One way you can increase bat speed is through strength training. Silva believes strength training, "is what separates a player from being able to compete at a high level or not" (Silva 717). Strength training, "helps to prevent injury, increase flexibility, and develop endurance" (Silva 727). Many improvements can be made by working out in the weight room. For hitting specifically, it can help the hitter generate more power and explosiveness, faster bat speed, and better control of specific movements during the swing (Silva 727). Not only does strength training make your muscles stronger, it also builds character. By dedicating themselves to improving their body, it shows commitment in the individual and strong work ethic.
The main muscle groups that are used for hitting are the legs, abs, back, triceps, and forearms (Silva 748). This week in the weight room I did exercises that worked out all of these muscles in order to get in shape and become stronger for baseball season. Specifically, I focused on strengthening my back. Silva says that strengthening your back helps to prevent injury. "From what I have seen, back injuries are the most common injuries because swinging the bat puts a lot of stress on the back" (Silva 839). Not only are strong back muscles good for increasing bat speed but they will also help when you happen to get by a pitch. Below, you can see that I am doing pull-ups in order to strengthen my back muscles.
I believe strength training is very important to becoming a better player. One of my New Year's resolutions was to get in better shape and get stronger. I will continue to commit myself to working out not only for myself but also for the benefit of improving bat speed in my swing.
Q: What kind of exercises do you do in the weight room to improve strength in your body?
Citation: Silva, Troy. 9 Innings of Hitting. Indiana: Dog Ear Publishing, 2013.
Hey Isaac, I really liked your post. Good job! The three main exercises I do to improve strength in my body are squat, bench, and deadlifts. These three work the main three parts of your body and will improve your strength a lot.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the feed back Navi! I can see that those exercises have worked very well for you and I will integrate those exercises into my workout in hopes of building my strength!
DeleteHey Isaac, I think that it is really good that you are getting in the weight room now. Many athletes find it harder to consistently get in the gym and work out. Also, many people don't start to increase their strength until they realize it is too late. To improve strength in my body, I do all of the basic lifts but one thing that helps you get very explosive that many people don't realize is working on your abs. Abs are the core of your body and are what make you stable when performing so working them out hard can lead to preventing lower back injury, hitting harder in baseball, jumping higher in basketball, punching harder in boxing, etc.
ReplyDeleteI agree Matt. The time to start strengthening your body is now and I think making a commitment to the weight room builds character. I have done workouts to strengthen my abs since this post and it has really helped when it comes to improving bat speed. The strength of my abdominal muscles has helped get the bat through the zone faster than before.
DeleteI hate weights (sorry), but I love any exercise that involves using the weight of my body to build strength - I like to work on my core a lot, so I do a lot of planking exercises. I do integrate small weights at times to intensify these workouts.
ReplyDeleteI do plank exercises as well! I do the modified plank and hold it for a minute as a part of my workout. It was difficult at first, but as I've done it more and more it has gotten a lot easier. I am hoping that by the time high school baseball tryouts come around I am able to do the modified plank for 2 minutes.
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