10 Critical Keys To Maintaining Your Performance During The Season

With the season just around the corner, we wanted to share with you a valuable resource from one of the foremost experts in the field of professional baseball strength training, David Constant, BA, CSCS, CPT.

When talking about the role of strength training in baseball you must understand the importance of strength training to you the baseball athlete.  Baseball is a sport that almost entirely relies on maximum strength and power production.  We all know what strength is but what is power? Power development is a product of strength and speed.  So the stronger you are the greater the potential to create power.  The more powerful you are the harder you can throw and hit a baseball, accelerate to first and run the bases, and the faster you can react and get to a baseball.  So as you can see a comprehensive strength training program is key to maximizing your athletic performance as a baseball player.

After all the hard work you put in this off-season, it is extremely important that you try to maintain the strength you gained during the competitive season. The long season can lead to fatigue, loss of strength, loss of power, and a subsequent decrease in performance and an increased risk of injury.  Regular strength training during season will help to minimize these potential pitfalls.

10  KEYS TO STRENGTH TRAINING THIS SEASON:

• Workouts should last no longer than 30 minutes. This will minimize fatigue.

• You should work out after games or on off days so you’re on field performance is not affected

• Workouts should be high intensity but low volume. This means 2 to 3 sets of 4 to 8 reps. Make sure that you are using a challenging weight.

• Try to get in 2 to 3 workouts per week

• Utilize compound multi joint movements such as squats, lunges, dead-lifts, chest press, pull-ups, and rows.

• Organize your exercises into a circuit type program utilizing opposing muscle groups. An example would be performing your dead-lifts with your squats and performing the chest press with the pull-ups. Make sure to take 2 to 2.5 minutes rest between exercises. So if you are doing a chest press with the pull-ups, after your set of chest you will need to perform your pull-ups and be back to the chest press within the 2 minute time period.

• Make sure that you have great technique; the exercise is only as good as the execution!!

• The down phase of the lift should be slower and controlled the up phase should be powerful.

• Don’t over train, the goal is to maintain your strength not increase it during the long season.

• Get plenty of rest and eat right. This will help limit fatigue and maximize recovery.