Tight Versus Wide Radius: A Great View

[Teacherman]

On the left....in the clip on the right....watch his shirt line in relation to a point on the fence.

On the right....in the clip on the right....watch his shirt line in relation to the fence post.

The kid on the left is turning about the rear hip pivot point TIGHTLY. His rear hip pivot point is stationery in space and the front hip is being turned back by the action in the rear hip socket.

The kid on the right is rotating his pelvis. Both hip joints are moving as he rotates about his spine.

EXCELLENT INSTRUCTIONAL CLIP!!!!

I am not making the case that the rear hip pivot point can't move. It does in some hitters. Pitch location and timing can make a difference. But you have to be conscious about how much it moves. And you should make it feel like it doesn't.

The ratio between turning and moving is highly favorable to turning. WAY more turning than moving.

Take a look.



And it's NOT the block of the lead leg that does that. It is the CONSTANT PULL BACKS that keep you back....and give that 'head back' appearance....and keep your radius tight. THAT STATIONERY REAR HIP SOCKET HAPPENS BEFORE THE LEAD LEG BLOCK.

Hitting In A Phone Booth 101.

[Teacherman]

The weight of the kid on the left, is 100% over the ball of the rear femur. As he sticks his stride foot out....the pull backs counter it to keep a rear hip socket balance point. You can see a slight lowering of his center of gravity. It's not big because he's not a big strider. If he were a longer strider....as he moved out his center of gravity would lower much more....as the pull backs counter the move out....to keep the weight back.

The kid on the right has shifted weight forward....across his pelvis....enough so that the pelvis can rotate about it's center....or the spine. He has two legs involved in his pelvic rotation. THAT IS A WIDENED RADIUS.

The kid on the left....his radius of rotation is half the width of the ball of the femur.
The kid on the right....his radius of rotation is half the width of his pelvis.

[Teacherman]

You have to learn to meter move out and pull back. They work against each othe to create the tug of war around the ball of the femur.

Too much move out....or not enough pull back....causes your weight to slide forward across the pelvis and you lose your rear hip socket separation and your ability to SnF about the rear hip socket.

[Teacherman]

I just had an incredible workout with my oldest son.

A very revealing 30-40 minutes.....was his inability to do this....



....but more so, his use of the word "can't"....as in...."I can't do that".

I explained to him that I was using my back to balance myself....and to swing....and to stay balanced after the swing.

He is quite athletic.
He said 'can't'....but saw me doing it.
He realized it was a balance issue.
He really struggled with it.
Swing after swing it wasn't there.

Then I put the Insider Bat in his hands....which took some weight/stress off of him....and suddenly he started snapping it through....from one leg....without losing balance.

And suddenly....his light bulb went on. He finally realized what it means to swing with your back. If you're constantly falling forward or sideways....while swinging....doesn't it stand to reason that you need more 'backward' force to counter it.

Yep....he finally went from his chest to his back.

I can not say enough about the one-legged drill.

I'm not certain there is any better way to find what you have to find.

This is what you're looking for....



But there is a certain group of muscles that you must learn to use. Back muscles.

As a thought....that I'm thinking about right now after the lesson....that I've never said before is....those muscles of the back....they balance you....and swing. Same muscles. You don't balance with the back but swing with the chest. You balance with the back and swing with the back. The balancing part 'turns them on'.....so to speak.

it is an absolute shame that mightylakers didn't insist that littlelakers proceed and learn to swing with the muscles he is using in this drill.

Tonight I saw an athletic kid tell me no.
He told me he couldn't do it.....as if he was made differently.
But I could do it.
So he kept trying.
And then the light bulb went on.

I've always liked the drill.

I really like it now.

I highly recommend it.

I am also here to tell you.....that most kids use a bat that is too heavy for their back at the moment.

[Teacherman]

I am 57 yrs old and overweight.
Brad is 28 years old and in outstanding shape. Best shape of his life.

I can stand on one leg in a hitting able stance.....very comfortably.....very solidly....and execute the one-legged swing.

For Brad to simply balance himself.....not actually swing and stay balanced....but to just balance himself....I could see his leg quiver. The muscle group he was using at first, couldn't get the job done. But when he found his back......he became rock solid.

So did the launch.

Folks,

The answer is in your back. Fuse your torso. Use your back. Learn to maneuver the fused torso around the ball of the femur.....with your back.

Standing and swinging one-legged FORCES you to find the right muscle group. The feedback is indisputable. You'll know when it is wrong. And when it is right.

[Pronk]

I really like the sound of this I will get up and mess around in a conference room tomorrow. Maybe grab an umbrella.

So the idea is basically do the mini-laker swing, and focus on using the back to maintain balance. Maybe this helps with the fascia that the Hawaii guy shows with the ruler demo.

[Teacherman]

What I find very interesting is....sticking his butt out and then twisting it....didn't work. He could obviously stick it out. He could obviously twist it. Yet he had no load that would drive. He still had to push. He would do that but still swing from the chest.

But when we went to the one-legged drill, he failed miserably until he found the proper balance. And when he found the balance he found his back.

A hitter has to not just approach it but he must learn to live on 'the edge'. The edge of collapse....or the edge of disaster. He has to approach the point where he loses control and falls forward.....yet have it under control. That 'edge' is the timing window. He needs to be able to launch suddenly and early for the fastball....and yet control it for a later launch for the offspeed. It takes a well schooled back to be able to balance and hold 'the edge'....and to launch it from the edge.

[tom.guerry]

I think you get a hint of the right kind of muscle activation/balance and build the muscles with overhand throw/windup. then to swing you have stay with the rear hip (not shift and swing or use front side) and sell out to the hand pivot to adapt to a 2 handed swing. you can make a heavy bat light to begin with by holding it vertical.

[Al Oha]

It takes a well schooled back to be able to balance and hold 'the edge'....and to launch it from the edge.

Remember "click-back"? Entry 4: http://hittingillustrated.com/forum/...ead.php?t=5830

You can make a heavy bat light to begin with by holding it vertical.

Alternatively, a heavier bat might be leveraged with a deeper knee and hip flexion. It may not necessarily lead to an efficient swing, but it may highlight the muscles we are recruiting.