What is your pre-game team warmup?

[sluggers]

There is a discussion in another thread about whether a particular drill is bad as a warm up. Fine...but what should the team warm up consist of?

This is mine. I'm not suggesting it is perfect or should be used as a model. I'm open to criticism or suggestions to improve it.

(1) As kids arrive, they start playing pitch and catch. The distance is about 30 feet. This is more like "play" at first. As soon as everyone gets there, the kids bring the intensity level of this up and they start moving back to maybe 40 to 50 feet. (Now that I think of it...I don't say anything to them and I never have. They just do it.)
(2) When everyone is there, they do a jog around the field.
(3) Team stretching.
(4) Soft toss or some other batting drills.
(5) Fielding at specific positions.

Ray

 

[CoachC]

1. Slow jog around the field
2. Dynamic w/u, takes about 5 min
3. Static stretches if needed, specific to the girl
4. Overhand throwing w/u, starting off knee, progressing to 30'. Outfielders will go longer, infielders will do quick exchanges
5. Batting. Wiffles - front toss only
6. Bunts using softballs. Sacrifice, bunt for base hit...
7. Pitchers and catchers go through batting first and spend remaining time on pitchers w/u.
8. Fielding, short line (1st, 3rd, P), medium line (2nd, SS), outfield

 

[sluggers]

What is "dynamic w/u"?

 

[CoachC]

Sorry for the confusion.

Dynamic warm up, dynamic stretching.
Lunges,
Hip with external rotation,
High knee walk,
Inverted hamstrings...

 

[SnocatzDad]

1. Static Stretching (also known as chat time)
2. 60' * 2 High Knees, Butt Kicks, Carioca, Sprint, Sprint
3. Throwing progression
15' Dart throws
15' Flips
40' light
40' hard
60' light
60' hard
80' with hop
4. Drop-step drill (face thrower drop step run away from thrower, catch fly ball on the run)
5. two stations hitting (pitchers and catchers first)
Soft toss
Front Toss ( sometimes both front toss )
--- Pitcher and catcher warm up
6. Bunt Circle ( pitcher and catcher will do after done warming up if time)
7. Grounders at the field.

I don't like kids throwing at all before they get their blood pumping. We started this routine in January at Dome ball and I haven't had a muscle pull or similar in 6 months for these kids, one kid came back to the team from HS ball with a bum knee, but otherwise they have been healthy (knock on wood).

 

[SBFAMILY]

Coach C . Mine is almost the same. Dynamic warmup , I learned from team USA. It is a way to fire the muscle and nerves before you allow kids to stretch or use any muscle group that is not warmed up. If you talk to many sport therapists, what we were taught to stretch first was not correct. Many college camps also practice the Dynamic warmup.

 

[Amy in AZ.]

1. Wander into dugout with bag. Go back to car.
2. Come back eating pizza.
3. Put on one cleat. Yell that you can't find your other cleat. Mom comes into dugout.
4. Turn off cell phone. Yell at mom to come get cell phone.
5. Ask if anyone has a hair tie.
6. Remove cleats, because you forgot to put on your sliding pads.
7. Drink water.
8. Ask who has your glove. Ask mom if she has your glove. Discover that it is in the other car.
9. Announce that someone else will need to pitch because you threw 7 innings of Little League last night.

 

[Coach Lia]

start with: light jog (distance of two bases)
light jog with arm rotation
skips
side shuffle
carioca
then: dynamic stretches
then: high knees
butt kicks
straight leg runs
backpedal
cone cuts
grounder movements
outfield run
then: softball skill drills

 

[go4fpsb]

Amy, That was spot on for half my girls. You need to throw in a "I need to call my mom because I left my cleats in the back seat after last night's game and forgot to put them in my bat bag."
When I coach school ball and have a larger team(15-17) this is mine.
1) Jog around the outfield once and then around the infield.
2)Do high skips, lunges, shuffles, etc.
3)Start throwing by doing the warm ups from Jeagers "Thrive on Throwing" program.
4)Start throwing overhand at 40'. Big outfielder throws that use the body and move that out to about 80' in a couple of steps. About ten throws each at each length.
5)Then I split the team into two groups, starting infield and extra pitchers and catchers and all outfielders with everyone else. That's splits them evenly.
6) Starting infield group goes to the hitting stations that I have set up. Includes front pitch with wiffles, side toss into net with dimpled balls, off tee into net and front toss softballs to bunt, etc.
7) Outfield group goes with me to outfield for flyballs, grounders, flyballs to gaps, all the while hitting a relay player with a bucket.
8)Once we are done the outfield goes to the hitting stations and infield takes infield prior to the game. The starting battery warms up while my other pitcher and catcher works with the infield or reversed depending upon if we are home or visitors.
9)Time to play.

 

[jofus13]

Mine is similar to Amy's, except with more whining because I actually have the audacity to make them run a little