When to introduce Weight Training?

[Mr. Soft Balls]

Daughter is 13 and in the eight grade. When should she start weight training and can anyone recommend a workout that would be age appropriate? Am guessing an older girl would have a different routine?

 

[CARDS]

It really depends on the development of the player and not necessarily age.
We all know girls develop faster than boys but that does not mean at 12 or 14 the ladies are ready for full weight training.

It is always wise to have a physical and inform the physician prior to any change in activities. Other factors to consider before starting a weight training routine is she on a nutrition plan? Has she been doing a polymeric, agility and stretching routine regularly?

I started my DD at 11 using cones, ladders for agility training. Jumping rope, using a squeeze ball, medicine ball drills, stretch tube drills and some light dumb or kettle bells, pushing and pulling sleds at http://adrenalinesf.com/. It was agreat place and they will cater to sport specific workouts so look for a place that does the same.

After a year using this equipment and drills "done correctly" you should see considerable improvement in strength and development. You do not need to stay with Adrenaline or any trainer forever just long enough to learn the drills and routines.Then she would be ready to move onto more weight training if she wants to do it.

At 13 my DD wanted more of a one on one and more pure weight training so she went to BEAT http://www.dietandexerciseguru.com/?p=845
They did regular blood work and built a plan for her that she followed through high school.

At college they had their own system but they did adopt some of the training methods she had learned over the years.

I would caution you about your HS weight training... a lot of bad things can happen there. Watch having her do "squats". I am not a fan of bulk squats and in the HS gym this is where a lot of knee injuries happen.
"Google" Caitlyn Trout and watch her form, This is key...Do not worry about "a lot of weight" the weight and power will come in time… By the time she was in HS even if she mis-hit the ball she had enough power to drive the gap or through the infield.It also helped her be more athletic behind the plate, built endurance etc.

BEAT also has a good interview about building power but keeping a good cut female body…http://www.beatpersonaltraining.com/videos2/

 

[Meemerthe beast]

I started my DD at age 9 and it was the best thing I ever did. I caught a lot of flack for it but as long as your intelligent about it and not over do it my suggestion is earlier the better. I had a physical therapist work with her from day one. My daughter is now 11 and she can leg press almost 2.5x her weight and bench press max her weight. The key in my opinion is take it slow and only in the off season. I started her early b/c with her being a catcher I did want her hurt when a girl slides into her. It helped her to be mentally tough along with being physically tough b/c she is not afraid to take the impact at home plate.

 

[brownsfan]

It literally depends on the girl as CARDS stated. My dd started speed and agility when she was 12U. We were blessed we had a physical therapist, at that time who introduced us to band training. For the next couple of years, that's what we went with. 13U, we increased it with tubes and added ladders. At 14U, is when her growth started to slow down and we confirmed with her doctor she could start weight training.

But one problem is that children don't learn the proper movements using free weights which leads to injuries. It's important to start learning the movement before adding weights, and that can take time-especially with squats. As mentioened, you can blow out knees or take out the back. So be careful when starting.

 

[Fairman]

A word of caution on weight training for HS and younger. Be very careful that your trainer is training female softball players and not male lineman. Some trainers can't tell the difference and your dd's will either get hurt lifting massive weights with lots of reps or they will not develop the fast twitch muscles needed for softball.

Just because a guy is in the gym doesn't mean he knows what he is doing.

 

[longball00]

My DD started speed and agility training at the age of 9, and my son started at the age of 7 (9 soon). They both love it, and can't wait to go 3x a week. DD will be 13 Sunday, and does speed drills for 45 minutes, then moves to the weight room for 45 min to an hour. She trains with an ex NFL player, and ex College running back who are BIG into sport specific training. The squats, dead lifts, lunges, weighted step ups, bench pressing and tons of core work have greatly improved not only her pitching, but also her hitting. The speed work has improved running and fielding footwork. Although not very popular, she does do upper body work even though she is a pitcher, but also has an intense stretching and foam roller program to follow to stay loose. As long as you have someone knowledgeable showing your DD the correct way to perform each movement, and monitor their progress, it is a valuable tool. My Orthopedic Surgeon and I have discussed young weight training, and he agrees that weight training for injury prevention and strength can be started around the age of 7-8 years old, and suggest to start with Body weight type movements at the younger ages, and gradually add resistance as they get stronger and need it. Just don't go crazy!

 

[fastjay]

easy, when they start shaving.

 

[Ron]

forum,
I believe weightlifting will help recovery from a long weekend of ball... will make you look and feel better... will reduce chance of injury and should you be injured will most likely shorten recovery time...All good reasons to '' lift ''... If you don't have access to a weight-room, push-ups, sit-ups and pull-ups... Weight-lifting will not help you throw faster, It will not help you run faster...If it did, the world of sports would be out-of-control...
Ron Poole

 

[longball00]

Weight-lifting will not help you throw faster, It will not help you run faster...If it did, the world of sports would be out-of-control...
Ron Poole

Surely you jest!
That explains why most world class sprinters have quad and hamstring muscles that won't fit in normal/everyday jeans, and why any other high level athlete spends their off season on the couch and avoid the gym. Maybe Universities across the country should scrap their off season workout programs, and put that money into their scholarship funds. Weight lifting strengthens fast and slow twitch muscle fibers, and helps build explosive power with the right movements. As a coach, I'm drooling over the powerful pitcher that explodes off the mound with her delivery, or the hitter who has a strong lower half and core and uses it to her advantage. Of course all of this means nothing without proper mechanics or fundamentals. The world of sports is out of control. As the saying goes, "Today's athletes are bigger, faster and stronger"

 

[Ron]

Longball00,
If you're talking about softball players, you'll have to show me...330-281-1970
Ron

 

[longball00]

Proof is right on your TV. Everyone of those girls you watch play are doing some sort of strength training. Yes, they are talented, and have the mechanics and fundamentals, but they all have off season programs. I see it every day in the improvements my DD has made. Others see it as well, and ask where she trains, and their DD's have started as well, and are seeing improvements. On second thought, you are right, it doesn't work, but my DD will continue doing what she loves to do in the off season, and continue to step it up a notch or 2 while everyone else frowns upon it.

