Cannonball
Ex "Expert"
- Feb 25, 2009
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Why do college programs have strength coaches?
Should physical strength be measured
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My dd’s coaches from 16u on did fitness testing. Pushups in 2 minutes. Crunches in 2 minutes. They asked the girls to do certain body weight exercises 3 times a week. Plus they did strength training as part of hitting practice during the winter.
I have to believe that many kids show up to campus without ever doing any real strength training. They probably get an introduction in HS, but it's not the same once they get to college. That's where you see real gains. DD put on 30-40 lbs when she was in college. Much of that has to do with genetics as a late bloomer. That's my fault.
I graduated college 6'2" 160 lbs. At graduation I was 190. Now I'm 235. 12oz curls!
Cannonball
Ex "Expert"
- Feb 25, 2009
- 4,980
- 113
My dd lived in the weight room and the trainer worked with her all year long. She went to workout with the trainer during the summer since we lived close enough for her to do so. She started a lifting program very early on using PVC piping filled with sand.
Cannonball
Ex "Expert"
- Feb 25, 2009
- 4,980
- 113
Perhaps my brevity was misunderstood. When your dd gets to college, they will be expected to know their way around the weight room.
The best time to start addressing strength and athleticism, imho, is today, no matter how old you are. Everybody can get stronger, and a stronger athlete is a better athlete. At the younger end, floating a small dose of bodyweight movements, calisthenics and hill sprints into practice sessions and doing just a few good reps pays big dividends over time. It is surprising how many male and female athletes in HS and college struggle with bodyweight squats, pushups and pullups, from both form and strength perspectives. Once an athlete establishes a foundation of strength and competency with the movements, exercises can start to be loaded. A good S&C coach is very valuable. One of the biggest values is being able to program workouts and long-term, goal-oriented programs that are sport and skill specific, so the strength and mobility that is developed actually can show up on the field, court, etc. It's great if a coach can get athletes bigger and stronger, but improved performance and durability is what you're really looking for out of S&C. Mobility is also an important piece of the puzzle, and good S&C coach will focus on mobility as important components of the overall program.
Good read! @steve1244
Just came in the house from doing some heavy yard work. Where I was doing some very heavy full Scoops with the shovel. Quite a few actually
where when I came in the house felt the workout I just put myself through. 
It reminded me back in the day when I played in college,
i worked for state park maintenance on the beach. Graveyard shift. Cleaned the beach. Scooped out fire rings and picked trash amongst other duties with tractors dumping dumpsters.
Remember working in steel toe boots, walking up and down the beach in the sand, could feel my legs getting a workout. Could feel them strengthening. Step push, Step push.
Remember shoveling scooping digging out nails and glass from fire pits. Shoulders, arm, hand strength hour after hour. Strenuous work during my off season!
Ready to go at the start of the year with light cleats and a firm dirt surface! Even those old heavy aluminum bats were no match for a loaded shovel!Ps
yes i like all the Rocky movies!!
Last edited:
- May 17, 2012
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There is no correlation between strength and winning percentage in baseball (or softball). Sure it can help the individual at some basic level but it's so far down the list it's with eating vegetables and getting a good night's sleep.
This may be true in almost any other sport but in baseball and softball? It just doesn't matter a whole lot, this is a skill-based sport.
Speed and agility are more beneficial to the softball player than weight training.
This may be true in almost any other sport but in baseball and softball? It just doesn't matter a whole lot, this is a skill-based sport.
Speed and agility are more beneficial to the softball player than weight training.
So are you saying that no team will benefit from their entire team weight training?
or is that just a reminder that winning has other factors. Yes I agree winning has other factors.
However individual Player Development is part of those factors.
Find
Tons and tons of stuff that supports how muscle strength and development is an asset and beneficial to athletes.
1 link of many. This one mentions how muscle strength development can promote running sprinting and directional movements. That is directly in line with how you would prefer to see a runner's speed. That development of speed is a good reason to train for speed ... that speed you're looking for
The Importance of Muscular Strength in Athletic Performance - PubMed
This review discusses previous literature that has examined the influence of muscular strength on various factors associated with athletic performance and the benefits of achieving greater muscular strength. Greater muscular strength is strongly associated with improved force-time...
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Last edited:
- May 17, 2012
- 2,858
- 113
I said there was no correlation between winning and weight training in baseball or softball. I didn't comment on whether weight training was beneficial to an athlete.
It's like asking if a player flosses their teeth often enough is important. Flossing is important but it's not correlated to winning.
There are a lot of attributes that go into making a winning softball player but the ability to lift heavy things isn't one of them. It's like saying I need all my golfers to deadlift 300 lbs.
Let's rephrase. If you are building the perfect softball player how far down the list do you have to go before you see "weight training"? It's pretty far down.
