Explosive strength training for pitchers is a must if you want to be competitive in baseball today. Steroids are out and smart strength training is in! If you are a pitcher, you not only have to work on your breaking ball and fastball, you have to improve them by improving your throwing power. I’ve included one exercise here to dramatically improve your strength training and show your strength. Read if I have your attention.
Kettlebell snatches to gain strength!
If you’re a baseball player, you have to strengthen your body from head to toe, and there’s no better way to do that than by making your core stronger, your shoulders stronger, and your hips more explosive. After all, you’re playing with more than your arm, right? Kettlebell snatches are just the strength exercise you need to get you where you need to go, my friend.
By now you may have heard of the ancient strength and conditioning machine known as the kettlebell. This body builder has a very good and respected reputation for shaping athletic bodies. One of the most dynamic lifts you can do with this ancient machine is snatches. Basically this involves having to pull the kettlebell from the floor or between your legs and up to the top of your head in one smooth motion. This is done by having to strongly flex and then extend at both the hips and knees to generate the vertical momentum you need to make the kettlebell swing in an arc from between your legs into a high pull position laterally to your head.
In order to get the bell into a “high pull” position, imagine swinging the bell and simulating a “bow back” motion. Once the bell is in the “high pull” position, you’ll notice that it kind of “floats” or is at a “zero gravity” point for a split second at that point. Once the bell reaches this point of “zero gravity,” you’ll want to strike your palm vertically toward the sky to complete the lift. This is strength training mode at its best my friend.
If you haven’t already begun implementing the use of kettlebell snatches in your swing strength and conditioning exercises, you are allowing your competitors to get an advantage over you. You do not want that! If you want to know more feel free to access the rest of my articles on the subject. Remember, anyone can train hard, but only champions train smart!