 

[GeneralsDad]

I know 2 girls with big improvements in H-1st times by adding lower body strength training. 1st went from a 2.95 to low 2.7's in 6 months, the second was 2.9 to sub 2.6 in 1 year. No they don't do speed and agility. The only thing that changed was the time they spent on the rack.

 

[CARDS]

forum,
I believe weightlifting will All good reasons to '' lift ''... If you don't have access to a weight-room, push-ups, sit-ups and pull-ups... Weight-lifting will not help you throw faster, It will not help you run faster...If it did, the world of sports would be out-of-control...
Ron Poole

With weight training as long as the lady maintains "flexibility" she will improve her explosiveness when running (when doing good lower body workouts).
If you go to a speed and agility instructor like Tekulve they also have some weight training to help build power.You are 100% correct with "helping recovery from a long weekend of ball... will make you look and feel better... will reduce chance of injury and should you be injured will most likely shorten recovery time"..

If the lady has proper upper / lower body weight training along with the use of a squeeze ball and Plyo. they can improve their throwing and hitting.

Players will not see as much improvement with weight training alone...
Actually, if the player learns how to "properly stretch" and use plyo tshe can see bigger gains in a shorter period of time.

Most of the better trainers start with showing the player how to properly dynamic and static stretch and expect large gains in this area in a short period of time.

"Proper stretching is the single most effective way to improve performance and reduce injury". Unfortunately; most ladies do not understand this and most parents cannot tell when the lady is under achieving in this area.

Over the years we all see the ladies doing their pre game stretches. Those that do not stretch any better than they did at 10 when they are 12 or older generally struggle when getting into a weight routine. Good stretching techniques with plyo and weight when done correctly will build stronger hands and better grip control. More upper body strength can allow the lady to swing a longer heaver bat that can improve coverage and striking force.

One key as I stated earlier is making sure the player already has great stretching, warm up and cool down habits. She needs to start out with a qualified trainer that understands female athletes and yes the player needs to change their eating habits to get the most out of lifting.

Learn to walk in training terms and then proceed to weights the player will get more out of it.

 

[Maxx]

I am glad to see that people are finally jumping off the "weight training can injure growth plates" bandwagon and letting their kids get into resistance training at younger ages. Here is a collection of great information on youth training from some of the best resources in the world: http://www.mycoachbook.com/index.php/blogs/6223/2119/should-kids-lift-weights

I believe weightlifting will help recovery from a long weekend of ball... will make you look and feel better... will reduce chance of injury and should you be injured will most likely shorten recovery time...All good reasons to '' lift ''... If you don't have access to a weight-room, push-ups, sit-ups and pull-ups... Weight-lifting will not help you throw faster, It will not help you run faster...If it did, the world of sports would be out-of-control...
Ron Poole

This statement, however, is absolutely ridiculous. I have been training high school and college baseball/softball players for 20 years and I have kept detailed statistical and testing info on each athlete and their is an absolute correlation between the weight room not only with throw speed, running speed, bat velocity, and exit velocity, but also with on-field performance. There was a reason that hitters AND pitchers were taking steroids at the MLB level--it made them bigger, faster, stronger, and more explosive!

If you'd like to see what type of training college softball players are doing, you can check out these videos from Auburn a couple of years ago - https://www.youtube.com/user/TheAuburnSoftball/videos. Or follow @builtbybama_sb on instagram for clips of their softball weightroom workouts.

 

[Ron]

Maxx,
My position is tough to defend... I have watched and had coached fastpitch for a long time... My own daughter still lifts today, she's 34... But, weight-lifting did not help her speed...it did help recovery... Please, don't think I didn't keep track... Measure everything you do and you will improve... If the point to be made is increases in speed (running/pitching/throwing), what's the limit...why aren't all college pitchers throwing 70+mph... why doesn't every college team have people running under 3 seconds h-1st...My daughter played at Tenn. Knoxville and Fresno State... Improvement... it's subjective, lots of room for interpretation... Your critique of my opinion is the way you feel and probably convinced some dad to start weight-training his daughter... your words were powerful.... Mine, harder to defend but just as important to me...
Best thoughts for you and your family,
Ron poole

 

[Maxx]

Ron, there is always a ceiling for improvement. But most people don't reach that......especially college athletes that you have for 4 years. But if you program correctly, you can always adjust things to keep getting closer to that ceiling. Just because you don't always keep improving, you would scrap it entirely? I've said this several times--if I was permitted more time with my players in the weight room versus more time on the practice field, I'll take the weight room every time, because most kids are close to their ceiling in skill improvement, but no where close to their ceiling in building strength and power.....