Before an under-performing (worn breaks, worn tires,
sluggish engine) sports car hits the track or streets, it’s in the garage
getting a makeover with a new stable frame, high performance breaks, tires and
an improved powerful engine. All the things to make it accelerate, decelerate
and change directions (maneuver in & out of traffic). Same principle ought apply to our baseball
players. But way too often, ball players are performing their maneuverability
(SAQ drills) before the body is ready to handle the training loads these vast
number of drills require. SAQ drills can
have their place in the strength training program, but if not properly
progressed, the outcome can often be problematic regards to hips, knees, ankles,
feet, hammys, etc.
Recently, I was asked by coaches that their players take it
easy in the gym when they are to train legs/hips; because they are
implementing a lot of SAQ drills on the field and don’t want them over-training
legs. HUH? Really? It’s as if they want to implement on-field SAQ drills in
place of “legs day” in the gym. In my
opinion, this thinking is backwards. We build strong, stable and powerful legs
to withstand not only the training tolerances of SAQ drills but for the purpose
of enhancing overall on-field/in-game speed. And, in my opinion a strong,
stable, powerful lower half is made in the weight room (the garage) by implementing a lower
body strength training protocol that includes a healthy dose of exercises such
as; 1-leg squat, 1-leg RDL, split squats, lateral lunges, hops, ankle pumps,
wall marches, etc.
Simply stated, 1-Leg training supports 2-Leg activities but
2-Leg training does not have the same transfer to 1-Leg activities.
So just why is 1-leg (1L) training so important? It all
comes down to 1-leg stability at the hip, knee, and ankle. Greater 1L stability
means greater amounts of forces (power) are available to be driven into and
received from the ground; therefore, a quicker, faster athlete. You don’t always need special SAQ drills or
toys or even external loaded pieces of equipment. Train 1L stability via the inclusion of 1-leg
exercises (along with proper core stiffening program) then you can take your
athlete out of the “garage” and turn them loose. Remember,
the car gets built, improved and strengthened in the garage not on the streets.
In summary, it’s often been said that vitamins/protein
shakes, etc (supplements) don’t take the place of food, they supplement food intake; Similarly SAQ
drills don’t replace the required strength training, they supplement proper strength
training.
Don’t over think, or over train the game…out train it.
