Core training for baseball has come a long way from situps and crunches. In today’s world of baseball strength and conditioning, strength coaches teach their athletes that the core is the center of power. We are not just talking about the abs here. When discussing the core, you need to think about the hips, abs, obliques, low back, and even the scapular area. Some ballplayers have trouble relating the athletic movements needed to hit, throw, and run with core exercises that can improve these attributes. Again, core training is more than just situps.
The Core as it Relates to Baseball
Most know that the core muscles help with rotating the body for swinging and throwing. However, another important function of the core involves power transfer. The legs generate the initial speed and power, but the core helps transfer that power from the legs through the torso and into the arms and hands. This is where bat speed is created for hitters and where arm speed and velocity is generated for pitchers. Needless to say, if you have a weak core, you will not be able to effectively transfer power created by your legs and apply it to your baseball-specific skills.
As we mentioned before, situps are a thing of the past for ballplayers looking to strengthen their core. Instead, baseball players should incorporate movements that involve rotation, flexion, and lateral flexion to enhance the similar movements we see in hitting and pitching.
You need to be selective with these exercises, though, as you do not want to cause overuse injuries to the core muscles that also stabilize and protect the spine. To strengthen the core stabilizers, you can perform anti-rotation, anti-lateral flexion, and anti-extension movements.
3 Sample Baseball Core Exercises
Whether reinforcing on-field movements or stabilizing to protect against injury, baseball core training can use medicine balls, cables, power bands, or just the athlete’s body weight. Let’s take a look at 3 sample baseball core exercises that you can begin using in your strength and conditioning program today.
Pallof Press
Split Stance Medicine Ball Rotational Throw
Body Saw
Core Power for Baseball
If you are looking for more ways to help create a stronger core, check out Core Power for Baseball. With this program you’ll learn core training and baseball training exercises designed to drastically improve your throwing power and bat speed. This program includes videos detailing every exercise with progressions so all levels of athletes can perform the designed baseball workouts. Check it out today!
Good luck!
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