Strength Training Program

Welcome to Discuss Fastpitch

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

Jul 7, 2016
35
0
Is there a good training program out there that anyone has designed for pitching?
We are in a bit of a quandary - DD needs to gain pitching strength (and muscle weight) and although weight training is an option at the local gym for muscle gain, I fear is doesn’t stimulate fast twitch (?).
Our local gym heads dont know squat (no pun intended) about training for sports, so I’d rather go with the peeps here that live this stuff every day and have had positive results.
Quick question to this - can strength and fast twitch be combined?
I’ll pay for a professional program - just need the direction, please.
 
Jun 14, 2018
172
28
My DD is in 6th grade and decided to join the Olympic Weightlifting Club at the school. She started at the beginning of the year and I can already see a huge difference in every aspect of the game for her. Now she does not pitch but I do not see how going in to build strength would hurt a pitcher.
 
Jun 12, 2015
3,848
83
DD just started a strength program (i mean, she started yesterday, so she really JUST started) that we got through someone Denny Tincher recommended. He did an assessment with pictures and videos of her in various stances and activities, and sent us a program based on those. I know very little about this stuff but what he sent us looks good to me. It was not very expensive. This is his website, but I don't see much info about the online option. If you look at the staff page, Robbie is the person we've been working with. Lab Sports Performance | Roanoke, VA 24013
 
May 23, 2015
999
63
Take a strong look at plyometrics, yoga, and functional training. It's something you can do at home and retain your flexibility. Throwing iron is only a tiny part of athletic training
 
Feb 20, 2015
643
0
illinois
I have recommended this before on here, and I still find it useful for anyone wanting strength, flexability, and overall fitness training. The original P90X program. You can find them on the Beach Body website, or you can find some used sets for sale on Ebay, etc. You didn't say age of your DD, so she may not be able to do some of it if she is still very young. There are some weights involved in some of the videos, but a lot of the exercises are body weight, or just fitness band exercises. My favorite video of all of them (there are 8-9 different videos, cantt remember exactly) is the YOGA-X. It is the longest video, at about an hour and 20 minutes, but it will leave you laying in the floor in a pool of sweat. :cool:

Word of caution: the X stands for extreme. These workouts are difficult.. Start slowly. I am too old and have bad knees (second surgery coming up in January) so these videos have passed my abilities by.
 

javasource

6-4-3 = 2
May 6, 2013
1,347
48
Western NY
Quick question to this - can strength and fast twitch be combined?

This is an important understanding in training. They can, but in my experience it's better to know which your DD needs most at this moment in time... as it will always change. One question that is often asked is: "If I find a good program that builds speed in my daughter's pitching... how can we be sure she maintains it?" The static-spring continuum is the best answer, IMO.

All this said... STABILITY NEEDS TO BE ASSESSED AND IN PLACE BEFORE BEGINNING ANY SPEED to STRENGTH PROGRAM!!! Without joint stability, these kinds of programs are a relatively precarious position to put a young student-athlete in - as the risk of injury is relatively high/common.

There really are 4 areas we ought to train IN SOFTBALL... and they all are part of the static-spring continuum. They are:

1) Speed
2) Speed/Strength
3) Strength/Speed
4) Strength

Strength training would be like lifting... high loads (1RM) at slow speeds.
Strength/Speed would be training that involved exercises like olympic lifts... relatively high loads (60-80% of 1RM) at HIGH speeds.
Speed/Strength would be training that involves light weights with an explosive element... like jump squats with a weighted vest.
Speed training would be just what it sounds like... plyo's and the like... exercises that are all about explosive ability.

So, the big question is: which of those 4 do I start my daughter out with?

The only way to know this is to perform a complete assessment on her (assess each of the 4 abilities)... as it's really important to understand where on this continuum she falls. Without that... IMO... your are absolutely wasting time and money.

For example, lots of kids that play soccer and other school sports (tend to) fall in the Speed to Speed/Strength range... as many of our school sports (soccer, track, cross-country, Bball, VBall, etc...) often condition them to this end of the spectrum. For this reason... this is why MANY (not all) kids benefit greatly (initially) from Strength to Strength/Speed training programs... BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT STRONG IN THIS AREA... and the body responds quickly and favorably to the training.

So... hopefully anyone that actually reads this... realizes there are no universal programs. If you meet a trainer that says: this is great for all my softball & baseball athletes and does not do a comprehensive functional assessment on your kid... they are just taking your money.

POINT BEING...

Without a proper (and relatively exhaustive) assessment of your DD... I wouldn't head any advice. It's best to know where the deficit is, before you begin.

I've worked with well over 1,000 kids over the years... and not a single one of them needed the exact same program as the one before her. I put up the Redcord program in the Drive Mechanics sticky - as it is a FUNCTIONAL STABILITY program... and most of the 12-16 yo girls I work with are still growing into their new bodies ... which is why they GREATLY benefit from the enhancement in stability.

Eric Cressey is a smart dude. If you're anywhere near him... I wouldn't think twice about it. Super-smart dude... and is niche is baseball/softball training... AND... he understands the importance of proper assessment before starting a kid... AND... he's all about pre/post testing... something that drives me absolute nuts when this subject comes up.

99.9% of "program referrals" we get from friends/others wouldn't exist if they actually did pre/post testing before vomiting their recommendation into our ears. ;)

(BTW... I'm not ragging on any of the recommended programs... just saying that until someone assesses your kid... there is no way to know how to get the best improvements out of her... which is what you're after)
 
Last edited:
May 18, 2009
1,314
38
I can’t remember which pitcher I was watching but it was either Abbot or Osterman using a medicine ball. She would hold it like it was her glove and ball by her waist/low abdomen. She would load her legs and drive off the rubber and throw the medicine ball to her trainer about 15 feet away. She used this to be more explosive off the rubber. They recommended using lower weight medicine balls and progressing heavier as you become stronger.
 
Jan 18, 2014
5
0
Tennessee
Thank you for the referral Ken. Much appreciated. Our program has been tested for over three years and is being used in high level club teams all the way to Power 5 programs. We definitely pre-test our athletes to ensure any deficiencies are exposed before training begins. Testing is done throughout the program to ensure proper stability, mobility, and strength are achieved to support the movements of the position player/pitcher. Our goal is arm care/maintenance and proper recovery. On Ramping does take place when the athlete is ready.

Each athlete that trains with us using this program has a dedicated plan to follow. Just like Java and Ken B mentioned...there is no one program that will make a perfect pitcher. So many aspects of training and mechanics go into that subject we could all talk for months about it�� Thanks for all the input on this forum! Like minded people sharing like minded goals....to make these athletes healthy and successful!
 

Latest posts

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
42,830
Messages
679,468
Members
21,443
Latest member
sstop28
Top