Conditioning The Pitcher For Power On DVD
What Every Pitcher Ought To Know About How To Build Functional Strength And Explosive Power So They Are Fit To Pitch While Reducing The Risk Of Injury
How To Condition A Pitcher For Strength, Power And Flexibility So His Body Is Able To Feel And Support The Functional Movements Required For A Quality Delivery With Good Mechanics
"Without a doubt the education and technical instruction that tomorrow's pitching generation receive through the Dick Mills Explosive Instructional Program is the finest available. I am excited to see that the focus is not solely on the mechanical aspects of pitching and that the program integrates the importance of proper flexibility, balance and functional strength to improve performance while reducing the risk of injury."
Mike Clark, MS, PT, PES, IMT, CSCS, Vice President, National Academy Of Sport Medicine
Mike Clark has trained hundreds of professional baseball players including Giants lefty pitcher Barry Zito
"First off thanks for taking the time to give me some advice about pitching and a workout program. The results are truly amazing, I guarantee I have picked up at least 5 mph on my fastball, and overall just feel more fluid throwing."
Mike Masters, 20 year old college player, Los Gatos,CA
Dear Valued Client,
What's wrong with most high school pitchers who have good mechanics but still can't throw hard? It always comes down to one thing - they lack explosive power or good general fitness because they think that training in the weight room will build strength and stamina? Nothing could be further from the truth.
The fact is just working in the weight room is actually training the body to be slow... when pitching is one of the most explosive movements in sports.
Imagine a pitcher trying to pitch to the best of his ability with only half the tools needed to succeed? Up until now, pitchers of all ages were trying to be successful by trying to build a strong arm or worse yet were trying to get stronger by going into the weight room and working out like a football player. Or wasting time throwing weighted baseballs that have been around for over 30 years with little overall success. Some pitchers were doing little or nothing.
And the results today are showing up as sore arms, pitching below their full potential or even serious arm injuries at the Little League level. We now know that pitchers whether they are 10 years old or college age, need what is now referred to as good functional strength and fitness with functional flexibility.
However, for Little League age kids, we only recommend the conditioning program if they are not playing other sports. Otherwise we feel that playing other sports is more important for building their overall motor skills which will actually help them for baseball. Plus how much time will they have for conditioning if they are playing other sports?
What we emphasize is strengthening the movement...not the muscles since pitching is a movement skill not a strength activity.
The Effects Of Poor Functional Strength And Flexibility
Without functional strength and flexibility, pitchers not only risk injury but they are unable to maximize their throwing mechanics. This lack of functional strength and flexibility shows up in just about every youth and high school pitcher as well as many college and pro pitchers And it adversely effects their overall throwing mechanics and their ability to throw harder with better control.
How does a pitcher's lack of functional strength effect overall mechanics?
It shows up as poor balance and posture, they can't transfer their weight properly, they have trouble landing on a braced front leg, they can't fully extend at the hips, they aren't able to transfer linear momentum into rotational forces, they open up too soon, they can't flex their trunk forward and down, or they constantly complain of a sore arm.
Basically they are not able to use their lower body and trunk to deliver their pitching arm like a whip.
What kind of injuries are we seeing at the youth levels because of a lack of functional strength and flexibility? According to orthopedic surgeon and youth baseball coach, Dr. Ralph Saltzer, from ages 9-13 you will find most injuries to the elbow. This was all revealed during an interview I did with Dr. Saltzer last fall in my Pitching Success newsletter. (NOTE: The interview is available on my website in our section of Articles.
Says Dr. Saltzer, "the cause is flexibility problems all the way up from hamstrings and hips to the shoulder internal rotators. The tight hip flexors and hamstrings change the pelvic tilt. So they pull on the pelvis." And guess what this lack of strength and flexibility can cause - the pitcher to open up too soon. And it can cause back pain and a lack of trunk flexion.
What does Dr. Saltzer recommend to eliminate these problems? Core stabilization. Out of 50 kids he checked during last year's fall ball, only 2 had good core stability and flexibility. And that effects throwing mechanics, increases risk of injury and prevents the pitcher from pitching to the best of his ability.
What's Wrong With Too Much Weight Training?
Remember you must be very careful with weight training. Too much of the wrong type of weight training can cause muscle imbalances, effect overall throwing mechanics, create flexibility problems and lead to injury.
And for the older pitcher, high school or college this lack of good functional and core strength with flexibility can show up as shoulder and elbow problems. You can use the off-season to help pitchers of all ages develop good core and functional strength as well as flexibility with our complete Functional Strength and Flexibility program. Our program is designed for pitchers of all ages. It's all about getting stronger so the pitcher gains more power by moving specific muscles in correct sequence with proper timing. Training the muscles this way is called "sequential joint action" which is how a pitcher can add forces together to produce maximum power with less stress.
Why Pitchers Should Not Stretch Before Pitching?
In 2005 a new sports science study was completed regarding the value of stretching before pitching. And despite what coaches still advise at all levels of baseball, the study proved that stretching before pitching is harmful. Not only does it reduce pitching velocity but it also leads to more injuries because stretching loosens the connective tissue around the shoulder, elbow, hip and knee joints.
