Hydration

Written by:  Ben Baker - American Coaching Academy

Hydration is just as important as food intake before and after exercise. Two hours before exercise,
athletes should consume 16 ounces of water or a sports drink to help hydrate them ahead of time.
Thirty minutes before exercise, athletes should intake another eight ounces to prepare themselves for activity.

During activity, fluids should be available for athletes at all times. Because athletes are sweating out important fluids, they must replenish them by drinking eight ounces every 20 minutes. If players are engaging in short activity, of 30 seconds or less, they are at a high risk for dehydration because of the intensity of the work.

Long-term activity of 30 minutes or more requires periodic rehydration, such as the eight ounces every 20 minutes just suggested.  If an activity lasts more than 40 minutes, water is not sufficient to rehydrate the body. The nutrient loss through sweat requires a sports drink to replenish electrolytes.

Many athletes will prefer not to drink during activity or will feel ill directly after intense exercise. All athletes
must drink adequate liquids before, during, and after activity to avoid dehydration, which can lead to nausea,
dizziness, and fatigue.

After activity, athletes should continue to intake fluids. At this point, fluids can be the normal amount the athlete would consume with a meal and through the rest of the day. A total of 64 ounces of fluid is a minimum for athletes, though more is suggested. A good test of proper hydration is a urine test. Athletes should pass clear urine, not dark or with a restricted flow. 

Encourage athletes to pay attention to their own needs, as all athletes will have slightly different needs. If an
athlete feels uncomfortable, light-headed, or otherwise abnormal, they should come to you for counseling.

As fluid intake levels will change based on environmental effects, pay attention to the outside influences affecting fluid needs in athletes.

Seasons Greetings

The Holiday Season has always been a special time of the year for my family and me.  As we just finished the ASAP fall season, we come to the realization of how many people it takes to build a successful program and the number of people that has a major influence in our players.  These people helped you to grow as players and young adults. This is the time to say thanks.  It takes more than one person in our lives to achieve success both on and off the field.  Christmas is the time to give thanks for our health and God given talents that allow us to play the game we love.

It is in the game of baseball that gives us the opportunity to build tremendous relationships that can last a lifetime.  “Thank You” can go a long way in our appreciation for our teammates for their support during the heat of a game.   As we all know, the game of baseball can become an emotional roller coaster during the times of competition.    

As we embark into the baseball Spring season, let’s not forget to look back at the special moments we went through as a team.  Later in life we will realize it is during these special moments that ultimately prepared us for the real world.   

Earning respect through hard work, admiring the efforts and trusting your teammates can go a long way.  Playing the game of baseball is a privilege.  A friend once told me,  “It is your sanctuary”.  I hope you will realize that you have had a great opportunity to be a part of a special experience.   

The New Year will bring excitement to a new season.  Embrace it!  Take on the challenges!  It is a new start.  Set your goals and always be better than the last.  One piece of advise as you head into the new season:  Attitude, Effort, and Focus.  

Learn to enjoy each and every day along with the people that surround you and love you unconditionally.  Baseball will always be just a game, but it is the people and the relationships in baseball that make the experience worthwhile.  We are not guaranteed tomorrow so make today and everyday a special one.        

In our program, we use baseball as a tool to develop young athletes into young adults.   Through baseball, let’s be remembered for who we become as a person and not so much as a baseball player.

Have a great holiday season!   

I Will Never Be Out-Worked

You can either listen to the entire interview or skip to the 4 minute mark.....

A Perspective on the Mental Approach to Baseball

By Herndon P. Harding, Jr., M.D. Medical Director Florida Hospital Center for Behavioral Health Member, USA Baseball Medical & Safety Advisory Group 

In past articles for USA Baseball News, the Medical/Safety Advisory Committee has given a perspective on sport. For fairly apparent reasons, it seemed appropriate to address the best way for an amateur to approach the game mentally, especially with the issue of escalating salaries in professional baseball, and the high dollar signs potential pro players often see.

With the announcement of Alex Rodriguez' 252 million contract, one would hope that monetary reward leads to stellar performance. Indeed, most highly paid athletes do partially meet this expectation set by commanding such high salaries. Look at Pedro Martinez and Mike Piazza, for instance. Most players don't link their salary with their day to day motivation for on the field performance.

On the contrary, when asked about how money affects their play, most professionals describe being aware of money and stats only periodically during the season, and never during the immediacy of the game. No one has a successful at bat thinking "If I hit this pitch, my batting average will go up .002, and that will help in arbitration!!" Instead of focusing on those and other distractions, the players who perform best, both professionally and at amateur levels, are those who enjoy the competition of the game. They strive to win for victory's sake and also don't feel as though one loss, or one day's poor performance, is the end of the world.

This latter point, putting things in perspective, is where many players at all levels of baseball struggle. If every play, every at bat, is seen as having potentially devastating ramifications, then the player is likely to be over anxious, engaging his "civilized brain", and isn't allowing his well practiced athletic habits to do what they've been trained to do. He/she experiences anxiety, muscle tension and fear, all of which interfere with the ability to physically perform. He/she overrides well trained "perfect practice makes perfect" responses by over-thinking.

