Daughter is a tee warrior, but back hip stops on live pitching

Welcome to Discuss Fastpitch

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

Jun 4, 2014
159
28
First, the gif I posted is "full size," not a thumbnail. It's just a small source, but I think there's enough there to see what I'm talking about.

Daughter is a tee warrior. She goes to college camps and gets lots of attention when there's tee work, and the coaches use her to demonstrate proper technique. She gets in a game, though, and everything goes south. The back hip stops and she becomes disconnected, all arms and her head pops up. Much to our chagrin, the tee swing does not translate to her live swing. I don't know much about the RVP connection point thing, but it looks like she's almost there before the bottom half shuts down.

How do we change this??? (Please don't say "turn the barrel" -- I've been on this forum for years and still cannot figure out what that is supposed to mean)

(She experimented with a split grip this weekend after seeing it on TV, but I don't believe that impacts the fundamental issue)

20190610_111944.gif
 
Apr 20, 2018
4,581
113
SoCal
It looks like her toes are glued to the ground. Its kinda weird. Her back leg bends and then straightens out. TTB. LOL.
Need to see tee swing too. How about front toss? It sorta looks like maybe she want to run before she finishes her swing? Does she hit a lot of GBs?
 
Nov 18, 2015
1,585
113
I think a term that's been used in the past is hip slip/slippage?
It looks like one of the frames in the gif captures toe touch. But her hip keeps moving forward with the next frame, and then the frame or two after that, her leg straightens, and her hip pushes backward (and slightly upwards). I think this is the same thing RH is describing.
Compare when her hip opens during a tee swing - if it's good contact off the tee, she's probably opening sooner (right before or at toe touch) w/ a tee, vs. the delayed rotation that looks to be happening in the gif.
 
May 12, 2016
4,338
113
It looks like her toes are glued to the ground. Its kinda weird. Her back leg bends and then straightens out. TTB. LOL.
Need to see tee swing too. How about front toss? It sorta looks like maybe she want to run before she finishes her swing? Does she hit a lot of GBs?
Agreed, she comes out her swing too early. She looks in good shape, and then doesn't finish her swing
 
Jun 8, 2016
16,118
113
Do an experiment..put 90% of your weight on your front leg and then try and rotate (not that you should try and rotate but for the purposes of this experiment it is ok 😉).. report your findings.
 
Last edited:
Apr 2, 2015
1,198
113
Woodstock, man
14311

This is a very blurry gif, so I am making some assumptions here.

During her stride:
1) she strides with her front leg (bad). Stride with the back leg [this is causing the lunging, the mistiming of the front knee straightening, and resulting hip freeze]
2) she coils OUT as she strides forward (bad). Coil inward as you go forward [this is contributing to the 'hip freeze', and prevents her from hitting outside pitches with authority]


The pic above is at toe touch:
1) You can see her hips already open (bad).
2) Her rear forearm is mostly vertical (bad) This is because she uncoils as she strides, which begins her swing in midair on one foot [it seems like there is some bad bat drag (hands behind the back elbow) after toe touch, which this would cause] [prevents early bat speed or TTB]
3) the bat is not pointed up (it's mostly flat) [preventing early bat speed or TTB]
4) put the hands together in a box grip [most instruction on TV is destructive]

How to fix:
Get in front of a mirror and take your stride, and hold a 45 degree inward coil (hip and shoulder) until landing. Do this for a few days until you get the hang of it. Keep the back heel on the ground as you stride using the back leg.

You don't need to try to 'sit' or 'set' or 'crimp' your hip, or pick your front hip up in the air, or have a certain leg kick, just rotate your torso - it's simple.

Then add in pulling the back elbow like a 'bow', while ensuring the rear forearm is flat at toe touch.

You will be ahead of 99% of kids then.
 
Last edited:
Jun 4, 2014
159
28
During her stride:
1) she strides with her front leg (bad). Stride with the back leg [this is causing the lunging, the mistiming of the front knee straightening, and resulting hip freeze]
2) she coils OUT as she strides forward (bad). Coil inward as you go forward [this is contributing to the 'hip freeze', and prevents her from hitting outside pitches with authority]

Thank you for this reply. I need to break it down in pieces to understand it. What are cues for striding with back leg vs. front leg, or what is the feel? I'm not certain I know what you mean here. Are both of these something to the effect of push with right quad and keep front shoulder down and in? I don't see the hips open at toe touch that you're referring to.

How does "inward coil" relate to scap pinch? Is that just front shoulder down, with scap pinch?

Thanks!
 
Apr 2, 2015
1,198
113
Woodstock, man
posey-coil-stride-catcher-view.gif


This is 'inward coil'. Notice he turns his hip and shoulders inward together to roughly 40-45 deg mark as he strides forward. [alternately, you can start out pre-coiled, but most people can't hold this and they start opening up right away] He holds this coil until his toe is an inch or 2 from toe touch.

The problem with the 'keep your shoulder down' cue is that you can be coiled in, not coiling, or coiling out and do this. It's a bad cue and it's not necessary. Just hold the inward coil and you'll be good. (you obviously must keep your shoulder down, as a result. But as a cue, it's not useful as I mentioned)

'Scap pinch' isn't something you actively do/teach. It happens automatically at instant of uncoil, which would begin in the next frame of the gif. So you don't need to learn/teach scap or uncoil, for that matter. Just hold the coil as long as possible.

As far as the back leg, don't worry about feeling something in the quad or any of that. I've tried all that it doesn't work because you can do it the wrong way and have this feeling. Do it the way I described. Keep the back heel down and stride with the back leg. That's it. (don't 'reach' with the front leg, keep the front knee 'back' - the knee is important not the foot)

You can learn all this in a few days at most. Try it yourself in the mirror, then teach DD.
 
Last edited:
Jun 4, 2014
159
28
Alright, the tee warrior thing is currently a lie. I think there's some improvement in the things you suggested. Let me know if it looks like we're making any progress. It's not yet translating into any downstream progress though. It sure seems like she's way too steep down to the ball. More help please!!20190611_181628.gif
 

Forum statistics

Threads
42,830
Messages
679,475
Members
21,445
Latest member
Bmac81802
Top