance, you can position your head comfortably enough over your front shoulder to use both eyes to see the ball, bringing your dominant eye into play. This is known as binocular, using both eyes.
Obviously, the open stance gives you an even greater use of both eyes. The reason it is not employed as often by great hitters, is that the trade off for good vision and the increased amount of things you need to do to get in the proper hitting position is simply not worth it. The less complicated your swing is, the more successful you are apt to be. Again, more on this later.
The closed stance has advantages. If you can comfortably position your head over the front shoulder to utilize the vision from both eyes, you can take advantage of the increased plate coverage you get from this stance. Stan Musial, one of the great hitters of all time, used a slightly closed stance. If you were to look at him from the pitcher’s mound during his stance, you might think his neck was made of rubber his head was turned so far over his front shoulder. Needless to say, he saw the ball very well, and he hit the ball very well.
To sum this section up; since we are building a good hitter a little at a time, pick a stance that affords you the best opportunity to see the ball well. Taking into consideration which of your eyes sends the more accurate messages to the brain. You need to give that computer up there the proper information if you want to be successful at one of the more difficult physical acts in sports.

Balance and The Hitting Stance

Let’s get you in a good hitting position with your stance. Your feet should be slightly more than shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent and your weight evenly distributed between both feet. You should feel a little more weight toward the balls of your feet and to the inside of your feet. You should feel springy and ready for action, like a quarterback under center. This is a well balanced, athletic stance that will allow you to hit with power and grace.

The best way I have found to teach young hitters how to get into a well balanced, athletic position, is to have you stand still with your feet about shoulder width apart. Now jump as high as you can straight up in the air. When you land, you will usually land in a very balanced and athletic position.

When you look down at your feet, your knees should be bent just enough to prevent you from seeing your ankles and the in-steps of your feet. Standing too straight, or squatting too far, can lead to poor mechanics of the swing. There are exceptions, obviously, if you look around at the Major Leagues, where players have had success from one extreme to the other. Some players crouch down, others stand straight up, that is a matter of "style," and that’s something we don’t want to discuss just yet. For now, balance and efficiency are what we want to concentrate on.
Mechanically, what a good balanced stance does for you is it allows you to freely stride with the front foot and rotate the back foot while maintaining enough balance to swing the bat through with leverage and power. Good balance is imperative throughout the swing.

Getting/Staying in Shape! How Can it be Easier?

   So you're wondering how to make your workout life just a little more consistent!  How can you stay involved at the gym or if not at the gym then at least consistently doing something to keep or get in shape. 
   How do we accomplish that you ask?  Here are a few pointers I have found make the workout routine and you last longer together.

Tip 1 - Do activities that you like.
  Remember that if you enjoy something you are more consistent and more apt to actually continually fit it into your schedule.  If you like jogging then you will find time to jog during your busy schedule.  This can be really anything from dancing to running to swimming, you get the point.

Tip 2 - Make fitness a part of your schedule.
  You have to set aside time for working out.  If you have it penciled in on your calendar and you know mentally and physically that it is the day and time for you to do your fitness training you are much more likely to succeed in it.

Tip 3 - Take a friend with you.
  It is easier to be consistent at workout time if someone else is going to be there with you.  It is hard to ignore someone when you are suppose to be meeting them in ten minutes to workout and they are calling and texting you to make sure you will be there.

Tip 4 - Avoid the scale!
  Stop weighing in everyday!  It is not doing your psyche any good.  All you see when you weigh in daily is that your effort is not worth it.  It is about being consistent over time.  If you need to check you weight weekly or bi-weekly to track your progress then that is as often as you should stand on the scales.  Remember this is a mental and emotional journey too.  It is a journey not a hiking trail but a journey, it takes time to see results.

Tip 5 - Know what YOU want to achieve by working out!
   This final point is very important for every person because our workout routines many times look similar to someone else doesn't mean that we are trying to achieve the same thing. YOU need to know your body type and how you want to change it.  If you have a weight loss, body toning, or health status goal you need to make that clear to yourself and find a routine that fits that profile.  Remember you are an individual and your goals and routine need to fit you.  If you need help with this there are personal trainers that can help even if it is just to establish your routine.

