So, hopefully the first part of this series convinced you that in-season training is not only a GREAT idea, but as a matter of fact an absolute necessity if we’re going to be OUR BEST for this season and for season’s to come.
But now, if you’re like many driven athletes and individuals you’re thinking: “Ok, I’m in, I’m going to train in-season BUT what should my in-season training goals BE?” If that’s you, I’m here to help shine some light on it.
Now in this part of the series we’re not going to get too much into the nuts and bolts of HOW to train in-season, and if you’re one of my athletes you don’t HAVE TO think too much into that as I’ll have you covered BUT I will cover those X’s and O’s in part 3. This part we’re simply SETTING GOALS, and creating frameworks.
The first and overarching goal of in-season training should simply be TO SHOW UP. There are absolutely competing demands, tough practices, tough games, and emotional rollercoasters that accompany the season, however one of IF NOT THE MOST important keys to successful in-season training is CONSISTENCY. Missing A WEEK or TWO of in-season training can absolutely be a train wreck. It throws off our stimulus adaptation recovery curve and our recoverability from training bouts, making for some really tough decision in future weeks, avoid that at all costs.
Simply FIND A WAY to get to the gym 2-3x per week. At my facility here in NJ we actually opened up a later slot for in-season training by shifting our schedule around, which makes it more accessible to our ballplayers (some of which come from over an hour away to train).
The second in-season training goal you should set for yourself is to be consistent with your strategy. We see too often after a bad game, outing, or practice that an athlete just wants to throw their program away and load up a heavy deadlift to “blow off steam” - I certainly FEEL THAT on a spiritual level BUT baseball specifically is literally the kingpin sport for FAILING. The entire game is predicated on failure and the ability to rebound, part of that psychological rebound ability is rooted in the ability to stay on task and consistent with your strategy.
Here at ATS, we have a very specific strategy for every training session that takes place, in-season and off-season so it’s easy for our athletes to stay the course, however if you’re not an in-person #ATEAM athlete, keep this in mind: CONSISTENCY TRUMPS INTENSITY. If today calls for submaximal loading, but you had a bad game: keep a level head and understand that sticking to the PLAN will do more for you than an ego lift in the moment. (P.S. in part three we’ll cover exactly when it’s time to VETO the plan, but when we VETO or auto-regulate we very rarely go for an EGO heavy maximal lift in-season, just something to keep in mind).
The third in-season training goal will be a little bit controversial but the truth is if you’re a NOVICE athlete in regards to your training age (meaning you haven’t done strength, power, and speed training consistently or intelligently in the past), you should actually have the goal of getting STRONGER in-season. This goes also for ballplayers who are NOT getting a ton of innings out of the bullpen or a ton of at bats as a back-up.
For advanced athletes, who have trained for a few years, getting stronger may require more direct loading then warranted in-season BUT my novice guys and the guys who aren’t playing a ton, we go back to that idea of consistency and development. This is your chance to literally create more degrees of separation between you and the competition. Set a goal of hitting small PR’s throughout the course of the season and you’ll hit the showcase circuit, well ready to show out.