Studies show that one performs best if one can be in a mindset that is like the mindset experienced during practices. Your anxiety level in a game should be approximately the same as in practice, if you want your reflexes to perform optimally. When you see a double play where the movements of the infielders seem choreographed, graceful and smooth, it's because they know and trust what they're doing, not worried about how they look, or possibly failing. So, how does one nurture a "put it in perspective" attitude?

First put yourself in the game mentally, allowing other important issues of life to be left, temporarily, outside the white lines; you can deal with them later. For now, though, be where you are. Secondly, consider every play, pitch or at bat an opportunity that you're eager for, not an "if I can just get out of this..." threat. The best at bat self-talk I've heard is that on every pitch, the batter said "This one is MINE!" He would of course have to sometime change his mind to not swing; but he would never start out planning not to swing, suddenly going to "Yikes, that's down the middle!" He anticipated an opportunity; he didn't wait or hope for one.

Lastly, realizing that even though winning is important, it isn't everything. Even the quote often attributed to Vince Lombardi "Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing" was never said by him. He actually said "Winning isn't everything, trying to win is." More important than the win itself is striving, picking yourself up when you fall, enjoying your accomplishments, and putting it all in perspective with your personal values.

These things make one a better person, not just someone who wins games. The irony is that the person who best puts their life in order and gets perspective usually prioritizes effectively and can perform with less anxiety and more success, both on and off the field, prolonging a productive amateur or professional career and ...getting bigger contracts!!!

Mental Training is Safer than Drugs

By: Patrick Cohn

When people talk about baseball they usually mention the physical aspects of the sport such as, hitting, arm-strength, and power. The primary focus of athletes today is improving their physical game to compete at a higher level. The physical component of the game is so emphasized that a good handful of professional ball players began using illegal performance enhancement supplements to gain a competitive edge.

The physical component of baseball is important, but it’s also highly overrated. Somewhere along the road players and fans forgot that baseball is a mental game. Hall of Famer, Jogi Berra once said “Baseball is ninety percent mental and the other half is physical,” and Phillies Manager Charlie Manuel states that, “succeeding in baseball is 90 percent mental.”

Baseball players should develop mental strength and mental toughness to gain a competitive edge, rather than cheat to improve their physical strength. Physical strength may help you hit a ball farther but it isn’t going to help you hit .330 or win a championship. Mental training is legal in baseball, and it helps athletes reach their peak level of performance. Mental training areas that help you perform to your potential include: confidence, composure, focus, trust, preparation, practice efficiency, and patience just to name a few.

In Major League Baseball mentally tough players are the cream of the crop. Chase Utley for example states, “I go through my pre-game routines and make sure my mind is right. The difference between a good game and a bad game is your head.” And Derrick Jeter says “Once you step into the on deck circle you have to get into a hitters mindset.”

Mental Training is legal, inexpensive, effective and highly recommended by professional athletes. To improve your performance in baseball use mental training to supplement your performance needs, such as the tips listed below:

• Stay present focused. You must keep your mind in the present moment on what’s important to play your best. This is easier said than done. It is easy to think about the last strike out you had or think ahead about the results of striking out. Know the task-specific cues you should focus on and be aware when you are not on task. Stop and refocus your mind on the task or on what you should think about to execute well.

•    Think one bat a time. Think about only the one pitch at a time to help you stay focused on execution. Separate each pitch from the rest and don’t think about the consequences of getting a hit. You don’t want to be thinking about the last inning when you are at the plate in the middle of the game.

•    Don’t thing about results or outcomes. If you think about what you don’t want to do, you’ll tighten up and make a controlled swing. When you think about results, you’ll create tension and indecision. Focusing on execution will help you get good results. Your at-bat routine should help you focus on specific cues to follow as you prepare for each at-bat. If you don’t have a routine, the mind is free to wander aimlessly as you prepare for each pitch.

•    Cue yourself to concentrate. Sometimes it’s hard to refocus when the last at-bat was 30 minutes ago. Lock in your concentration once it is your turn to at the plate. To help you click in, try using a physical trigger to focus your mind, such as tightening the Velcro on your glove before start. You want to turn your attention to preparation and execution for the first pitch, and if anything else enters your mind, let it pass through your mind.

•    Relax your focus while you wait. Not too many players can focus continuously for two to three hours. When you are up to bat it’s important to be ready, but you don’t want to overanalyze the entire game. After each inning, relax your focus and save your concentration for the next time at-bat. This will help you be “fresher” for the end of the game.

•    Rehearse while you wait. Rehearse your at-bat before you’re up to play if you have trouble focusing after a long delay. For example, while on deck, imagine that you are at the plate taking pitches. Time your swing with the pitcher and “see” yourself make solid contact. When it’s your turn, you will be prepared to click in the focus because you already rehearsed your at-bat routine.