Complacency is the enemy of progress

After throwing last week, I decided to focus a little more on weight training, yoga, and swimming.  I think that swimmming is tremendous exercise and very low impact.  It is also wonderful for developing the upper body in a balanced way, and therefore very good for pitchers. 

So my wonderful athletes have been going out there and doing amazing things.  They have been accomplishing so much, not just in terms of statistics, but also in terms of being team leaders and role models.  Most great athletes don't realize how much younger girls model themselves after them, and that is both a tremendous responsibility and wonderful opportunity.  Younger girls will try to emulate your mechanics, your attitude, and essentially everything about you.  They will follow you in the paper and keep track of your statistics.  I remember that when I was first learning to pitch, my dad took me to see Danielle Henderson, and I wanted to be just like her.  I also wanted desperately to pitch against her, since I am psychotic like that and always wanting to play against the best.  When she first went off to college and came home to help at clinics, I drilled her with questions about what she liked most about pitching at school, how she felt she increased her speed the most, what pitches she learned, etc.  To this day it amazes me that this great Olympic athlete was not only an inspiration to me growing as a pitcher, but she is also a very, very dear friend.   How lucky am I?

So this brings us to a more challenging note.  When you are dominating, and striking girls out left and right, how do you keep from becoming complacent?  I have some wonderful athletes who are doing great in their respective seasons, but whom I feel are not really utilizing all of their assets.  This is not an easy thing to address, but I think that the most effective way to address it is to try and set up a means of objective evaluation.  For example, the wonderfully talented Catherine Havens has been having her mom film her games for years.  She then takes some time the day after the game to evaluate the things that she did well, and the things that she could improve upon.  I think that this keeps her incredibly strong and consistent throughout her season.  It is almost like you are competing against yourself in a way, constantly striving to be better.  I joke that I need to take a lesson from Catherine because she has become so incredible at emphasizing the good and adjusting the bad.  This is a girl who will be a tremendous asset to whatever college is lucky enough to have her.  For other girls who don't want to film their games, I ask them to do a quick evaluation of each pitch on the bus ride home.  Also, note how your speed was and how it has been in general.  We want our accomplishments to be meaningful and wonderful, but we don't want to rest on our laurels.   When we all compete from forty-three feet over the summer, we want to be prepared for the better competition.  When we showcase, we want to really give the coaches something to look at.  Challenge yourself gently and you will find you are often up to the challenge.  If you become complacent, you will find yourself in for a rude awakening when the true competitors come to call. 

Working through the tough spots

Ever since I started throwing again, I feel as though I have been improving little by little each time.  Today, I kind of felt more like I was stuck in quicksand.  My speed wasn't as good, and I just felt wiped out.  My drop and change were very strong, but I didn't even really throw for a very long time.  I did do a bit over five miles yesterday, which might have something to do with it, but I thought that this would be a good opportunity to discuss some challenges that we face as pitchers.  Working hard is a very good investment, but it doesn't usually pay off right away, and we sometimes suffer setbacks.  Injuries, exhaustion, not connecting with your coach or instructor, and even just having a bad day are all factors.

So how do we work through these difficulties, especially if it comes at a bad time (like playoffs or while a college coach is watching)?  This is where mental toughness separates the good pitchers from the great.  A lack of mental toughness makes some girls quit altogether.  I have seen girls who far surpassed their peers in skill at a younger level and then couldn't take the pressure or the level of commitment required at the higher level.  Even if you don't see the fruits of your practice labors paying off immediately, you must know that practicing in general will train your body to better perform the right movements in high-pressure situations.  The only exception to this rule is if you are practicing with incorrect mechanics or if you are not connecting well with your coach and therefore not understanding what you need to accomplish in practice.  Otherwise, if you are not having a successful practice in one area of your pitching (like speed), redirect your attention to another area where you might excel on that particular day.  For example, if your speed is off, your rise will probably not work very well, but drop and change will be a good place to focus your energy.  This will keep you from feeling discouraged and will give you a sense of accomplishment.  Over time, it will help mental toughness, because you feel as though you can do well even when you don't have "your best stuff."

If you are not throwing well because you are exhausted physically (mentally is a whole separate issue), then be very careful.  I find that this typically tends to be a precursor to injury.  If you are practicing and feeling a little tired, keep your pitch count low, and make sure to stretch well and ice afterwards.  In games, I think that it is best to keep your coach abreast of your level of exhaustion.  When I was in high school, my coaches would have to drag me out of the game.  I didn't care if I was so tired that I could barely hold the ball.  I wanted in!  As I got older, I realized this was a  good way to get hurt and also a very selfish thing to do for my team.  If it was a close game and I gave up big hits because of exhaustion, I wasn't doing them any favors.  In my last few years playing, if I felt like I was running out of steam, I simply let my coach know "I feel like I am slowing down a little" or "my movement isn't as good as it was in the first few innings."  He would then warm up a reliever.  I stayed healthy and we won almost all of those games. 

To figure out when exhaustion really does set in for windmill pitchers, we are working on our muscle fatigue study.  Today, we will be measuring Bella after her game against MacArthur.  We are hoping to finish up all of our test subjects before the fall so that we can send in the data to Lenox Hill at that point.  Very exciting stuff and I will keep you posted.  Until then, keep your spirits high even if you have a rough day.  Always keep your long-term goals in sight and stay healthy!  

Get into the groove!

First of all, I am very excited to announce my first published article in Baseball Player Magazine.  It is hard to decide if I am more excited about that or having the wonderful Ashley Massoni highlighted on literally the next page (check out her video on Youtube if you haven't already).  You can read the articles and see some of the great things that this magazine has to offer by clicking on http://issuu.com/baseballplayermagazine/docs/bpm_spr_2010 . Sooo exciting. 

