Pitching program

Question
Mike, My daughter has been a pitcher going on 3 years now.I have researched to net for a good winter program to keep her healthy and get her stronger and more accurate. Due you know of any programs out there, or have any opinions on how much pitching she should be doing? She has good mechanics and has pitched up to around 500-600 pitches a week. What is to much? She is 12 and has played travel ball for 2 years and rec for 5 years Thanks RR.

Answer
Robert,

I also have a 12 year old pitcher and don't feel there is a set number of pitches you should try and achieve on a weekly basis.  It's really going to depend on the conditioned level of your girl.  I think too many pitches in a session leads to a girl changing her mechanics to compensate for tired muscles.  This will eventually lead to shoulder, elbow, and even back problems.  If she has an instructor for the winter months, I'd recommend two additional pitching sessions a week on top of the instructor's session.  You have to be careful not to burn your child out during the off-season at this age.

As far as conditioning goes, I think I would concentrate on a training method that helps her develop speed as well as strength conditioning and really emphasis stretching exercises to promote muscle elongation and flexibility.

The absolute best advice I can give you on this subject is to listen to your daughter.  Too many times, we as parents push more than they like and often get negative results.  Make it fun for her and allow her to have some input on "how many pitches are too much".  I hope this was helpful.