Relaxation Techniques

[kgertie]

Following up on Cindy Bristow's excellent Blog post "Can You Actually Try Too Much," I am requesting specific techniques, comments, routines, etc... that you either teach your hitters or have seen good hitters use in order to prepare them to step into the batters box in a relaxed mental and physical manner.

DD's BIGGEST obstacle is not hitting mechanics; it is staying relaxed, confident and loose so she is able to release her bat to the ball as quickly and efficiently as possible. She knows loose muscles are faster than tight muscles but you can tell when she tightens up at the plate.

I thought the Softball Hitting Technical forum is the optimal place for this discussion.

Thanks in advance. Hopefully this thread produces some good options/cues that everyone can suggest and implement to assist their players.

 

[knightsb]

Good question. I would think having a routine (like golfers often talk about) would put the batter in the right mindset and would help focus and make the batter more comfortable at the plate. I have my DD, call time, step out between pitches, check the sign, acknowledge the sign, take a couple practice swings, check her grip (make sure she isn't gripping to tight, and has the bat more in her fingers than palm) re-enter the box...

 

[Mr T]

I'd start on deck with some timing of the pitcher and visualizing awesome hits. Take a deep breath before you step in and let it out. I like rattling the fingers on the bat a time or two to make sure grip isn't tight. Definitely get some rhythm going in the stance, most every MLB player does that. How many kids on a typical youth team do? And between every pitch there has to be a minimal kind of muscle reset, even if it's just standing up for a sec and dropping the bat down.

 

[FiveFrameSwing]

Good subject ... and an important subject as well. Upper body tension is a poison with respect to the swing.

There are multiple relaxation approaches I use .... but first, if you would post a link to the blog, then that would help in terms of giving you more specific replies.

 

[kgertie]

It is on the discussfastpitch.com website under Cindy Bristow's blog so I did not post the link originally.

http://www.discussfastpitch.com/cin...dy-bristow-can-you-actually-try-too-hard.html

 

[FiveFrameSwing]

Okay … I gave the post a quick read.

One of the main goals of the upper body is to be relaxed. That is an important goal in terms of obtaining maximum force generation with the legs & core … and it enables proper momentum transfer between body segments.

 

[FiveFrameSwing]

One point on relaxation involves that of the wrists. As an example, if you recall the video clip of Bustos hitting a mammoth HR in the olympics ... and if you happen to have extended video including the portion as she stepped into the batters box ... then you will see her do a common wrist relaxation drill. This is the same drill that Dr. Chris Yeager teaches to obtain the proper wrist tension/relaxation prior to each pitch. Yeager considers this important enough to actually have a drill for it. If the moderator reads this post, and grants permission to post the GIF of Bustos performing the wrist relaxation drill, then I'll post it ... but basically it is a fairly common wrist relaxation approach used by many good hitters.

Here's Ashley Charters loosening her wrists prior to a pitch .....

Avoiding tension in the upper body is key ... anything that loads the arms prematurely can lead to unloading the arms prematurely ... and can be a contributing factor to powering the swing with the arms/shoulders. A hitter may 'feel' more powerful with their shoulders/arms tensed up ... but that is a 'false feel' ... and that tension is a poison as it pertains to a good swing. When we emphasize an approach of "slow to load" during tee work, we are attempting to maintain a low-tension feel ... ... and any quick 'stretch' ... or a quick loading of the hands/arms ... will adversely introduce tension. As a general rule ... tee swings should have twice the amount of time spent on the load, relative to the unload ... I say that in a general sense ... but once a hitter 'feels' the "slow and smooth gathering of energy" during their tee work, then that 'feel' can be their guide.

 

[Mr T]

I am not the biggest fan of the Candrea videos but this is one topic I think he explains well. What Charters is doing he refers to, I think, as big rhythm. Some MLB players use this. Charters seems to then freeze (could be wrong). When pitcher brings hands together I would keep some small movement going. I think Candrea calls this small rhythm. Nearly every MLB player uses some form of it.

 

[kgertie]

Any focus suggestions or breathing techniques that may be used? Like the video of loosening of the wrists. Will have DD view this post. Thanks FFS.

 

[Mr T]

I just liked to take a deep breath and exhale. That can be done after every pitch if the player likes it.

One thing I forgot to mention that is part of relaxation and focus in the box: the manager should instruct players to ignore any comments from parents and fans. They should not even have assistants in their ear, or even the primary base coach / manager should not overdo instruction and talking at the plate. The manager should be telling overly chatty parents, fans, and assistants to shut up while players are trying to do an extremely difficult task.