Do This Drill and You Will Gain Incredible Speed!

This can be a dangerous idea.  “Do this drill and you will gain incredible speed.” Do not blindly accept that.  Your body may not be able to handle the load that an aggressive drill puts on it.  As Instructors, our first job is to assess, keep you safe, and develop you.  If you are doing a drill incorrectly because you have conditions like tight hips or hip flexors, scapular dyskinesis, or muscle imbalances, trying to push through it is like trying to drive 100-mph across a speed bump.

If your movement patterns are unbalanced, if they do not flow correctly, or if your body is not physically strong enough for the violence that occurs in a powerful landing, one of two things will happen.  

   1-The weakest link will fail, meaning that part of the body will suffer injury.

   2-The second possibility is more likely.  Your brain’s number one job is to protect you   from death and injury.  It understands risks that you will not foresee, and it will subconsciously protect you.  It may put a barrier in the way, such as adding tension somewhere to prevent the explosive move, softening the finish, or simply “tapping the brakes” at the point you are trying to hit the gas.  Suddenly you are stuck, getting worse instead of better. Trying to push through any of these barriers is frightening.

Even simple drills can create negative patterns.  They look cute or clever, but they may be getting in the way of where you want to go, Do you fully understand how to measure the benefit you are supposed to receive from the drill?  Does it fit into a complete system?

We prescribe specific drills to specific kids based on their development.  Those drills are either chosen because they are progressive or corrective, never because they are cute or clever.

Finally, a significant number of the drills we see online are simply treating symptoms. If your foot turns before takeoff, if you are bending over at finish, or if you cannot stick the landing, these are symptoms.  If you do not understand the cause, you will forever be grabbing tools and drills.  Some of the fixes are risky.  They are taking a bad movement and making it more complex.  Pitching is no longer simple or fun.  

People who prescribe the drills may mean well.  They are struggling to find help, but the internet is full of bad ideas with big promises.  Be careful. Development is planned. Development is deliberate.  Development is a process.  

-Denny