Wrist Flips

So, part of my DD routine is to start with wrist flips. She loves them. I tried to get her to remove them from her routine, but that is her way of easing herself into her warm-up(both physically & mentally).

What would be the benefit to removing them all together?

To me, at the worst they are a waste of time. My belief is that they are part of her mental ramp up. Focus is so very important. If it would help her focus I would let her wear a sombrero to warm up. So, the flips don't bother me, but I could do without them as well.

I would love to hear thoughts from everyone, but especially would love to hear from Board Member, Javasource & other expert's opinion.

She could try starting with a short period of stretching and then practicing the whip into her glove.(Similar to a 'T")
I believe in what Bill H teaches (I think) that you don't throw that way so you shouldn't practice that way.

IMO, they are a complete waste of time, and every PC that DD's have been to that I trust and respect feels the same. If you are doing wrist flips for movement pitches, I might suggest that you will not see the results you are after. Your DD should not have to contort her body and flip things to get the ball to move.

I agree with what others have said in that there is no real benefit from doing them. However, if that is what works for her then keep it the same. One thing to think about is sometimes you don't always have that much time to warm-up. If your DD is playing in the field and she comes in and coach says go warm up while we bat... your going in next inning, does she really have time to do wrist flips? Or if she is pulled in from the field during an inning and gets 5 pitches to warm-up....how does she handle that?

Yes, if she is starting take longer, but she also needs to realize and be prepared for a shorter warm-up period and the mental readiness doesn't have to be tied to what she is physically doing to be prepared.

I finally got my DDs to stop performing "wrist flips", per se. They practice their "wrist flips" utilizing the K motion or the single knee drill. I believe it is much better when this entire action is practiced together.

obbay said:

She could try starting with a short period of stretching and then practicing the whip into her glove.(Similar to a 'T")

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That is the next thing she does in her progression. She actually only does snaps on the first pregame warm up of the day. If we are in between innings she will move to about the third progression in her sequence of warm ups.

I know they are a waste of time physically. I just wanted to make sure I am not missing something, and they could be detrimental somehow.

Being a former athlete I understand how big the mental part is. I am just trying to decide if I let her keep her security blankie(wrist snaps), or if I should just tear the band aid off now.

JJS said:

So, part of my DD routine is to start with wrist flips. She loves them. I tried to get her to remove them from her routine, but that is her way of easing herself into her warm-up(both physically & mentally).

What would be the benefit to removing them all together?

To me, at the worst they are a waste of time. My belief is that they are part of her mental ramp up. Focus is so very important. If it would help her focus I would let her wear a sombrero to warm up. So, the flips don't bother me, but I could do without them as well.

I would love to hear thoughts from everyone, but especially would love to hear from Board Member, Javasource & other expert's opinion.

Click to expand...

I guess my question would be...how does she throw the ball? With I/R or HE?

Most people associate what you're describing as a motion where the palm goes from catcher to face... and IMO, those are pointless beyond description.

If, however... she is a fairly accomplished pitcher with sound fundamentals (DFP fundamentals)... there is some value... providing she knows the difference between muscling a snap vs. putting it in position where it is allowed to do work.

I used to teach them. They look good to parents, but that is about all.

RetiredCoach said:

I finally got my DDs to stop performing "wrist flips", per se. They practice their "wrist flips" utilizing the K motion or the single knee drill. I believe it is much better when this entire action is practiced together.

Click to expand...

Agreed. Muscle memory. Practice what you play. But it can be overlooked if that is what DD wants to do to warm up. (Especially if it's mental) She needs to be loose to pitch.

When I played baseball I was always tight, so I did whatever I needed to do in order to limber up. (Often to odd looks from other players) Sometimes I would warm up with a second player because the first got tired before I was even loose!

If she's flipping up then I would persuade her to stop, if she's flipping more forward and downward and it helps her mentally and she understands it isn't necessary then I wouldn't sweat it.

I prefer the into mitts with a little a little swing then add in some follow troughs over the mitt.

If she's doing no harm then let her wear that sombrero. I'm also a big fan of the pre-game mental warm-up.