Lunging & Weight Balance
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- May 7, 2009
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We did a ton of high "T" hitting and it helped alot. With the "T"up a little they will sit back and drive thru the ball. They do at times need to be riminded why the "T" is sitting a little higher...
- May 7, 2009
- 9
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Also make sure they locked the front leg hard. That will keep the weight up and not let the weight transfer escape out the front from lunging...
Ya, don't coach High SchoolSoftball, LOL!
Kidding aside, T drills waist high work for me. Have them hit the ball into the open field so they can see how the ball travels as they correct their swing. Have them Lock the front knee after the toe tap and make them roll up on their back toe in the follow through. This always get my girls back on track. Two or three buckets of this a day until it's fixed.
Kidding aside, T drills waist high work for me. Have them hit the ball into the open field so they can see how the ball travels as they correct their swing. Have them Lock the front knee after the toe tap and make them roll up on their back toe in the follow through. This always get my girls back on track. Two or three buckets of this a day until it's fixed.
Thats is really not alot of information to go off of. Keeping the weight back is not good and neither is lunging. They are never to old to start from the beginning, balance, weight shift, throwing, hitting. I hope Howard responds to this, I am sure he has alot of his posts saved so he can easily paste the appropriate one. Until then, take some time and read through the hitting threads and read anything by hitter that pertains to balance, weight shift and overhand throw and how it relates to hitting. You mention keeping weight back, it must go foward at some point. Sorry to be so simplistic but hitting has to be a journey and this is a good place to start.
Mike
BTW, there are many great contributors on here besides Howard. I am just saying that Howards advice on getting started have been the most helpful for me. And again they are never to old to take back to the beginning.
Mike
BTW, there are many great contributors on here besides Howard. I am just saying that Howards advice on getting started have been the most helpful for me. And again they are never to old to take back to the beginning.
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The Epstein system is the most effective I have found in stopping lunging.
There are just a few very simple drills.
First is the torque drill which teaches how the swing is driven by torso stretch/separation.
then there is the numbers drill which includes winding the rubberband and "drop ant tilt" which both stop lunging and teaches the swing as primarily being about adjusting on the fly as opposed to a "standard swing" approach.
The success rate is much better with this system if the student/teacher have/teach a good overhand throw.
Among other things, the throwing action emphasizes how you still need to get off the back side even when you stop lunging in the swing.
There are just a few very simple drills.
First is the torque drill which teaches how the swing is driven by torso stretch/separation.
then there is the numbers drill which includes winding the rubberband and "drop ant tilt" which both stop lunging and teaches the swing as primarily being about adjusting on the fly as opposed to a "standard swing" approach.
The success rate is much better with this system if the student/teacher have/teach a good overhand throw.
Among other things, the throwing action emphasizes how you still need to get off the back side even when you stop lunging in the swing.
I would have to agree with Tom. I would say that Epstein built much of his system with the thought of fixing lunging during an era when linear hitting was being taught at most levels. It's pretty much a given that his Torque and Numbers drills will fix lunging. However, I would advise anyone using his system to do additional research on weight shift, and as Tom mentions, the overhand throw and how it relates to hitting.
Mike
We teach how to throw first as we notice most of the girls have not been taught how to throw for some reason. I wonder why that is?
Why is it most girls are hitting over their front leg?
Why is it when they throw the back foot does not release?
The issue is weight transfer or the lack there of. When you see a hitter step flat on the foot the weight transfer stops unless she is real athletic. Lovie Jung gets away with it however look closely at her hip action to compensate for stepping flat footed.
So why is it when we step to throw the girls do not step on the ball of their foot or flex the knee.
Many of you will not agree however it is a fact the males glutes fire the knee differently in the male verses the female. We have to teach the females how to flex the knee so they can feel it.
Many of you keep wondering why the girls are so upper body dominant.....because you male coaches do not understand how they work compared to us so why don't you teach them!
Just show them a video and then tell them to do it and some of you think that works!
I have then step to throw and bring their throwing hand over and I grasp the index and social finger and gently pull them and they either resist or come forward.
If they do not come forward I suggest are you on the ball of your foot?
Is your knee flexed?
Is your nose over your toes?
Then they glide forward with no effort.
See it, feel it and fix it!
It is the same thing with hitting, slow to load and soft to step on a flexed front knee landing more on the inside edge of the foot so the baby toe is basically off the ground and the foot is angled at about 45 to 50 degrees. The hands separate rearward slightly or you can think of walking away from the hands.
When you decide to swing the back elbow begins to lower and your weight should be inside your back leg and not over it or maybe another way to look at is to not have you knee stacked over the foot and to think your knee is inside your foot at an angle.
I teach to think in terms of the the weight inside the back knee and driving or thrusting from the big toe area to gain the initial movement and the more rotationally after that. This gives the hitter a feeling of flowing to the ball and not the traditional load, step stop and rotate! The pitcher never stops in their movement in softball and our hitter should not either.
Heel plant does not have to be forced as it will happen naturally provided you never stop your weight shift. If you land flat footed or did not let the knex flex you will fight this forever!
When we teach throwing the last thing we do is the ball in the hands drill with lead hand index finger interlocked to the top hand baby finger and the ball in the top hand.
I stand with my left foot up against the back foot of the thrower/ hitter and tell them to prepare to hit and think slow to load and soft to step and separate the hands rearward and land on a flexed knee and keep the hands interlocked and throw the ball AND they get it and the bug squish stops and the flexed knee and weight shift happens and then I put them on a tee to encourage and build the swing from their.
Thanks Howard
Hitter Heel plant does not have to be forced as it will happen naturally provided you never stop your weight shift. If you land flat footed or did not let the knex flex you will fight this forever! Thanks Howard[/QUOTE said:
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FiveFrameSwing
Banned
Howard ... I enjoyed reading what you had to say about "weight shift".
Would appreciate it if you would review what Rudy Jaramillo has to say on the topic in the link below. What do you think of his recommendation to think of the rear foot & rear knee being "jointed together" ... almost seems to "squish the bug" while some small forward momentum.
Would appreciate it if you would review what Rudy Jaramillo has to say on the topic in the link below. What do you think of his recommendation to think of the rear foot & rear knee being "jointed together" ... almost seems to "squish the bug" while some small forward momentum.
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