Discover swing preload and coil hitting drills for power learning how to increase bat speed at home for baseball and softball beginners.
What Everybody Ought to Know About Softball Batting Drills for Power…
This softball batting drills for power “Hit-Bit”, or hitting tid-bit, is an answer to questions from my readers when I asked them, “If you could have a private conversation with me, what two questions would you ask?”The answers are meant to be short, actionable, and tips you can use today.
Today’s Hit-Bit answers the reader questions:
“How much can your shoulders turn on the load? Do you transfer all your weight to the front leg at sometime during the forward swing?”
We’ll talk about:
The shoulder load & the “back eye” test,
Weight transfer & the ‘Float’, and
Weight transfer & the ‘Free-Fall’…
The Shoulder Load & “Back Eye” Test
I often relate the Goldilocks Golden Rule with my hitters. Some movements we can do too much. Some not at all. We want to practice softball batting drills for power, such as loading the torso, “just right”. And to make sure our hitters do this, in the video, I demonstrate the “back eye” test.
Weight Transfer & The ‘Float’
The “Float”, or as some call it a “negative move”, is a movement back towards the catcher before shifting the hitter’s body weight forward during the stride. It’s a timing mechanism. Hitter’s use different kinds of Floats: High, Medium, and Low Leg Kicks & Toe Taps. See link below for different examples of this…
Please comment below with any questions or comments about this video post…
'Add 40-Feet' To Batted Ball Distance
Swing Study reveals how tens of thousands of hitters are adding 40-feet to batted ball distance by using one simple strategy.
Click the button below to access the FREE video that's been downloaded over 30K times!!
https://hittingperformancelab.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Swing-PreLoad-And-Coil-Hitting-Drills-For-Power-To-Increase-Bat-Speed-At-Home-For-Beginners.png423800Joey Myershttps://hittingperformancelab.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/hitting-performance-labs_c90c0362088ef1d3d528f3078f4f8ac1-300x75.pngJoey Myers2023-02-27 09:15:222023-02-28 05:44:04Swing PreLoad And Coil Hitting Drills For Power To Increase Bat Speed At Home For Baseball & Softball Beginners
Learn how to increase power by hitting a baseball or softball better, farther, and harder. Discover how in this Babe Ruth swing mechanics analysis.
Baseball Hitting Drills For Power That Babe Ruth WOULD BE Talking About
Babe Ruth post impact…notice he’s not ‘squashing the bug’ with his back foot? 😉 Photo courtesy: ABCNews.com
This baseball hitting drills for power video post, featuring Babe Ruth, was recorded on Jun 11, 2013 for my old hitting site Swing Smarter Baseball Hitting Drills dot com (not online anymore). I’m going to revisit the information in this post because…
The coaching cues I teach now are a bit different, but what hasn’t changed are the human movement principles brought to light in the analysis. Since I created the video, it’s amassed over 151K views on YouTube.
Probably more now that you’re reading this. And by the way, the baseball hitting drills for power tips we’ll be covering work REALLY well for softball players too.
Don’t believe me?
CLICK HERE for a recent post I did discussing how similar the baseball and softball swings are. Be sure to read some of the comments at the end of the post, where I asked my readers who coach softball players, to share how these same human movement principles are working for their girls.
In this baseball hitting drills for power post, we’ll REVISIT and ADD information to the above video:
What Forward Momentum looks like in Babe Ruth’s swing,
How The Babe uses the Springy ‘X’ Pattern, and
Compare how WR holding Shot Putter Ulf Timmerman uses the same human movement principles…
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Baseball Hitting Drills For Power: What Forward Momentum Looks like in Babe Ruth’s Swing
I mention a few things in the video…
How The Babe seemingly throws his body (or hips) forward, making an aggressive move towards the pitched ball.
This looks very similar to a pitcher falling down the mound.
There was no ‘push off’ with his back leg, just a natural fall forward with his front leg catching him at stride landing.
In the above video, I also mention, how Babe Ruth commits his body weight forward, similar to how we walk…
A person’s body weight is shifted forward to the swing through leg, as the heel approaches the ground.
Unlike a cat taking a tentative step forward as if the ground is going to give way, we don’t walk by ‘sitting back’ at every step forward.
We walk more like dogs! Committing forward with EVERY step.
And this is WHY we shouldn’t be teaching hitters to ‘Sit back’ when hitting. Unless of course, you want to create timid and defensive swinging hitters that WILL reach a ceiling at the lower levels.
Now, using this same Babe Ruth style fall is where baseball hitting drills for power semi-fork away from fastpitch softball hitters.
Because of a shortened pitching distance and reaction time, we’ll see forward momentum look more like Lauren Chamberlain’s shifting foot pressure in the following video:
In this video, she starts super wide with her feet, but you’ll see her shift her weight back, then forward (watch her body move away from the grounded heavy bag behind her).
This is still a form of Forward Momentum. Just more tailored for a fastpitch hitting strategy.
In the above Babe Ruth video, I mention Un-Weighting, or the Un-Weighting Principle.
CLICK HERE for an HPL video demonstrating a test I use to get my hitters ‘buying into’ Forward Momentum benefits.
The bottom line with forward momentum is that it increases a hitter’s reaction time by giving them a head start.
