Over the past 10 weeks, Slammers North has conducted team training for the 16U and 18U Firecrackers as well as the 16U and 18U Gold Stars club softball teams. Each week, the teams participated in multiple training sessions focusing both on skill development and strength and conditioning.
Led by Slammers Softball Director, Nicole Trimboli and Strength Coach, Dan Perse, 24 of 36 girls saw an increase in their power output in the Loden Sports athletic evaluation; all pitchers saw their max and average velocities increase in their pitching evaluation; and 30 of 36 girls saw an increase in their average exit velocities in their hitting evaluation.
Using Rapsodo and Loden Sports technology, Slammers was able to track improvements from the original evaluation day on January 6 to the most recent evaluation on March 17.
Loden Sports Evaluation
The Loden Sports Evaluation is a universal athletic evaluation that assesses an athletes motor. Included in the evaluation is a rebound jumps test (power and quickness), a 30-yard sprint (speed), and single leg jumps (symmetry).
Each athlete that completes a Loden Sports performance evaluation receives a Power, Quickness, Speed, and Loden (overall) score. These scores are a benchmark to track physical progress as an athlete matures. Essentially, a Loden Score provides a check-in on how an athlete’s body is performing.
You make regular visits to the dentist for your teeth. You make regular visits to a garage to get your car serviced. Why should an athlete’s body be any different?
Each score is on a simple, 0-12 scale.
The Female Loden Score Systems ensures an appropriate benchmark for female athletes.
Research-backed: The Loden Score System was created to be strongly linked to things that matter for the athlete on-field.
Loden Sports has tested thousands of athletes of all ages. The Loden Score System is a trusted measure of raw athleticism for all sports.
How do we use a Loden Score?
The Loden Score allows coaches and parents to answer questions like:
Are we doing the right things for our athlete’s development?
What are areas where we can improve?
Athletes should use the Loden Score to help strive to be the best version of themselves. Development is non-linear and will happen at different rates for everyone. The goal for an athlete should always be to get a little better than last time.
What did we see from January to March?
Led by Strength and Conditioning Coach, Dan Perse, the 36 girls who were present for the Loden Sports Evaluation on both January 6 and March 17 saw a collective improvement across the board…
In just 3 months, the girls saw incremental gains in their run splits and the biggest gains came in their rebound jump heights (3RJ Height) and rebound jump power (3RJ Power). Increasing jump height and power output directly translates on-field to hitting and throwing the ball harder. Speed and explosiveness in all sports starts and ends with what are rooted to the ground: the legs.
How do you improve a Loden Score?
For athletes aged 14+, the Loden Score is most effected by:
Good routines: everything from regular restful sleep to properly fueling the body to a balanced workout regimen can make sure an athlete stays on track in their development. Without good routines, progress may be stunted.
Getting stronger: hard work in the gym + good routines (see above) = accelerated improvement in an athlete’s Loden Score.
Getting faster: it’s not just about getting stronger, Power and Quickness require speed and elasticity. Plyometrics and max effort sprinting go a long way towards maximizing an athlete’s potential.
Nature: Loden Scores will improve naturally as an athlete makes their way through puberty and towards physical maturity.
Being an athlete on a softball field is important. Got it.
Rapsodo Pitching
At Slammers, we use a Rapsodo Pitching unit to track changes in our pitchers. Is it any surprise that with athleticism up across the board that pitching velocity (both max and average) would also be up across the board?
If for whatever reason it does come as a surprise, take a second to think about all of that force you’re pushing into the ground every time you throw a pitch… power in the legs. is. important.
Rapsodo Hitting
In addition to using a Rapsodo unit to track changes in our pitchers, we also use a Rapsodo unit to track our hitters. And once again, collectively, exit velocities (both max and average) are up across the board…
This is fun, should we keep going?
Putting it All Together
At Slammers, we’re not just relying on you “feeling” faster or stronger. We’re showing you with cold hard numbers AND we’re showing you the softball-specific results using more cold hard numbers.
It’s accountability for us and it’s accountability for you.
Before we let you go, a quick shout out to Rylee Diebold and Gabi Giroux…
Rylee and Gabi were the two biggest winners from the 10-week training period. And shocker: their huge improvements in athleticism translated in huge improvements in their exit velocities.
The moral of the story is: training is your best friend. If you’re looking to maximize your potential on a softball field: