Prescribing Overload and Underload Implements for Pitchers

Intro

Overload and underload throwing implements are a part of the vast majority of pitchers’ daily throwing routines with plyoballs and weighted baseballs. The use of these skyrocketed after Driveline boomed in popularity, boasting that they aid in increasing throwing velocity and arm health. Initially met with lots of criticism and backlash, plyos and weighted balls are now used everywhere. Generally, heavier implements are used for recovery exercises, arm path/timing, and arm strengthening. Lighter implements are used for trying to increase arm speed.

Most programs have players throwing every weight trying to improve all of these aspects, but it can generate very mixed results with throwing velocity. While still having an upward trend across all of these athletes as a whole, I believe it can be more effective to tailor it differently towards some.

Here at PRP, when athletes are looking to throw harder and are appropriately built up enough, they go through a “velo phase”. One of these tests is a plyo velo test, where athletes throw a 225g (7.9oz), 150g (5.3oz), and 100g (3.5oz) balls into a net with a radar recording the velocities. When retested, we then want to see an increase for each ball. Recently, I have been testing a different way to go about this with great success so far, implementing more over/underload balls based off of the athlete’s Force-Velocity Profile.

Why?

I first read about Force-Velocity Profile from Bill Miller’s book “Throw Fast: A Guide to Developing Throwing Power” where he talks about testing his players with medicine ball throws. He would use a 10lb, 6lb, and 2lb medicine ball for his tests and record the velocity of them. If an athlete performed well with the lighter load, but not the heavier loads, then that would indicate a force-deficient profile and needing more heavily loaded training. If the results were switched then that would indicate a velocity-deficient profile and needing more lighter loaded training for speed.

Although Bill was talking more about taking this to better train athletes in the weight room, and seeing this mentioned by Dodgers Integrated Performance Coach Clayton Thompson, I believe it can be used for throwing as well. Throwing a ball is no different than exercises in the weight room, and can be trained similarly. Taking their numbers from the plyo velo testing they did (can also use weighted baseballs for this as well), you can then learn more about the athlete’s Force-Velocity Profile and use it to your advantage.

If they have a deficiency on one side of the spectrum or the other, then exercises in the weight room and medicine ball throws should be tailored to what they need more of. Their throwing can then be tailored to them too.

For example, if an athlete has a velocity-deficient profile and their normal plyo routine involves two throws with each a 225g and 150g ball for every drill they have, replace it instead with two throws with each a 150g and 100g ball. You could also have all four throws be with only the 100g plyo ball for a greater stimulus. Taking that same athlete in a plyo velo test, you can replace their rep with the 225g ball for an extra rep with the100g ball to replicate and test the same stimulus again. You can help with force-deficient athletes by using an overload setup like the underload example.

Weighted baseballs can also substitute the place of the plyoballs in these examples, utilizing 5oz (regulation baseball), 4oz, and 3oz baseballs for the athletes needing an underload stimulus, and 5oz, 6oz, and 7oz baseballs for the overload stimulus. 

These set ups and examples will not be necessary for every athlete, as some players profiles are balanced and would be best using the original programming. If their training is becoming too monotonous, you can also cycle in periods of the more overload and underload style throwing training.

One example of training becoming too monotonous can include an athlete hitting a hard plateau with their velocity training. Usually all that’s needed to get over/through the plateau is to change the stimulus as the body has become too accustomed to the normal training. Another example is an athlete becoming bored with their normal training. This is more common in athletes than people realize. They get to a point where their mental arousal level is too low, which will cause subpar performances. Keeping their arousal level up (but not to the point of over-arousal) can help athletes stay “dialed in” for successful performances. 

You can even cycle it to match their strength and power/speed phases of their weight training, or just program it similarly. Using the plyoball and weighted baseball set ups mentioned above for overload first while they’re in their strength phase of weight training. This phase would typically last roughly 4 weeks for both the throwing and weight training. Once the athlete moves to the speed/power phase then you would use the underload setups for roughly 4 weeks as well. Test their mound velocity with a “plyo velo” or “weighted ball velo” once a week to monitor the progress during these phases. If unable to match up the throwing cycles to their program in the weight room, it would still be an overload cycle first for 2-4 weeks before then moving to an underload cycle.

Conclusion

Throwing programs can always be customized to meet the needs of each individual athlete. While primarily using drills, constraints, and the weight room to improve on an athlete's weaknesses, using a Force-Velocity Profile can help with more on the throwing side as well and has already shown great initial success with athletes so far. While everyone is using plyoballs and weighted baseballs now, this can be a way to give players an advantage over everyone else.