    You are unique and need to find the plan that works for you.  These are just a few tips that you can use to help get into better shape and be more consistent in YOUR workout routine.  There is a healthier, trimmer, toner you that can be found if you find the right program and are consistent.  Enjoy your workout!

Fantasy Football!

So another year of fantasy football is here!  It has changed over the years a bit, there are still a few things that can help you in this years leagues. 
1. Stop planning for their bye weeks.
Although you may be the best planner ever this is not a hard thing to get caught up in.  I understand there may be a couple of teams that have bye weeks at the same time that have really good running backs.  The thing is you need to get the best available players and manage when they play.  It is not a good idea to pass on Philip Rivers just because he may have the same bye week as Drew Brees.  Do Your best to establish viable options at key point scoring positions.
2. Establish depth at key positions.
Now it is not advisable to draft 4 straight running backs in the current NFL Fantasy League formats.  In the early days of fantasy football the league was a run first league that made running backs the asset to have.  Now there are several teams that will have successful years running the football, but considering last year that Matt Schaub didn't make the playoffs with the Houston Texans and had the 6th best passing season in NFL history in terms of yards.  Yeah, I'm saying quarter backs are key here.  You can't just draft four rounds of running backs and then pick up the scraps.
3. You CANNOT build a perfect team.
Stop trying to live in fantasy world here.  I know a team with Peyton Manning, Chris Johnson, Adrian Peterson, Andre Johnson, Neil Rackers, Pittsburgh's Defense, Antonio Gates, and throw a couple other number one wide outs and running backs would be great, but there is one catch.  It is not going to happen unless you are the only one playing in the league.  I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news but you will have to settle a little.  It is possible to get Rackers, Peterson, Andre Johnson, Gates and maybe a quarterback like Schaub, Rivers or Romo.  That is still a very good team that you can manage a few good players together in and a good defense.  In that scenario you are still very hard to beat.  Remember this is a competition not a hey everybody watch John here win it all by week 10.

Good luck this year in your fantasy endeavors and please enjoy as much football as possible.

Relevance of Golf in the Fall!

So here we are the last week in August!  This weekend I watched some great golf played by the World's best golfers and some ridiculous baseball played by 12 and 13 year old kids.  I, as many of you, am excited about a few things coming up this fall. College Football kicks off this weekend, and the next weekend is professional football, followed shortly by the push for the playoffs in baseball leading to the world series, one of my favorite sporting events all year.  Which begs the question.  Can Golf compete with that?  I know there are guys like me who are sports junkies and will watch whatever is on television but come on if you had the choice to watch the Eagles and Giants play or watch 3 hours of Golf?  I'm not saying that golf is not a great sport because I love to play and love to watch it.  I'm just saying that at this point in the year football is king.
    When it comes down to ratings, revenues, and profitability then American football still has the top spot.  So I pose the question to you, is professional golf grasping at straws and spending extra money to get the same group of "loyal" followers or are they relevant in the sports landscape this time of year?

Little League!

What a time and place to grow and live! The memories I have from little league baseball are amazing! You can't replace the sense of accomplishment in seeing your family so proud of you. You can't beat the experience, that hopefully every kid enjoys at some point, of a "suicide" after the game. Now, I'm talking about a drink that is every fountain drink, that isn't diet, all mixed together in one cup. The thing is in today's game doesn't it tend to get a little over the top. I mean, how many times do you remember in little league throwing 85 pitches? What 10 to 12 year old kid needs to throw 85 pitches in one game? And then of those 85 pitches why are 40 of those pitches curve balls? This may just be my beef with little league and all the exposure of a young kid playing competitive baseball. The problem is now that most of these top level baseball players at age 12 who are playing in about 100 games of baseball per summer are either doing nothing else all year long or they are burned out by the time they are 16.
Now I understand there are people who are prodigy kids and they are all well and good, but you aren't going to get your kid drafted into the major leagues at age 14. The thing about baseball is that knowing how to do everything right is far more important than playing 100 games a year. My father always told me it was good for me to be active in almost every athletic competition. It is good for a young kid to have a chance to play football, basketball, soccer(football), and baseball (and any other sport not named here). It is good for them to be well rounded. Most of the major division 1 athletes and professionals in almost every sport played other sports and many still actively train and play, at least in recreation. So, instead of deciding at age 9 what professional sport your child is going to play let them pick it out and let them enjoy little league. It will be the time of their young lives, I know it was for me.

