Just some discussion: What are your top 3 absolutes that you try to teach all hitters

Welcome to Discuss Fastpitch

Your FREE Account is waiting to the Best Softball Community on the Web.

Apr 20, 2018
4,581
113
SoCal
I have no idea who these young ladies are but I think they both could learn from each other. So your saying the one in the black pants has a better swing and more power? She looks more balanced and stable. Probably less prone to injury. Although it hard to see at full speed I like the girl in the shorts barrel path and hand radius better. Also the girl in the black pant seems to have more pushing of the hands than needed. They both close off their stride. Not sure if they are both hitting outside pitches or that is something taught.

Was reading The Catapult Loading System and he advocates hitting from a "hunch position". He also calls it the Hollow-Hold Position (gym). My DD sticks her butt out in her batting stance.(arched lower back) We are working on taking out the arch. Any advice?
 
Jan 6, 2009
6,590
113
Chehalis, Wa
IMO..Controlling the rear hip is about getting into a good balanced stance and having the ability to stabilize the rear leg… so the core (torso & rear hip) can load. The rear hip has to develop properly…to handle a balancing act of stability and controlled mobility…while having the glutes active. While this usually comes easier for males…I haven’t found that it does for girls learning to hit.

So hip hinging correctly…activating glutes…especially in the rear hip,

Then a stable rear leg
Some miss the joint by joint approach…
The foot is a stable joint
Ankle a mobile joint
Knee a stable joint
Hip is a mobile joint.

So if you want a stable rear leg…you have stabilize the ankle. You do that by using the toes.
Then take the slack out of the rear hip joint by gently screwing the rear leg into the ground till they feel the rear hip muscles activate or do so as they get their weight into the rear leg…this is what gets them to start getting the stability and controlled mobility of the rear hip (hip abduction & external rotation) so the torso can act…with a contralateral (down & in) movement.

The initial movements for a good load pattern is important…so they don’t have to compensate down stream.


Hip Extension…this young lady explains hip extension pretty well with a young gymnast demonstrating the importance.
One of the first things a good gymnastic coach will teach is glute activation for stability.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJLd0O7yZ3A

This is hip extension
Hip-Extension-Combo-Small_zpsflvxcri5.gif


This is hip extension in the swing
seira-romero-side-hip-extension_zpsyeebevgx.gif


Its a posterior pelvic rotation (hip extension…not a thrust or goat hump)…. using the gluteus maximus. Want them to feel it where the glutes and hams meet & in the lower abdomen (where arrows point).

Along with a proper hip hinge when getting into stance… this is an important movement. This is one of the things that gives them power…even the smaller players.

Just saying squeeze the glutes…doesn’t get it. Many will simply lock their pelvis more in what ever position its in at the time when told that. If they are anteriorly tilted…they stay anteriorly tilted. They need to learn the pattern and feel of the glute movement. imo

I dont’ talk about much about hip rotation (belly button to pitcher) but rather…rotating to hip extension. Once the hips work right and the load is a good pattern……proper hip function finishes off rotation because of the way the glutes work.

Here are two good players…one uses the glutes and gets to good hip extension…a good hip pattern from load to contact.

seira%20romero%20side_zpsq2ripaex.gif


This one is more rotational, collapse the rear leg, rotate around the front hip, no concern about hip extension or pattern.
CASSIE-REILLY-BOCCIA-swing-small_zpszlfsz62i.gif


One has more power, energy transfer up the kinetic chain. One rotates more around a rear hip axis, one can stay back and behind the ball, one has a rear leg driver, one leads to a more reactive front leg, one creates a more stable base to catch the whip…ect…all because of the glute involvement and a good core (torso & hip) pattern from load through swing.

Just my opinion.

So do you believe hip extension is more important then hip rotation? I think hip extension is more important.
 
Apr 11, 2015
877
63
seira%20romero%20side_zpsq2ripaex.gif


CASSIE-REILLY-BOCCIA-swing-small_zpszlfsz62i.gif


One has more power, energy transfer up the kinetic chain. One rotates more around a rear hip axis, one can stay back and behind the ball, one has a rear leg driver, one leads to a more reactive front leg, one creates a more stable base to catch the whip…ect…all because of the glute involvement and a good core (torso & hip) pattern from load through swing.

Just my opinion.
In short form....one uses the rear leg to power the swing "into" the lead leg...while the other uses the lead leg to pull herself up "onto", and swing from there.

Just my opinion as well.
 
Feb 16, 2015
933
43
South East
I have no idea who these young ladies are but I think they both could learn from each other. So your saying the one in the black pants has a better swing and more power? She looks more balanced and stable. Probably less prone to injury. Although it hard to see at full speed I like the girl in the shorts barrel path and hand radius better. Also the girl in the black pant seems to have more pushing of the hands than needed. They both close off their stride. Not sure if they are both hitting outside pitches or that is something taught.

