quote:
Originally posted by hsballcoach:
PG,
You put it very well. As I have stated in earlier posts. There is a difference between thought process and reality. Yes, in reality the hips will turn in conjunction with the hands or slightly ahead. In order to get to that point I have found that it is benefitial for the hitter to feel as though they start their swing in this manner in order to stay connected. This is something that works well for my players. But as others have stated before, terminology means very little, it is ones understanding through visual cues and actually doing that makes the difference. I think that if BlueDog and I sat down to talk about the perfect swing, it would probably end up very similar. But, each of us would probably approach it slightly different. As far as understanding reciprocal inhibition, maybe this will help. The patellar reflex is an example of this process. You relax your leg, the doctor taps your knee and the quads fire, immediately, as the hamstrings stretch, a process called reciprocal innervation occurs which innervates the hamstrings from contracting. If you tense your leg and the doctor taps your knee your quads will not fire as rapidly and effectiently and the hamstrings will not be inhibited as well due to the fact the the inhibition is triggered by stretching rather than contracting the muscle. Inhibition in hitting will occur when the muscles that need to contract, do so quickly and the antagonist muscles are instantly inhibited. This does not occur due to tensing the antagonist or agonist groups prior to the rapid contraction that occurs during the swing. I also want to add that I thoroughly appreciate all the productive information that I have read and discussed on this forum. It really makes you think. I have picked up some good terms that I like that may help convey messages to the kids more clearly.
