be humble. be coachable. and always keep learning

My Training Philosophy

Biomichanics

Pitching requires our bodies to move powerfully, quickly and perfectly controlled. Building strength, flexibility and balance is all a MUST in order to perform safely and successfully, which is why I bring my yoga background and all of my knowledge from training in college, as well as coaching at the collegiate level, to my girls lessons.

The girls must have an understanding of their body’s anatomy, how everything is connected, working together to create a powerful and elegant motion. A pitcher has to know where and when to apply energy and power throughout their body, as well as when to stay loose and relaxed.

My girls will learn about core engagement, how to use our legs for power and proper body positioning, as well as sequencing and timing.

By teaching “IR” or internal rotation and forearm fire for delivery in their pitch, I am able to keep my athletes healthy for longevity in their pitching careers.

Mental & Emotional

Being inside the circle requires a certain kind of softball player. We must be more mentally and emotionally prepared for the challenges we face during every game, every inning, and every batter. The sound of the crowd, the opposing team screaming for us to fail, the umpire who may not be giving us the corners, our teammates relying on us to do the best that we can, and our coaches looking to us to lead the team to a W. All of this can easily cripple a pitcher if they are not mentally and emotionally prepared to handle these situations.

I make it a priority to teach my students how to stay strong inside the circle, how to own the mound and be confident no matter what the outcome is after every pitch. If we lose our ability to control our minds, then we have already lost the game.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness is the mental state achieved by focusing one's awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one's feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations.

It is important for me to teach mindfulness, not only for their success on the field, but in all areas of their lives. One cannot truly give their best performance if they are still hung up on what happened in the past or if they are constantly worried about what will occur in the future. They can only perform to the best of their ability if they are focused on being in the present moment, experiencing all that is happening around them right then and there, and being aware of when their minds start to take them to the past or future. Their success, or failure, exists only in the present moment.

Breath Work

Our breath is power. It supplies oxygen to our brain, which in turn fuels our body to perform to its highest potential through our muscular system. It is a vital part of my training to teach breath work and how it can help us to control our minds and our bodies, and slow the game down so that we can stay in control of every pitch and play.

In-game Training

I want to prepare my girls for success as much as possible, so it’s important to start putting them into situations, mentally, to understand why we throw a certain pitch in a certain situation. The girls will learn to read the hitter and throw to her weak locations, based on numerous things, in order to create an easy out or a strike out, if possible. That’s their goal, not to strike everyone out, but to do the best they can to create the easiest out possible for their team.