In-season training is about maintaining strength, power, and speed while minimizing fatigue and injury risk. At Parsons Sports Performance (PSP), we help athletes train smarter, not harder, to stay game-ready. Here’s a concise guide to the do’s and don’ts of in-season workouts, optimized for baseball players looking to dominate without burnout.

Exercises to Avoid (and Why)
• Maxing Out Compound Lifts: Heavy lifts like max-effort squats or deadlifts cause neural fatigue and slow recovery, reducing explosiveness when you need it most.
• Olympic Lifts (e.g., Hang Clean, Power Clean): These technical lifts stress elbows, shoulders, and back—critical areas for throwing performance. The risk outweighs the reward for power development.
• High-Volume Single-Joint Exercises (Shoulder & Arm): Excessive reps (e.g., 4 sets of 15 wrist curls) increase inflammation and overuse injuries like tendonitis, digging you into a recovery deficit.

What to Do Instead:
• Submaximal Effort Training: Use low-volume, high-intensity workouts with 85-90% of your 1RM. This maintains strength and explosiveness without excessive fatigue.
• Dynamic Effort & Loaded Jumps: Swap Olympic lifts for dynamic effort training and loaded jumps. These mimic on-field explosive movements, building power with less technical risk.
• Isometric Variations: Replace high-volume single-joint exercises with isometrics. These target key muscles, maintain joint stability, and minimize inflammation—perfect for protecting your throwing arm while preserving strength endurance.

Training Tip: Safety Squat Bar
Swap barbell back squats for safety squat bar squats. The unique hand positioning reduces shoulder and elbow stress while boosting lower body strength, keeping you powerful and safe.