It’s easier to change planes of motion when you’re already moving…rather than standing still like purely rotational hitters.
Does it take more energy to push a car when it’s already moving, or at a dead stop?
We want effortless power, NOT a powerless effort.
Are you concerned about too much head movement?
Check out these FOUR posts that address that issue:
Swing Study reveals how tens of thousands of hitters are adding 40-feet to batted ball distance by using one simple strategy.
Click the button below to access the FREE video that's been downloaded over 30K times!!
CLICK HERE for an HPL post talking about the science of tension/compression forces in the body, known as fascia.
CLICK HERE for another HPL post analyzing the swing of Adrian Gonzalez highlighting the Springy ‘X’ Pattern.
I call this piece of my hitting system the Catapult Loading System. This online video mini-course teaches exactly how to manipulate springy fascia for repeatable power.
Here’s one of my favorite YouTube interviews with Thomas Myers, who does a GREAT job explaining the role of springy fascia in the body, so the Layman understands:
Thomas Myers authored the book Anatomy Trains, which I highly recommend as a MUST read to anyone serious about teaching hitting. The information in his book holds the key to how hitting will be taught 5 years from now. BELIEVE IT.
Watch how Josh Donaldson manipulates the Springy ‘X’ Pattern. Photo courtesy: YouTuber PastimeAthletics & PicPlayHost
There a couple baseball hitting drills for power points I’ve recently changed, when teaching hitting, different from the information in the Babe Ruth video above (thanks Lee Comeaux for pointing these out)…
#1 – I don’t focus on the shoulders facilitating the Springy ‘X’ Pattern anymore, but the armpits (view Josh Donaldson RED ‘X’ image to the right). This is where, as Thomas Myers puts it, the Front Arm Fascial Line passes through connecting bottom of the left hand and arm, across the chest, to the bottom of the right hand and arm.
#2 – Notice how Babe Ruth seems to be ‘hunched’ over from the start of his swing into loading the Springy ‘X’ Pattern? Dr. Kelly Starrett calls this global flexion of the spine. This allows the spine to decompress. In his book The Spinal Engine, Dr. Serge Gracovetsky talks about this ‘hunched’ posture as the Posterior Ligamentous System (PLS) turning on, which acts like a harness supporting the spine under load. There’s less muscle activation when this happens. Think about a fishing rod bending under the weight and energy of a fish catching bait. This keeps the spine vertebrae safe through torsion forces.
PLEASE NOTE: the hitter still MUST show numbers and get a slight downward shoulder angle, but we’re using a better coaching cue to get the mechanical outcome.
Compare How WR Holding Shot Putter Ulf Timmermann uses the Same Movement Principles
Ulf Zimmermann holds the World Record in the Shot Put using the Glide technique.
Check out his World Record throw on September 22nd, 1985 at a distance of 22.62 meters (about 25 yards):
What a BEAST! By the way, that iron cannonball he just tossed, almost the quarter length of a football field, weighs 16-pounds!!
Three eerily similar baseball hitting drills for power tips you’ll find with Ulf Timmermann’s record breaking ‘Glide’ technique and Babe Ruth’s swing are:
Ulf Timmermann gets his weight aggressively moving forward with a combination of back leg push off and front leg ‘reaching’ momentum. What Ulf does with his front leg is similar to a Broad Jumper using their arms to build momentum before a jump.
You also see Ulf Timmermann employing the same Springy ‘X’ Pattern, however more extreme than The Babe (track his compressed armpit and opposing hip). Ulf is more extreme with the ‘turn in’ because Babe Ruth still has to keep his eyes forward to hit a ball coming towards him, whereas Ulf has the freedom to look away from his target.
You also see both Ulf and The Babe ‘getting shorter’ before exploding rotationally (compare knee bend). They’re both using Ground Reaction Forces very well.
CLICK HERE for a baseball hitting drills for power video post I did outlining the ‘Back Eye Test’, so hitters don’t turn in too much, like Ulf.
'Add 40-Feet' To Batted Ball Distance
Swing Study reveals how tens of thousands of hitters are adding 40-feet to batted ball distance by using one simple strategy.
Click the button below to access the FREE video that's been downloaded over 30K times!!
A Couple Interesting Tid-Bits from YouTube Video Comments
“Excellent video. I recommend everyone read The Year Babe Ruth Hit 104 Home Runs. You will be even more amazed with his achievements.” – YouTube user: Gto1927
One commenter said this video shows why The Babe hit for so much power, but also struck out A LOT. However, Baseball-Reference.com puts Babe Ruth’s 162-game batting average at .342 with 86 strikeouts per year. How about Chris “Crush” Davis? Same numbers: .255 BA & 200 K’s/year. I don’t think The Babe struck out that much…what do you think? 😉
, which I highly recommend as a MUST read to anyone serious about teaching hitting. The information in his book holds the key to how hitting will be taught 5 years from now. BELIEVE IT.
, Dr. Serge Gracovetsky talks about this ‘hunched’ posture as the Posterior Ligamentous System (PLS) turning on, which acts like a harness supporting the spine under load. There’s less muscle activation when this happens. Think about a fishing rod bending under the weight and energy of a fish catching bait. This keeps the spine vertebrae safe through torsion forces.
. You will be even more amazed with his achievements.” – YouTube user: Gto1927