Well it's mid-November and for the most part the tournament season is behind us. Basketball season as well as 4 good months of winter lie ahead. For most players, that signifies that baseball season is over. How wrong !
I'm still getting daily e-mails from college coaches as well as showcase people asking me to pass along information. This is where the issue arises about your season being over. If your dream/goal is to become a college or professional player, there is no real down time. You are or want to be a baseball player. That means 11 months of the year, you have to work at "BASEBALL". I have no problem with multi-sport athletes and in fact I encourage it. However, if you want to be a baseball player you need to continually work at your skill even while playing soccer, basketball, hockey etc. You can not and should not ever think of attending one of these camps or showcases if you have not stayed in baseball shape.
We just got back from Jupiter,FL at the Perfect Game WWBA Championsips, which is the must attend event, at least once in your career. As Mr Tom Rizzi stated "It is the Woodstock of baseball". Coach Gallo from Iona Prep called it "A Baseball junkies heaven". For me, It's just a great time and I have great memories of being there with my boys. At the end of the event I have the same speech with all our players. I encourage them to now begin the tough work. They have all just watched games featuring the best players in the country, many of whom are bigger, stronger and possibly more skilled. It's time to narrow the gap. There are not many players from the Northeast who get the opportunity to play in this event and our guys are fortunate that we are able to take over 40 of them. I hope that they learn a lesson and fully understand what we are asking of them. The joke has been, work hard, round is not the shape I'm asking you to get in. Find a workout for yourself and get involved in it. Go to GNC and ask for supplements that will help with your workout routine to add some muscle and get bigger and stronger all while you continue to do some hitting, light throw and running. It works, trust me.
So what is the off season? It's a time to slow down your routine. It's a time to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses. It's a time to figure out what needs to be done to be a better player. It's a time to do your school work, better grades open up more doors for you. It's a time to research schools that peak your interest and send the coaches emails, be proactive. No summer coach is going to be able to do it all for you although there are many parents/players who think we can. it's a time to schedule some un-official visits, see what size school appeals to you. The off season is not a time for the couch and video games.
I had a player last year who used the off season to do just that, sit around. He missed winter workouts to watch football games and by looking at his size, he obviously missed the part about hitting the gym. I tried to keep an eye on the sports pages during the HS season to see how our boys were doing and didn't see his name in the papers at all...my mind is wondering..Then I get a call from him right around the first of June asking what my plan was for him this summer? Had I contacted any schools for him? All because, as he stated "This is a very big, important summer for him". My reply was, not sure, no and did you realize your summer began on November 1 the fall before? Obviously I knew the answer!
The season never ends, it just slows down! If you want to play at the next level, there is no off-season.
Are You ready
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Drinking To Fit In ??
What Are the Effects of Alcohol on Athletes in Sports?
At the college level, the average student athlete will consume in excess of 34 gallons of alcoholic beverages per year. Many athletes, even the pros, believe it is no big deal to drink as long as they don't do it before a game, competition or practice. But alcohol can remain in the body for up to three days, and after two consecutive nights of drinking, it can linger for up to five days.
Performance: Alcohol is toxic to testosterone. In male athletes, diminished testosterone affects aggression and, over time, lean muscle mass. Alcohol also slows reaction time and affects hand-to-eye coordination, both of which can result in poor performance. It affects the hippocampus, the part of the brain where learning takes place. Because it lingers in your system for days after you stopped drinking, alcohol can impair your ability to learn new plays or techniques in practice. Your attention span will remain shorter for up to 48 hours after you drink.
You might have no problem falling asleep after you've been drinking, but your body will have a hard time staying asleep and cycling through the stages of sleep naturally. If you drink on a regular basis and your sleep is frequently impaired, it will impact your body's production of human growth hormone, which is vital to build and maintain the strong muscles required to participate in most sports at a competitive level. Lack of quality sleep will also impair your mental faculties, making it more difficult to learn and retain information regarding new plays, rules and strategies.
Dehydration: Dehydration is one of the greatest dangers to drinking before a sporting event. Alcohol is a diuretic and if you drink enough, it can take your body several days to hydrate again after the binge. This puts you at greater risk for injury, and it impacts your body's ability to heal itself after you've sustained one.
Nutrition: Alcohol contains about 7 calories per gram. If you drink a great deal regularly, this can easily result in additional body fat, even with the exercise you get playing sports. And the calories in alcohol do your body no good. They're empty. Your muscles can't use them for energy. Alcohol also affects the way your body processes zinc from foods. Your body needs zinc for endurance.
Aerobic Impact: While sports like football involve periods of intense activity followed by periods of inactivity, other sports, such as basketball, hockey, biking or rowing, require that you sustain aerobic activity for longer periods of time. Participating in these types of sports while suffering from a hangover can impact aerobic performance up to 11 percent.
MedicalDetox.org/DrugAlcoholRehabSponsored LinksReferences
UC San Diego Intercollegiate Athletics: Alcohol and Athletic Performance
University of Notre Dame Office of Alcohol and Drug Education:
Alcohol and AthletesESPN: Drugs and Sports --
AlcoholUniversity of Georgia Health Center:
Alcohol and Athletic Performance
At the college level, the average student athlete will consume in excess of 34 gallons of alcoholic beverages per year. Many athletes, even the pros, believe it is no big deal to drink as long as they don't do it before a game, competition or practice. But alcohol can remain in the body for up to three days, and after two consecutive nights of drinking, it can linger for up to five days.
Performance: Alcohol is toxic to testosterone. In male athletes, diminished testosterone affects aggression and, over time, lean muscle mass. Alcohol also slows reaction time and affects hand-to-eye coordination, both of which can result in poor performance. It affects the hippocampus, the part of the brain where learning takes place. Because it lingers in your system for days after you stopped drinking, alcohol can impair your ability to learn new plays or techniques in practice. Your attention span will remain shorter for up to 48 hours after you drink.
You might have no problem falling asleep after you've been drinking, but your body will have a hard time staying asleep and cycling through the stages of sleep naturally. If you drink on a regular basis and your sleep is frequently impaired, it will impact your body's production of human growth hormone, which is vital to build and maintain the strong muscles required to participate in most sports at a competitive level. Lack of quality sleep will also impair your mental faculties, making it more difficult to learn and retain information regarding new plays, rules and strategies.
Dehydration: Dehydration is one of the greatest dangers to drinking before a sporting event. Alcohol is a diuretic and if you drink enough, it can take your body several days to hydrate again after the binge. This puts you at greater risk for injury, and it impacts your body's ability to heal itself after you've sustained one.
Nutrition: Alcohol contains about 7 calories per gram. If you drink a great deal regularly, this can easily result in additional body fat, even with the exercise you get playing sports. And the calories in alcohol do your body no good. They're empty. Your muscles can't use them for energy. Alcohol also affects the way your body processes zinc from foods. Your body needs zinc for endurance.
Aerobic Impact: While sports like football involve periods of intense activity followed by periods of inactivity, other sports, such as basketball, hockey, biking or rowing, require that you sustain aerobic activity for longer periods of time. Participating in these types of sports while suffering from a hangover can impact aerobic performance up to 11 percent.
MedicalDetox.org/DrugAlcoholRehabSponsored LinksReferences
UC San Diego Intercollegiate Athletics: Alcohol and Athletic Performance
University of Notre Dame Office of Alcohol and Drug Education:
Alcohol and AthletesESPN: Drugs and Sports --
AlcoholUniversity of Georgia Health Center:
Alcohol and Athletic Performance
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