Saturday, April 16, 2011

Conditioning and How to Hit a Baseball Farther

By Jeff Wise


To be able to hit a baseball farther, there are several things you must do. One thing that is often overlooked is conditioning. Health is critical if you want to hit better and farther. To play your best, you have to keep your body free from injury throughout the season.

Conditioning should be done year round and taken even more seriously during the off season. As a high school player, my teammates and I would get up well before school and do conditioning drills for about an hour. Then after school we would spend another hour doing weight training.

This routine proved to be beneficial for our team. We were one of the most conditioned teams in our district and we were well known. Each year we went deep into the playoffs and I believe it was mainly due to that year round conditioning. You'll find that the most successful teams are the ones that are the strongest and most conditioned.

The intensity of conditioning depends on the age. Players under the age of 12 shouldn't do anything too strenuous. Running, stretching and other basics like sit-ups and pushups are plenty. But once a player gets older, with approval from parents and a doctor, they should do more supervised training to strengthen the muscles needed for baseball.

It's a good idea to train heavier during the off season by exercising six days a week. Be sure to always take one day off a week to give your body a break. But, conditioning shouldn't end when baseball season begins. Continue a light conditioning and weight training program and you will maintain your strength. Consult with your coaches and parents before starting a program.

When exercising, give attention to the following muscle groups: hamstrings, calves, quadriceps, and upper body muscles like shoulders, chest, back biceps and triceps. Also focus on the core abdomen muscles. Always warm up, cool down and stretch to avoid injury.

Learning how to hit a baseball farther is hard work, but it's also fun work. Make sure you're enjoying your workouts, especially since you know they will make you better on the field and in the batter's box.




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