No BS Softball Pitching Tips

I recently received an inquiry via e-mail from a concerned softball mom regarding some softball training information for pitchers that was passed along to her.  Apparently someone she knew went to a pitching clinic and was told…

If you train for strength as a pitcher DO NOT train with weights greater than 5 lbs. for upper body because the muscle development will interfere with pitching ability and speed.

But this softball mom, being the smart one that she is, didn't just take it and run with it, she asked around for more information before decided whether or not to follow this advice.

Here is my response to this "advice" for softball pitchers…

It's BS. Period. It's one of those ever-perpetuating softball training myths that still exist in 2012!

Yes, you want to be *slightly* more careful not to overload a shoulder, but one throw puts 5x more pressure on the shoulder joint than any lift you could ever do because of the high velocity at which a ball is pitched or thrown.

If you are going to limit a softball pitcher to 5-lbs, they might as well workout with a broomstick!

There is not limit on how much they can lift. The key is progression, good technique, variety in exercise used, limiting bench press (DB press ok) and shoulder strengthening exercises (all the stuff baseball pitchers do to strengthen those tiny muscles).

That's my NO BS info on training for softball pitchers.