What we are now advising pitchers to do before throwing or pitching is to do a dynamic warm-up, then begin throwing while building both intensity and volume of pitches until the pitcher is throwing game speed.
If a pitcher, or position player as well, feels they need to do some stretching, it should always be done after games or practice but never before.
We strongly believe that stretching is creating more and more injuries in baseball along with the overemphasis on weight training.
How And Why We Developed This New Program For Pitchers?
My wife Ginny started a conditioning program for my son Ryan and other high school freshman baseball players in the fall of 1992. Ginny is certified by the American College Of Sports Medicine as a health and fitness instructor. Ginny has been a fitness instructor since 1984 and has a B.S. degree in food science and nutrition and over 20 years experience in hospital and private practice nutrition counseling.
Ginny studied everything she could get her hands on regarding plyometrics - especially much of the upper body plyometrics and medicine ball training that conditioning guru Vern Gambetta had brought to the Chicago White Sox back in the late eighties. And way back in 1996 we attended our first Baseball Injuries seminar at the American Sports Medicine Institute in Birmingham, Alabama where world renown orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews resides. At that point we realized that traditional strength and conditioning for baseball was changing radically. So we decided to jump on board as it made so much sense.
Since that first seminar in 1996 we have since attended 9 more seminars with the emphasis on functional training and flexibility as a means of helping baseball pitchers reach peak performance while reducing the risk of injury. We also credit the American College Of Sports Medicine, National Strength And Conditioning Association, National Academy Of Sports Medicine, along with Mike Clark, PT, CSCS, Al Russell, CSCS, and Paul Chek, MSS, HHP, NMT.
Conditioning The Pitcher For Power And Flexibility - On DVD
This Most complete and up to date system on conditioning the pitcher available today
We have developed this conditioning system designed specifically for pitchers of all ages. This is exactly the same type of training that many major league conditioning coaches are now using at the professional and big league level. Why? Because it just plain makes sense.
Originally we had written a conditioning manual in 1998. I believe it was the first complete conditioning manual specifically for baseball pitchers. However, we learned this new information about two years later and felt the conditioning manual was just not complete enough. Plus we feel that it is very important to see the exercises performed so you know whether the pitcher is using proper form and technique. He also needs to fully understand what it looks like to perform an explosive movement. At what speed should the body should be moving and at what intensity level. So we have since taken the conditioning manual out of print.
Keep this in mind. A pitcher can have good mechanics and still not be able to maximize his potential because his body is not trained specifically for pitching. Our program stresses how to functionally train the body so that every muscle that is used in pitching will respond "explosively" when called on so that it provides all the contractile and stabilization strength. It is the stretching ability of the muscles that really provides the power in the pitch. It's this ability that can make the difference between a mediocre and dominating fastball.
Just ask yourself this question? Can I afford not to give my son the needed instruction and tools that will help him not only perform to the best of his ability, to pitch with more confidence but to help him reduce his risk of injury?
The fact is that most pitchers are waiting too long because parents think they have all the time in the world to develop. What we have found is that ages 10-13 are the ideal ages to build that foundation so that later on you won't have so many problems. And once your pitcher reaches high school - time is running out.
Remember you cannot develop a quality delivery without explosive functional strength and flexibility. And without quality mechanics no amount of strength training will help. You need both functional strength and mechanics to develop more velocity while reducing the risk of injury.
Here's what you get:
Conditioning The Pitcher For Power on two (2) DVD's
This includes three hours of video of all the functional and explosive movements designed specifically for pitchers. You will see all the medicine ball and lower body plyometric exercises plus all the arm exercises recommended by top sports physical therapists. Nothing is left out.
When pitchers complete these off-season workouts they are fit to pitch an entire season while only needing two 20-30 minute booster sessions per week during the season.
Free Bonuses:
Bonus #1: - Two Free 1 Hr Audio CD's on how to use and maximize the benefits of the complete program plus why functional strength and flexibility are so important for better overall pitching performance.
Bonus #2: - Complete Day To Day Off-Season Schedules. If the pitcher is in high school or college he will receive the 4 day a week - twelve week routine to get him game ready for the season . This is a fifty page booklet that shows you exactly which exercises to do "each day" during your off-season program. It also contains an in-season workout specifically for pitchers who want to stay strong all during the season.
Free support by phone or online.
If the pitcher is ages of 9-13 he will also receive a 3 day a week - ten week routine that is a toned down version of the high school/college program which should take no more than 30 minutes.
On sale now! $97 plus $9.95 shipping
These daily schedule booklets are 40 pages and also contains the in-season workout and the pre-bullpen routine. This schedule can also be used for high school or college if they only want to do a three day routine.
These schedules list exactly which exercises to do in what order on what day. And all of the exercises are referenced as to where you will find them in the manual or in each video. No more guesswork
Sincerely,
Dick Mills
P.S. Remember, pitching is not about strength. It is about speed. It is about how to move the body faster so more force can be put into throwing that 5 oz ball. Pitchers who work in the weight room might get stronger but little of that strength is useable when trying to throw a baseball.
