Lifting on Gamedays

Wow! i was just coming on to post this very question,

one more thing if thats ok.....if it is not ok to lift on game days then when should i lift this summer b/c i have games almost 5/7 days

It's ok to lift on game days so long as you finish at least 5 hours before your game i believe or after your game.

If you have afternoon games i would lift after the game. Night games i would lift right after you eat breakfast.

Well said Walawala! We have all of our guys lift on game days with the exception of starting pitchers. If we cannot complete our lifting session at least 4 hours before the first pitch we wait until after the game to lift.

When we do lift on game days the vloume is extremely low and the intensity extremely high. In other words, very heavy weights for just a few sets and reps. Generally 2-3 sets of 2-3 reps on game days and we spend alot of time on recovery drills such as active stretching and foam roller work.

Hope that helps!

Yours in Sport!

Coach Dan

Personally I have never believed in lifting on game days, pitcher or not.

If you are playing 5 ot 6 days out of the week as noted above then you are playing way too much==there is no time for the body to "recharge" and the body at your young age needs it.

JMHO

Coach Dan,
so your saying going about 70 to 80% of your max of just a few reps per set?

sets of 2-3 reps with a weight that would allow you to get 3-4 reps. basically leaving one in the tank on each set. Does that make sense?

Coach Dan

yes it does thank you

In conjunction with this I just read an article in current TIME MAGAZINE wherein they advise not to work the same muscle group in consecutive days because there is no time for the muscle to recover.

If this is true then how can you advise to lift on game day ?---you would be using muscles that have not yet recovered from the workout of the gameday morning

Coach Dan-- you have pitchers lift weights after they have pitched a game?

I think I will keep my pitchers away from you.

Seriously I cannot believe you do that.I am no weight expert but I think I understand enough about it to know that this is not a safe thing.


Aslo the young man who began this thread is 15 years of age--- are you aware of that? If so does your advice hold for he who is so young and still developing physically?

hitandrun

I totally agree

Of course you lift on game days! If minor leaguers did't lift on game days, when do they lift then? Playing everyday is not too much? Lift in the morning, stick to one body part per day and do core strength 2-3 times per week. Or, do a whole body workout 2-3 times per week with core strength on the off days.
TRHit, to each is own, when I was playing pro, my arm was feeling way better the next day if I lifted after a game.

bulldog

we are talking 15 year olds here not minor leaguers---big difference regardless of your experience

I just turned 16 on the 25th so i was wondering if i could do this, cuz most of my games are at night:

-Wake up early and lift
-Then take a shower and eat a good breakfast ( any help on what to eat would be appreciated)
-Then Nap
-THEN socialize with ppl on-line of in person


if that is good then should i lift everday focusing on a different part of the body (except when im pitching) or every-other day

And one more thing: Would me lifting affect my throw from the out-field or my batting, even if i get enough rest?


Thanks alot
plp556

hit&run

Are you a weight trainer?

hit&run

What I find interesting is the wide spectrum of views concerning baseball weight training---my son played at a major Division I program where pitchers were not to be seen in the weight room--they believed in pichers running--my son because of his excellent speed was not permitted to do work on his legs just his upper body and that was minimal. He was an outfielder

Others obviously do things differently

I am glad evryeone took the time to reply! Thanks alot!

I think what coach dan was saying about the 2-3 sets and reps thing was that you do you compound lifts (squats, bench press, etc..) 2-3 sets for 2-3 reps and you work your total body. Heck if you only did those two excersises you would cover a lot. I think its safe to say he doesnt mean do 2-3 reps on hte calf raises. And warming up doesnt count as a set either. That seems to be my idea of a in season maintanance program, that you keep your strength up with the heavy compound lifts. It is a proven fact that heavy lifts are better for game days because they dont tire the muscle as much as a high rep routine. Just try something in the weight room, like swinging a bat, after 3 heavy reps of bench press, and then after 15 reps.

coach dan,

what team do you coach?

and could you help me with a flexibility plan? i stretch a lot because im a catcher but i need to strengthen the legs and upper body but still want to be flexible. im 6'2, 200 lbs. athletic.

any help from ANYONE would be great.

thanks,

jason hunter

hit and run,
so you don't agree with Coach Dan you think lighter weights with more reps instead of 2-3 reps ?
thanks for all the comments guys i appreciate it

light weight /high reps will not burn excessive calories.

I agree very much with hit&run on this one. Your opportunity to gain strength and size is in the off-season. Once the seeason starts, it is time to maintain and perform. A starting pitcher should never lift on game days. Muscles require up to 48 hours to completely recover from a good workout. If you are a position player you can lift light (2 sets of 12-15 reps) early in the morning 2 times per week, or after a game. Three times per week should be the max (depending on your workout). Pitchers can lift on off days but not the day before or day of games. If you are a reliever, you could lift lightly 2x per week --after games.

the better analogy might be which burns more calories, a 60 yard sprint or a 100 yard jog?

Because the time under load when you do 20 reps versus , say, 10 is not much different.

Of course it may not be different at all depending one how many sets you do in the low rep scheme vs high.

The use of the marathoner isn't a good example because if you think about it, a marathoner in essence is doing leg curls in the 1000 rep range-not something realistic for a weight room.


And btw , you ever see a fat sprinter?

Not at a track meet you didn't.

One of the reason for that is that the sprinter workout tends to increase muscle mass which increases the metabolic rate.

In other words, the 200 lb sprinter is burning more calories than the 150 lb marathoner when they're not working out.

I think you're being a little over-sensitive there, pal.

I basically agree with everything you said except the higher reps burning more calories.

hit and run,
I have heard that lighter reps is better and with you explaining it I am convinced thanks for all your great facts and support.