Pre-Game Rituals

Pre-game Rituals

This is always a funny topic to ask athletes. Some are quite eccentric while others are simple and not as noticeable. My pre-game rituals were odd, I will admit and I’m sure you’ll get in a light chuckle. I’d love to hear what you’re pre-game rituals & what makes you unique as an athlete.

Here are mine:

1. I would have to shave down like a swimmer the night before, why? The only logical reason was I always secretly wanted to be a swimmer and maybe subconsciously thought my arm would glide through the air quicker. #michaelphelpsmindset
2. I had to eat the same food before every game which was a turkey sandwich & a cookie (or a carmello candy bar when my parents would show up to the game, holla!)
3. I would get a 5 min arm massage from my trainer and talk to her aka crack lots of jokes… Trainers are almost as beneficial as therapists. We were lucky because we had great ones!
4. I would do some deep breathing exercises then jog for 10 mins (this started in pro ball)
5. I HAD to have the ball in the wrapper because I would open it and put the plastic in my back right pocket. During college it was Kristen Miller's job to take the wrapper. 100% weird.

Being a lefty automatically makes me the unique one on the team, and I would say I definitely lived up to it. Many calling me "wild thing" and possessed many characteristics to Charlie Sheen's character Rick Vaughn from "Major League."

So what are your pre-game rituals and what makes you stand out?

Don't be like Barbie... BREATHE!

As corny as this sounds think about how many athletes you see holding their breathe or grunting as they pitch or hitting a ball. Most of us aren’t taught to properly breathe. It took me half my career to be told my Sophomore year at ASU that I didn’t breathe properly. First I laughed, then realized Karl Keuhl was serious, and he was right. It took me 2 full days of practice to learn how to breathe, because I had to find my timing with the pitches because everything was out of whack. Needless to say I got pretty frustrated in those practices, however it made the difference of me going the distance rather than being gassed in the 4th inning. 

How to Breathe:

1. Standing: Take your hands and place them on your diaphragm, then take 3 deep breathes in & 6 breathes out. This can be useful in high pressure situations in games and in the dug-out in-between innings. Also, a great tool for life situations.
2. Pitching: Think of a weightlifter, they breathe in on the way down during a squat and out during the push. Same thing for pitching, you breathe in before and release on the decent. The breath should be drawn out till the ball pops into the mitt (example: I typically would breathe before I pitch (also while I talked to myself), again on the mound, and then released the valve sounding like a leaky tire.)
3. Hitting: During the exertion of hitting the pitch, also before stepping into the box.
4. Fielding: Breathe in as you field and out when you throw

Why should we breathe so much?

1. It helps to release oxygen into our blood stream which then helps us to relax & clears our mind
2. It elongates our muscles so we get more extension and power behind our movements
3. It makes the difference of feeling tired, to instead having more energy for longer periods

If you can remember to take long drawn out breaths and get over sounding “silly” you will see the difference too. Not to mention when you breathe loud enough, it sounds like the ball is spinning at 100 MPH, so it’s deceiving to the batter as well as the crowd. Take the time for the little things and you will gain more in the long term. KEEP CALM AND BREATHE ON!

Getting Over the YIPS!

This is a tough one. I can’t count on two hands how many times I’ve seen athletes get the yips and never bring themselves out of it. For instance, Myself. I  had a heck of a time throwing to first base. It became a mental block because I had failed at it so many times, but once I got over the yips, I stopped focusing on not making a good through and focused on hitting the glove. Sometimes that meant my second baseman had to dig out the ball, she was a stud (thanks Mindy Cowles!).

Ways to fight the yips:

1. Breathe… Sound familiar? Breathing is a common thread in sports and many times looked past. 
2. Practice… If you are having a hard time at something, practice till you get the fear out of your system and practice success. Repetition breeds consistency.
3. Self-Talk… There is nothing worse than telling yourself you can’t do something. Start practicing not only repetitions of doing it correctly, but of talking to yourself with compassion and encouragement.
4. Watch Video… Commonly we have a habit we picked up and it needs a little tweak. Visual learning stimulates the brain and helps register when you’re kinesthetically performing the movement.
5. Trust… Even when you may doubt yourself trust it! Trust goes a long way.
6. Accountability Partner… Tell one of your teammates to talk to you throughout the game and keep encouraging you even if you make a mistake. Sometimes you will have to be that person for someone else even on the bad days. 
7. Perseverance… Be the train and repeat “I think I can, I think I can, till it becomes I know I can, and by golly I did it!” 

Now that we got this one off our chest, its time to get back at it and start practicing. You will only go as far as you believe you can go. So every day try raising the bar and say “asta la vista, baby” to those yips!

To Ice or Not to Ice?

There has been much debate about icing after competition. My feelings are you can’t go wrong with icing, and this is coming from someone who would rather get in a fight with a polar bear. I have a few suggestions why you should and how to make it easy, also included are articles that play devils advocate about icing. Why not? I love a debate.

Even if icing is merely mental, I generally saw the benefits after a long brutal weekend against our nemesis U of A. Especially during our epic sweep during 2008, where Taryn Mowatt and I went pitch for pitch for 10 innings. The end score 9-8, if there was a theme song it would have been Outkast’s “Bombs over Baghdad, because it got cray cray. For instance, after that game I iced, and the next day my arm didn’t feel tight or sore. Before the next game, which was Wednesday our trainer massaged my arm for about 5 mins to get it loose. You can do this yourself in the shower, as Coach Lee would tell us (SLOHS Softball) “milk your arm.” Still to this day telling H.S girls to “milk your arm” brings a smile to my face, because it’s just hilarious, you know we were all super immature about it too. What this does is it helps to push the lactic acid around so the blood flows and breaks up stiffness.

