Softball Players Should Not Do Cardio

Cardio, as you know it, is a complete waste of time. Here are the four most popular forms of “cardio” and my reasons as to why a softball player has no business doing them.

Treadmill Running- On a treadmill, the core muscles (abs, glutes) do not have to work together to stabilize and propell your body because the belt moves underneath you. You also don’t have to “react” to the belt as you would with the terrain if you went running. You effectively shut off the hardware (muscles) and software (nervous/sensory system) to get a false sense of exercise. Of course you sweat on the treadmill; it’s inefficient movement! Treadmill running reinforces bad mechanics, coercing whoever is on the belt to overstride and land on their heel, which increases the landing force that is transmitted through the lead leg and into the back. Your Nike Air Maxes prevent you from feeling these forces until your shins, knees, or back hurt.

Spinning – whether you sit or stand, you are still flexed at the hips. You can spend an entire hour in hip flexion, causing the muscles in the front of your thigh to become tight. This tightness ultimately restricts your ability to extend your hips, which is the PRIMARY way we create power during running, pitching, and hitting. If you want big quads and a flat butt, spin more often. Running gets the bad rap that spinning deserves, especially since it tends to be popular with females.

Running – If you sincerely enjoy running, go for it. But remember, running one mile is the equivalent to hopping 800 times on each leg. If I said hop up and down 1600 times, would that sound like a softball specific workout? Honestly, the only time you should ever jog is if you hit a home run. A better option is to run hills. Somehow, this is too “old school” to be cool any more. It’s less stress on your knees, greater work for your glutes, builds strength, and is a tougher workout taking up less time than a long run.

Swimming – Use a kickboard.

I apologize for ranting. I understand there will be exceptions and I’m sure there are some athletes who love to run on the treadmill and can still throw 70mph. However, the majority of softball players can spend their time more effectively using proper strength training to prepare and preserve their bodies in less time.