Do you remember back to a time when you hadn’t handled the ball for a while? Then when you finally got the chance to you really, REALLY looked forward to it? You appreciated the opportunity you had to practice and play softball?
As I talked about in the Finish It post, this can often wear off as the season moves along…and that’s probably 100% normal.
But you know what’s really annoying as a coach and former player? Continue reading
As the end of another softball season approaches, I am reminded of the challenge that lies in finishing stronger than you started. At the beginning of a season, there’s always so much excitement, so much anticipation, so much desire to come out each day and do your thing on the softball field.
But after months and month of coming out day after day, it’s not always easy to stay motivated and focused. It can be quite simple to start “going through the motions” and “check-out” mentally as you take your zillionth swing or throw of the season.
BUT - if you want to be the best you can be in this season, if you want to finish stronger than you started, (which is the point right), you really need to make a commitment to what you are doing. You need to make a commitment to put yourself “all-in” and push all the way through to the end and beyond – similarly to what I talked about in this baserunning post.
That’s why I think it’s so critical to be able to create a habit, the sooner the better, of doing the little things to perfection. Sometimes the long road ahead, or the long road that has already passed, make the entire journey too daunting to look at. It makes this ONE drill seem insignificant. In times like those, if you can simply go back to your simple habit of investing in each drill, in each rep – put your whole self in in each little segment of your training – just commit to that one moment, that one rep at a time…it can help you keep moving forward when the day-to-day starts to feel mundane. It can help keep you on track while to take a moment to rejuvenate and get the fire burning again.
If you can’t do that, if you don’t know how to keep doing at least those “little things” right, then that one “insignificant” drill or rep turns into two, or three. or simply turns into an entire day (what’s ONE practice right?). Then next thing you know, another day is “insignificant” and another and another until you’ve spent in entire week being sub-par, training at a level you’d never actually want to perform at and what good did you do yourself? Probably none at all, and in fact, you may have actually “hurt” yourself creating bad habits physically and/or mentally.
When it comes to staying “on track,” it’s also extremely important to set out with some “bigger” purpose. Something far more important to you than just one drill. Something that you are working toward and working for. Something that makes each drill and each rep and each day on the field worth it. If you’re lucky – just being there is reward enough. For some, that’s the way it is. The opportunity to go out there and do softball stuff is the highlight of any given day. For those people, motivation and focus is rarely a major issue.
But even the best, even the most determined sometimes get into those “moods” when they simply don’t feel like 100%. You know what? That’s human. It’s OKAY. Give yourself a break every now and then. Understand that it’s part of being an athlete. It’s something everyone goes through. Don’t waste time worrying about it. Acknowledge it, address it, and do what you need to do to refresh. You need it. It’s almost impossible to stay at full intensity ALL the time. You need to find ways to unwind, to relax, to refresh, and to rejuvenate mind, body, and spirit in order to perform the best you can.
Finishing up a season strong, isn’t easy. That’s why only a few an do it and do it well. It’s easy at the beginning. It’s easy as you start getting to the “meat” of your season. But when all that’s done and you’ve been climbing and climbing all year long…now there are two directions you can go. You can keep pushing and continue reaching higher and higher – usually this is the tougher, more challenging road. OR you can let up, stop pushing, and find yourself sliding,. or maybe even rolling, down the hill or mountain you just climbed.
Which is it going to be? Can you stay focused? Can you re-commit? Can you, for just a fraction of the time you’ve already put in…keep moving forward and finish stronger than you started? Take it one step at a time…you can do it!
If you want to get on base more often, start by running shorter, not longer.
Often times when coaches want you to run through the base better, they make you run farther than 60 feet. But that may not be the best idea.
You see, it doesn’t really matter if your coach makes you run 80 feet instead of 60 feet. If you always train to slow down at the end, you will ALWAYS slow down before your target no matter how far or close it is.
Excellence is a habit – so get in the habit of sprinting THROUGH any marker, goal, base or cone that is set for you, whether it’s 6 feet away or 60 feet away.
This habit is what will help you “get through the bag” more consistently at 1st base, put more pressure on the defense and get safe more often!
If you’re a coach, instead of making your players run farther, try shortening the distance and challenge them to run all the way through. After all, if they can’t consistently “run through the bag” at 30 feet, how do they expect to do it at 60 feet? Often times pointing this out to them is enough to get them focused on doing it right.
As they get better and better running all the way through the shorter distance, start adding more distance until they are running through any target you give them.
Always expect your player’s best speed all the way through ANY sprint you do, whether it’s a short spring or a longer spring, whether it’s their first sprint or their last sprint of the day. Notice I didn’t say “fastest” because the more your work them, they slower they may get, but they should always be giving their best – whatever it is they have at that time. Make them do it again if they don’t do it right. Help them create the good habit of going hard and giving their best ALL the way through to the end and beyond, just like you want them to do in a game – not only for baserunning but in every area of play!
One thing you often see more and more of as the season wears on is injury. Players have sore arms, sore shoulders, sore back, sore legs, etc, etc, etc. Some people say to ice the injury, some say to use heat and it’s not always clear for the athlete when to use what.
So here are some basic tips and guidelines on using ice and/or heat for your softball injury:
I swear, social media is so cool! If you’re not a part of it yet, you’re totally missing out. Just this weekend I heard something on the softball field that I thought was “status update worthy.” So I wrote a tweet to share it with others. Next thing you know, a coach sees it (Coach Meg) and turns it into a blog post. I read her blog post and am now sharing a nugget from it with you! Isn’t that cool?
It all started with a word at the field that was shared with others. Then someone else came along and offered to share the insight they got from it. The insight they shared then lead to this blog post which I am now sharing with you. That’s a lot of sharing going on, but that’s how we continue to learn and grow and gain insight into ideas or concepts we may not have thought of on our own. Or sometimes these things just serve as a timely reminder of what we already know – and the internet and social media make it easier than ever to begin and continue this chain of sharing, learning, and growing with each other.
Anyway – on to what this post is really about – The Challenge!
You see, in Coach Meg’s post, I read a phrase that just jumped out at me…
The challenge is to not become complacent…
That’s such a great line and one that applies to so many player and coaches in the game today. It’s so easy to become complacent once we find something that “works” or once we accomplish a goal or once we see that we are one of the best amongst our immediate competition. But complacency is the quickest path to repeating crisis or failure. So, you may be on top now, but never ever let that stop you from moving forward or continuing to develop.
One thing is certain, once you reach the top, once you become a champion, you now have what everyone else wants. Some are fighting tooth and nail and are willing to do almost anything to get what you have. If you choose complacency, if you think that now, since you’ve finally reached your goal, that you can relax. Think again. That “prize” you’ve earned and worked so hard for will be gone in an instant if you think for once second that there’s nothing else you need to do…that there’s no more to improve upon. Whether it’s a championship, or an award, or a starting position, or a spot on the team – working for it and earning it does not entitle you to it forever.
You think getting to that point was tough – staying there is a whole ‘nother level!
Complacency is a very sneaky enemy. The challenge is to not become complacent.
Obviously, there are a lot of mistakes you can make while coaching softball. Some involve game strategy and calls or decisions made during the game, while others are made in preparation for competition. I won’t go into strategy today, but I will mention some 5 common mistakes coaches make with their team in preparation for competition.
5 Softball Coaching Mistakes that Can Limit Your Success
Take a look at how you prepare and see if you are making any of these common softball coaching mistakes with your team. If not, great! You’re on the right path. If you are, identify the problem and make a positive adjustment to enjoy more success this season!
As you can see from the comments on my previous post about softball hitting practice, most teams practice hitting quite often. However, you may be surprised to find out there may be a couple important things you’re leaving out.
1. Hit and Run - Getting Out of the Box
In a game, what do you have to do after you hit the ball? That’s right, RUN! Yet, how many of your swing in practice are followed by a run down the line to first base? If you’re team gets a lot of reps in station drills or in the batting cage, then chances are they may very rarely actually hit then run in practice. Maybe you NEVER actually run down the line to first after a hit in practice, Continue reading