Toni Paisley & Esia FootDoctor team up

[texasheat]

but I'm not sure if the "juice is worth the squeeze" when it comes to working on this.

IMO It's not. Lots of minutia being discussed here for something when at 100% efficiency accounts for a maximum of 10% of her total velo. So if she is already at 70% efficiency on her drive, how long and often would she have to work to get it to 90%? And for what? An additional 1-2 mph tops. And have I mentioned that there is no pot of gold at the end of this rainbow called girls softball?

if your DD is throwing 58 at 12 yo she's already doing a lot of things right. I wouldn't sweat the minutia of "fully engaged hamstrings......... quad dominant vs glutes............pelvic thrust...yada yada yada". Use that time to instead work on spinning the ball, hitting corners, and an awesome change up. Those will benefit her 1000 times more than an extra couple mph. That's going to come naturally as she gets stronger anyway. That and then some.

 

[Shawn]

What DVD or program has anyone purchased on these instructors?

I found several options, just wondering what everyone is buying.

 

[TonyK]

What DVD or program has anyone purchased on these instructors?

I found several options, just wondering what everyone buying.

I went with Rick Pauly's High Performance Pitching online courses. Good stuff.

 

[ArmWhip]

Curious how much force from the leg drive do you think gets transferred into the actual arm whip? My DD rocks into her motion and honestly has a fairly weak leg drive. She's 12 and has clocked at 58 at pitching lessons (off pocket radar, and I have no idea how accurate that is, but she is consistently at 56 to 57 on it) so I'm hesitant to mess with her too much.

I do find this topic interesting and I find what the Foot Doc. is saying makes a lot of sense, but I'm not sure if the "juice is worth the squeeze" when it comes to working on this.

I agree with the others, if she has that kind of velocity I would work in other areas, she can always fine tune the leg drive when she gets older.

 

[jdint]

Wow, 58 at 12 that is impressive! My DD is 12 as well. She has pretty solid mechanics but has been 44-45 for awhile (also measured with Pocket Radar). If you don't mind sharing what are a couple of traits you contribute your DD's speed too?

Honestly, I have no idea. She's on the bigger size at 5'-7" tall, but not huge by any means. According to her, the big jump in velocity came from focusing on picking up speed throughout the arm circle rather than trying to rotate the arm quickly all the way around. Focusing on really whipping the ball from the 9 o'clock position and actually eliminating some of her leg drive, or at least not "actively trying" to drive out hard. More of a slow and go motion.

The other thing is, this speed isn't always there, especially in games. She slows down considerably when a batter gets in the box and she doesn't throw as freely.

Here is pic. I posted from last year when she hit 57, so hopefully I don't come across as "that dad".

 

[texasheat]

Honestly, I have no idea. She's on the bigger size at 5'-7" tall, but not huge by any means. According to her, the big jump in velocity came from focusing on picking up speed throughout the arm circle rather than trying to rotate the arm quickly all the way around. Focusing on really whipping the ball from the 9 o'clock position and actually eliminating some of her leg drive, or at least not "actively trying" to drive out hard. More of a slow and go motion.

Interesting. Wonder what eliminating some of the leg drive accomplished with her? did it allow her to stay stacked better?

 

[jdint]

Interesting. Wonder what eliminating some of the leg drive accomplished with her? did it allow her to stay stacked better?

Yes, I think that is some of it. She's always had a tendency to scrunch anyway, so driving out hard exacerbated that tendency.

 

[radness]

Yes, I think that is some of it. She's always had a tendency to scrunch anyway, so driving out hard exacerbated that tendency.

good technical word 'scrunch'

 

[765Seth]

Honestly, I have no idea. She's on the bigger size at 5'-7" tall, but not huge by any means. According to her, the big jump in velocity came from focusing on picking up speed throughout the arm circle rather than trying to rotate the arm quickly all the way around. Focusing on really whipping the ball from the 9 o'clock position and actually eliminating some of her leg drive, or at least not "actively trying" to drive out hard. More of a slow and go motion.

The other thing is, this speed isn't always there, especially in games. She slows down considerably when a batter gets in the box and she doesn't throw as freely.

Here is pic. I posted from last year when she hit 57, so hopefully I don't come across as "that dad".

View attachment 21054

So far, this has been the great light bulb moment for my DD and myself. For now, she had decreased the distance she travels on her drive because her circle was too long and almost leaving the arm and ball behind when she was at 9 o'clock almost pushing the ball. Now with the shorter drive, my DD has been working on the small circle and accelerating/pulling her elbow to get the brush and whip. You can go to bragging camp about that pic all day long!

 

[mel77]

I think the emphasis on proper leg drive (and engaging other muscles) is not just about gaining a few mph but using proper form to result in less injury. Worth it in my opinion.