Head on a Swivel!

You may have never heard this, but I heard the phrase many times in my sporting days. "Get your head on a swivel." Keep a look out for what might be coming. It is important to understand this concept in football. If you play linebacker it is especially important, because you are the second level of the defense. You have the ability to react to the play before a blocker gets to you. Now, if the offensive lineman is doing his job and has studied properly he is going to know where you will react and go to and how to get in your way. It really won't take much more than that if everything else is taken care of. Just getting between you and the ball carrier, even if he doesn't block you all that well, adds a couple of yards to the play anyway. So keep your head on a swivel! If you are able to not only get to the spot you need to be, but also get there without being blocked then you are in a much better position to make the tackle for little or no gain. After all down and distance always favors the defense. Now this lesson is particularly important to everyone involved because eventually you will have a life to live and know there are specific things that you must do. The trick is maintaining an awareness of everything going on around you and seeing things that are coming to be able to adjust and still make your mark.
Tricky thing this head on a swivel idea. It is easy to get so focused on avoiding the block that you miss the play entirely. Don't forget that making the tackle is your first priority not avoiding being hit. Stay focused and you will get there, and don't forget to have a look out for what else may be coming. In other words, keep your head on a swivel.

Leadership and Learning are very much the same

I found a blog post earlier today that talked about when everyone starts new things they are ignorant.  And the truth is they're right.  When we start something new we are ignorant and are fooling ourselves to think otherwise.  When we first start learning to play baseball for instance we have to be taught how to do everything.  We need to know how to throw and catch.  Then that evolves into catching fly balls or fielding grounders and being able to judge that as the ball comes off the bat.  Next we need to be more fluent in our attempts to do that, and we throw in being able to hit a ball thrown from a person and not just fed into a machine or lobbed to us from our dad.  We have to work on batting stances, proper swings, balance, timing and positioning.  Then base running and signals come into play, as well we begin to play situational baseball and needing to know what to do with the ball when there is a runner on 2nd with 2 outs and the ball is hit into the alley.  How do we respond?  In order to grow to this point we have learned from whoever was willing to teach us and that is the trick.  We must learn the right things to do and grow into leaders on the field by spending time to know what to do and when to do it.  No matter what stage of athletics you are in right now this will help.  You will not succeed until you know what to do and many times why you are doing it.

Raising the Athlete!

In today's world it is incredible how early many people have their kids trying to do "major league" things. So what is the right thing to do? What can we do with our young athletes to prepare them without tearing them up? Fundamentals! Fundamentals my friends! There is nothing that changes about fundamentals. They are something that your young athlete will never not use. It is far more important for an 8 year old to know how to throw properly and far less important for them to be effective at throwing curve balls. It is coming up on football season and if you think there is any sport that is less about fundamentals you would be wrong. The best athletes in the world may be good, but without proper technique they are gobbled up as they get into higher ranks of football. If you have a lineman teach them to "fire off" the line and find their opponents chest with there hands and head. Teach them to avoid looking for their eyes, and to avoid standing up straight. As they get older, into their preteen ages and early teen ages, work with them on flexibility, agility, and explosiveness while still recognizing that their fundamentals are still important. The same is true with quarterbacks and receivers, fundamentals in route running, footwork, hand placement, stance, release point, etc., are the things that they will use for their entire careers. Also, if you can teach a young kid that you build on basics and grow from there through time, perseverance and hard work they will be better equipped for life circumstances.