In-Season Workout For Position Player

Knowing what I now know, and I could rewind time I would do the following.

 

1. Contact Eric Cressey and get a workout for my son.

2. *Find a good local gym that is focused on athletic strength and conditioning. (more on that later) 

3. Find someone at that gym who can teach technique and help fine tune the program for my son. 

 

* This is the type of gym you need to find. Just a basic place with good strength and conditioning knowledge as well as basic rack stations, and not all of the fancy treadmills, classes and "pretty people" if you know what I mean.

 

https://www.facebook.com/calcoastsc

 

The program needs to be phased and technique is critical, so just getting a program off the internet is actually asking for trouble and he could get hurt. He will need someone to help him.

 

JMO. 

 

NYdad2017 - Here is a link to a link for Cressey.

 

http://community.hsbaseballweb...in-season-training-1

BOF, I truly appreciate your honesty . His place in Mass is about a 3 hour drive, but I'd be willing to make a visit and let him evaluate and set my son up with a program. Then I'll have to find a local gym with some knowledgeable people.

CatsPop, thanks for the contact link.

NYdad, 

 

If I could do that is what I would do. Make it into a mini father-son trip. I would make sure your son is up to the commitment as he has to get to the gym and put in the work. There are other options like Gym Jones below. Gym Jones is very highly regarded in some athletic circles but i am not sure about baseball specific.

 

http://www.gymjones.com/memberships/

 

I am not sure what part of NY you are in but there has to be tons of gyms in the area and again look for a old school power lifting type of gym. The key will be finding someone who can teach him Olympic Lifting technique's. That is the critical question to ask when you are looking and talking to people. A lot of "pretty people" gyms don't like the noise and dropping of bars after a 400lb dead lift. Look for a gym with a bunch of squat racks. 

 

Good luck and let us know how it goes. 

 

 

 

Thanks again BOF. I already reached out to Cressey and received a reply. They suggest a 2 to 5 day stay, during which they will evaluate and set up my son. The cost is the same, whether he's there for only 2 days or all 5.

I've spoken with my son about this, and he actually came to me seeking some guidance as he felt that an in-season program would have benefited him this year. Unfortunately the HS does not have a strength and conditioning program either.

Finding a gym will take a few visits. There are more of the "pretty people" places around here then the actual work gyms. We are about 30 minutes North of Manhattan, NY.

Thanks again and I will let you know how things go.

NYdad2017,

 

My son and his roommate did the 5-day Cressey visit right after their college season ended this spring.  Cressey gave them completely different programs based on his individual assessments of each.  My son has never had so much confidence he's headed in the right direction.  

 

Best wishes,

There is a new training facility in Central PA that follows the Cressey principles and philosophy.  Most of our high school players train at this facility (private pay by parents - not a high school program requirement or funded).  During JV & V season, players workout 2 times/week to maintain their strength they have built up during off-season.

 

Sadly, the high school coaches frown upon this - perhaps because they don't see the value in weight and strength training?  Yet we continue it for our son to prevent injury.

 

Good luck!

 

There was a former MLBer posting here not too long ago that went against well-known beneficial philosophies also. When folks called him out on it, he said that his ideas worked for him so they'll work for everyone. Often times, those types of opinions aren't rooted in any research and are backed by anecdotal laziness. You're not alone.

 

For the record, and I think Cressey would echo this thought, it's not necessarily a "Cressey philosophy" as much as it is years of research that Cressey bases his training programs around. It's excellent training, but he didn't really "invent" anything.

 

Another for the record - if a high school baseball coach in 2014 doesn't see the value in weight and strength training, that person shouldn't be a high school baseball coach. Pretty simple.

 

JH... Agree 100% with your last paragraph!  Disappointing to see that philosophy at the high school level - AND to see injuries from players who are not in a training program!