So here are some tips:

1. Ice once you’ve cooled down about 15 mins after competition
2. Ice no more than 15-20 mins
3. Massage your arm during a hot shower
4. Drink your recovery formula & lots of WATER

Now to play devil’s advocate, I read in a Yahoo article about icing one’s arm after competition, and they had valuable information that I suggest you read as well. During exercise you make micro tears in the muscle that cause inflammation, in which they state, “Inflammation is part of the natural healing process and a normal function of our immune system. We can't repair our muscles and tissues without it…Swelling isn't the problem. The problem is lingering waste products as a result of injury. These waste products need to be washed away by driving fluid into the area and flushing waste away using the lymphatic system, a part of the circulatory system that sucks up waste and debris for removal…. Icing literally freezes the lymphatic system in its tracks, preventing it from kick-starting the healing process” (http://sports.yahoo.com/news/pitchers-ice-throwing-prevent-shoulder-173013495.html). They suggest light activity/exercises, proper nutrition, and sleep. If you’re not willing to ice, check out my article on warming down because that too can act as a good way of slowly letting your body cool off with a foster’s freeze touch.

What ever your athlete chooses to do, you won’t be harmed either way- unless you’re trying for hypothermia- in that case behave. Good luck and remember drink lots of water, eat well, and get your 8 hours! 

What to buy: 

(*Note this is a leak free, waste free way to ice your arm, I learned this trick in Japan!)

1. Ice Bags- 3 Pack (buy 2): https://www.amazon.com/Ohuhu-Hot-Cold-Ice-Pack/dp/B01AADOZCU/ref=sr_1_4_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1491489561&sr=8-4&keywords=ice+bags
2. Ace Bandages (buy 3) https://www.amazon.com/ACE-Elastic-Bandage-Closure-Inches/dp/B005YU8TEA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1491489435&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=ace+bandage&psc=1

The Warm Down

How do you warm down? Or do you? This is a common question that I get asked from concerned parents and coaches about how their athletes should "warm down," "should they ice," etc. I didn’t learn how to properly cool down until playing professionally in Japan. Of course there are many different theories and objectives about this matter, however I am going to share with you what I did during my H.S & professional years. My mentality was and still is “How bad do you want it? What are you willing to do to be your best?” Through the years I have adopted, discontinued, and changed my regimen, to fit my needs- this is a process.

During the early years of playing ball, when we were done, we didn’t stretch, jog, or ice… We were just ready to head to the pizza party! Funny fact, to this day I HATE stretching, IT HURTS, but no joke, I have had doctors, trainers, coaches, telling me I will end up in a wheelchair if I don't take care of my body. When I say I lack flexibility, I’m talking... My toes look miles away, and my arms feel like they’re going to snap off when I stretch them- over exaggerating a hair here, but not by much.

One suggestion I would make is forcing yourself to stretch, and teach this coaches early on. How you can make stretching a little more fun, is by introducing the foam roller as early as possible, it is useful for all position players, plus you will see great improvements on speed and agility. It wasn’t until H.S that I formed a regimen to warm down after I pitched and as I got older the better my warm down got. 

Here’s a list of what I do to warm down from pitching a game:

1. Jog (SLOW) 10-12 mins in a jacket

-The jacket helps to regulate body temperature so you don’t cool off too fast

2. Stretch (main muscle groups)

-15-30 seconds each stretch

-Focus on arms, shoulders, lower back, quads, hammies, wrists, groin, & Achilles

3. Ice for 15-20 mins

- I hate anything cold, so ice baths and I were not friends. So I understand any resistance to having ice thrown on your arm, especially if the bags drip which is why I recommend the twist top ice bags & ace bandages or the Ice20 Combo Arm Compression Wrap

4. Drink water mixed with a recovery formula

-I suggest BCAA & GLUTAMINE(visit here: http://www.vitaminshoppe.com/p/ bodytech-bcaa-glutamine-6-9-oz-powder/vs-2045#.VKsKdcY-DVo) 

-It is a NCAA approved supplement (note: their rules do change frequently, so always double check if you are a collegiate athlete)

5. Always eat 30-60 mins after competition

-Fuel up with lean proteins, veggies, and water. Stay away from starchy, sugary foods.

-Your goal is to replenish the amino acids, electrolytes, and proteins lost during exercise  

6. Always bring a change of clothes. After you ice, change so you don’t get a chill

Even in college, I remember watching Danielle Lawrie from Washington run after games. We weren't sure if she was torturing herself after a loss, or there was something funny in the water in Canada. None of the above were true, bottom line was she had been a seasoned olympic athlete that had been trained that warming down was an essential part of staying and maintaining a healthy body. Back then we were pitching way more games too, so I consider myself lucky I stayed so healthy, because I certainly didn't have a sensei. It’s a lot to soak in, I know, and I'm sure it seems like with all these blogs, vlogs, etc there’s always someone adding something to the “to do list.” When implemented it doesn't become a task, it becomes a part of your routine. Routine is everything, and to me I want to be better than my competition, so I like to stay a step ahead. Believe me Japan is killing it over there, and we better get prepared to kick some kobe beef in 2020- or else we'll be taking home Silver again!!!!

Articles based on the warm-down:

1. http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/04/24/do-we-have-to-cool-down-after-exercise/?_r=0
2. Also, for those that want to know why here’s a great article http://www.physioroom.com/prevention/cool_down1.php

3. http://hss.edu/onthemove/warm-up-and-cool-down-tips-for-baseball-players/#.VKsJH8Y-DVo