‘Tis the Season……Again!
I have to admit that November crept up on me in a very weird way. I am programmed to know that the Christmas season really begins when Walmart puts the Back-To-School items in the back, and a few aisles at the Stevenson Ranch location have trees, decorations, and other items sometime around the 2nd week of September. I get it…
But about the week before October, those aisles start to make their way into the main shopping area about 3-4 columns deep. But when Halloween hits, the store transforms into Santa’s workshop, and the whole store has lights, mistletoe, and decorations everywhere. Sadly, this is when I know that we are in the official Christmas season, the first week of November.
The enormity of this changing of the season sort of throws me off, along with Daylight Savings going back to darkness at 5pm, and this is when I realize I need to get a newsletter out to you. It is convoluted, but a realization of how society works in this day and age. So here we are….
Baseball season is pretty much in full swing here in So Cal. College, high school, and youth leagues are playing every weekend. High school and youth leagues will continue playing through the holidays and throughout the summer. It is a very busy time.
There are some misconceptions out there that I want to address because maybe you have heard them before, but a high school student told me about what his coach said to the team, and that coach is just flat out wrong in his thinking. The team was told that after the holidays that the team will not long-toss anymore because he doesn’t want to hurt any arms, SAY WHAT?
It is just the opposite, where you need to maintain your arm health by throwing long-toss, weighted balls, and explosive work, including weightlifting. These are all areas that the body NEEDS in order to continue building strength throughout the year and particularly through a long season.
With many friends in the Dodgers organization, they tell me that almost every player after a game is over, will weight-lift for an hour and a half until they leave the stadium after 12:00am. Watch starting pitchers’ long-toss before games. It is a must-action that needs to be done throughout the year.
Another misconception is resting so that a pitcher’s arm is not tired before a game. I can 100% assure you that it just doesn’t work that way. Continually putting a good amount of pressure on an arm and its throwing motion is a very, very good thing. If you train your arm for explosiveness, then you must continually train in this same manner. But so many people are afraid to allow their child to be pushed with their throwing.
News Flash: They need to be pushed. Coddling an arm does no good for the player’s arm. Just like coddling a child over and over doesn’t allow them to figure out tough circumstances in their adolescence.
We have allowed our children who are athletes to be coddled too much until their coaches allow them to pitch 6-7 innings every weekend, and they get hurt. That is why development ALWAYS trumps results, ALWAYS.
One of the ways we can help your son develop a healthy arm is through our group classes during the week. If you are not in a group-type setting for training, then you are really missing out on the true development of your athlete.
Now, there are some unique circumstances where I work with a player on a 1-1 basis, and I understand that. However, I can assure you that there is no one in the Santa Clarita Valley or anywhere in a 25-mile radius who does what I have done for almost 25 years now, and my past newsletters have explained why 12X/year for the past 9 years or so.
A great way to get work in during the holidays is our Holiday Camp, which will be announced sometime in the next week or two. It is the perfect scenario to keep busy with baseball during the holiday season, plus it will push you to be ready for the start of the new year!
Look for us on all social media for motivational quotes, birthday wishes, newsletters, special offers, and other important items going on with Throwzone. I know you will not be disappointed with the subjects we touch upon throughout the month.
Until next time…
Jim
Jim Wagner's ThrowZone Academy 