Was reading The Catapult Loading System and he advocates hitting from a "hunch position". He also calls it the Hollow-Hold Position (gym). My DD sticks her butt out in her batting stance.(arched lower back) We are working on taking out the arch. Any advice?


My DD was playing around with a Kvest the other day and there is a feature on there that shows the person how to hinge the hips properly. Apparently there are is a certain angle that the spine and the pelvis needs to be from one another, which I had no idea about. Anyway to achieve the proper hip hinge she had to get rid of the arch in the lower back and round her back while tucking her pelvis under. I have seen someone post about cat & cow in the past and the proper way according to Kvest at least is more in line with the cat and not the cow.

Graph of Sierra Romero Kvest readings (girl in all black ^^^^)

https://twitter.com/elite_baseball/status/1071132279144095745?s=21



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Last edited:
Jun 10, 2010
554
28
midwest
I have no idea who these young ladies are but I think they both could learn from each other. So your saying the one in the black pants has a better swing and more power? She looks more balanced and stable. Probably less prone to injury. Although it hard to see at full speed I like the girl in the shorts barrel path and hand radius better. Also the girl in the black pant seems to have more pushing of the hands than needed. They both close off their stride. Not sure if they are both hitting outside pitches or that is something taught.

Was reading The Catapult Loading System and he advocates hitting from a "hunch position". He also calls it the Hollow-Hold Position (gym). My DD sticks her butt out in her batting stance.(arched lower back) We are working on taking out the arch. Any advice?

Yes..thats my opinion..the one in black has a better swing & more power… because of better hip/core function.

The top girl is Sierra Romero former Michigan and current NPF player.
The bottom girl is Cassie Reilly Bocca formerly Alabama player and athletic warehouse trainer.

Its not to rag on Bocca swing..she was successful and I am sure…producing good players. She isn’t the only one teaching those mechanics…in fact it seems to be taught everywhere. I was at a D I hitting camp earlier this year and there was players from all over the midwest (from Wisconsin to Texas) that played for good TB teams. They were all good players and hit well. Had good bat speed ect. But there pop off the bat wasn’t what I was expecting. As I watched their mechanics closer…I would estimate up to 75% of the swings were similar to these mechanics.


As far as your dd…it depends.

jryan posted a lot of good information on quad dominate females and the challenges his DD had. I would add to that by saying… its a TRIAD. The triad is they have a tendency to be more hip flexor dominate than extensors (glutes), …more adduction dominate than abduction….and more quad than hams. I test them pretty thoroughly and they are all over the scale including having a dominate side (right/left).

Best to have her tested by a PT, Trainer or Sports Physician that knows what they are doing.

As far as self help.
If she is only hip flexor dominate…
and if she CAN do the hip extension in various positions (standing, single knee, against a wall ect)…. and gets to a neutral spine then
she should add the move… as the first move of all her body weight & core exercises. Such as Hollow body, bridges, superman, planks ect. And progress each.

She should also stretch the hip flexors. Look into Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF). Put in its simplest form…its a an isometric contraction then a passive stretch. Gets great results. Google ‘pnf hip flexors’ and choose one your comfortable with. Just be sure to have her get a posterior pelvic rotation before each stretch and start gently.

If she can get in a neutral spine position…have her practice hip hinging correctly (with a neutral spine) before her stance.
hip%20hinge%20combo_zpsei9ule6y.gif


It is a rear out move first with a neutral spine position (without hyperlordosis “sway back” “arched back”)…then slightly bending at the knees. Using a dowel…you will be able to tell if she is getting less arch…and she should be able to tell when she feels the glute activate.. where it meets the hams and feel it in lower abdomen.
Have her do walking movements…such as this shows.. with a proper hip hinge…to maintain a neutral spine while moving.

I liked the catapult info…agree with most of what he says….except he pooh-hahs the lower body mechanics too much for my liking.
I recall he recommends doing a drill or feel drill for a few reps then swing a few reps…going back and forth. I do that too…. and will have them do 5-6 reps then 5-6 swings. I think he recommends fewer reps but I don’t recall how many. It would be useful for her to do a few hip hinges then carry that over into her stance for a few swings. Going back and forth.

With her current swing…. watch that she doesn’t just lift the front knee straight up on load. If she is hip flexor dominate they have a tendency to do this..and usually want to bring it high…and it will bind her hips and she will have a compensation downstream. Make sure she turns the front knee in or in & up when she loads.

Thats saying a lot (probably too much) without seeing her and testing her. If you do the above and haven’t noticed a difference in a few weeks. PM me and I will have you check some other things. Hope that helps.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
42,830
Messages
679,477
Members
21,445
Latest member
Bmac81802
Top