Boost Your Bat Speed With This Warm Up

With Spring training just around the corner, baseball and softball players looking to hit the ball harder might want to try out this high-intensity isometric potentiation technique examined in a study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research.

Scientists measured bat velocity just before striking the ball using motion analysis software. Twenty-eight experienced female softball players took swings 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 minutes after warming up with 3 sets of 5-second maximum voluntary contractions with the bat immobilized early in the swing phase.

Maximum horizontal bat velocity was an average of 2.84 miles per hour faster 6 minutes after the isometric warm up. That’s an increase of 4.95% in swing speed.