I threw today for a little over an hour, and have been joking that I am ready for a comeback since I feel outstanding.  I am doing a lot less drill work, throwing harder, and my spins are working so well.  Hopefully, I won't be sore tomorrow.  Speaking of spins, it has come to my attention that many pitchers have spent the winter perfecting pitches that they are not throwing at all in games.  Why is that?  If it is a brand new pitch, and you just don't feel comfortable with it right away, then you should throw it either when you have a tremendous lead or when your team is getting annihilated.  Either way, no harm done.  If you do not have enough time to warm up all of your spins, address the issue with your coach.  Every girl's coach should know exactly how much time it takes her to warm up.  This decreases the risk of injury and makes the pitcher much more effective in the long run.  If you are in the more delicate situation of having a coach or catcher unwilling to call your new pitch, offer to show it off in scrimmages or during team bp to demonstrate its effectiveness.  This will also help your own confidence in the pitch. 

Remember, being a good pitcher is different from just being a good "thrower."  Being a good pitcher entails being smart about location, mix of pitches, and how to throw to different batters.  No great pitcher has every gotten away with just one really good pitch (I could see where one might argue the case for Rivera, but he is just like superhuman).  Know your strongest pitches each day (they might be different on any given day) and work the locations that complement them.  Remember, you will ALWAYS need to work your fastball.  People fall in love with spin pitches and then forget about the old "number one."  Your fastball is not only the basis for your mechanics, but it is also typically a little quicker than your spins.  Spot it and use it at least a few times a game.  Keep spinning and keep working hard.

Success!

First and foremost, I am so honored to have so many of my wonderful students mentioned in Newsday today.  I am also thrilled to see many of them getting some airtime on MSG Varsity.  My goodness, I am raising a bunch of celebrities.  This week has been fast-paced and crazy.  I have been doing pyramids for lifting (when you start with low weight and several reps then increase to high weight and low reps).  I haven't done pyramids in a long time, and they are great, but making me tired.  On the plus side, I threw on Friday and am finally feeling like I have all my speed back.  For those of you struggling with speed, or thinking that speed and mechanics are not linked, I can tell you that those weeks I really spent honing my mechanics were not producing velocity immediately.  For a while, it did feel a little like going backwards, and that is always frustrating.  It wasn't until I really felt comfortable with the movements and then added power that I started to really get great results.  My rise, drop, inside curve, and change-up were also feeling great and I wasn't sore at all the next day (thank you ice!).  Also keep in mind that it usually takes about six weeks to start seeing dramatic improvements in skills.  Keep working hard and you will succeed!

This past Saturday was also the seminar on eating well.  I really shouldn't have called it a seminar, because it was a little more interactive.  We tried different foods, looked at portion sizes, discussed what we would order from different menus, and did so much more.  I really love doing seminars.  The teacher in me is happy for days afterwards.  I particularly like doing this type of seminar, because I want my young athletes to have good eating skills for life.  I think it is one of the most valuable skills an individual can learn, since eating well can help to manage headaches, stress, depression, health, and so forth.  Food can be pretty amazing when it is used properly.  We just went shopping at Whole Foods, and I felt like Charlie when he first steps into Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory.  That place is amazing.  

I am looking forward to another amazing week of games.  Keep at it everyone, you are making me so proud!

Rain, rain go away - Hooray!

I do apologize for not having posted in some time.  Last week was absolute chaos with all of the rain.  Games were, of course, postponed and rescheduled.  The power went out, the heat went out, there was water everywhere, I could go on. . . Despite all of this, things are starting to acquire a bit of normalcy again.  With workouts, I have been doing weights, running, pilates, and yoga.  On Sunday, I mixed in some UBC and the rowing machine for part of my cardio.  This definitely has a very different feel.  It is so important to keep your workouts fresh and interesting.  Today I did yoga and threw for about a half hour (both right and left side).  My arm feels really good and I definitely think that doing yoga beforehand helped my concentration and stability.  I have really been working on the whip and trying to incorporate it into my lessons.  I hope that you guys are benefiting from all of this.

I have also been watching some baseball, and noting how some pitchers are more fluid and efficient than others.  Really concentrating on the motions is finally making baseball interesting to me.  I have always wondered why softball has just appealed so much more to me than baseball.  Of course, the game is much faster with slapping and bunting.  The pitching is much more interesting.  I could go on.   However, there are some things that we can learn from watching baseball pitching.  More aggressive pitchers in both softball and baseball tend to get a much better drive off of the back leg.  Some pitchers have better whip and some try to muscle or push the ball (any of this sounding familiar?).  Most interestingly, the baseball pitchers have a tendency to change their mechanics when they struggle just as much as you guys do.  I just watched the Red Sox starting pitcher sink down lower and start pulling his head out as the game progressed on Sunday (not surprisingly, that inning started with a walk).  It is amazing how athletes, no matter what level, tend to modify their motions in different scenarios.  Know your body though, and know when you are changing your mechanics for nerves versus changing your mechanics for exhaustion.  The latter can be a prelude to injury if you are not mindful.  Many pitchers tend to stop using the back leg or start pulling the ball when they are tired.  Some start slumping their shoulders or speeding up their motions to a point of inefficiency.  Watch for these characteristics in yourself to know when you've "hit the wall."   If you can prevent some of these undesirable changes, you will throw much better.  Either way, don't feel too bad if you're mechanics are a little shaky at points in the season.  You are not getting paid millions of dollars to do this!