It has been six weeks since I returned home from Rome to start the second grind of the year. The off season grind is a different animal compared to in season, and the biggest difficulty is finding things to do. The activities on my schedule for the last six weeks have been, working out, teaching, and coaching.
When first arriving back at home I was unsure of how long to take off before lifting again. After a few days, the weights were calling my name and after barely being able to move any of them, I decided I need a little bit more time to rest. The good news is, that my body has responded well to lifting, and is able to handle more weight now that I have been going consistently for the last month or so.
Also as part of my workouts I as able to procure a membership to a gym with a swimming pool. The pool is open for lap swimming almost all day, and that has been a fun way to get cardio in my routine a few times a week. The only problem is, right now I’m not very good at swimming so onlookers probably think I am struggling to stay afloat. The older folks swimming by me at a constant pace doesn’t help, but one day my old person endurance will kick in.
The substitute life has been treating me well as I try to raise as many funds as possible before going into the next full season. Thinking I needed more time to break from activity, I didn’t start signing up to sub until October. That mindset didn’t work too well and I was back in the classroom a week or so after I was home. When the opportunity comes up for a good sub job like physical education, have to take advantage of those.
In the coaching realm I was asked to help out with a 15u and 16u baseball team here locally. Right now I help out with the extra activity, but also learning about pitching still myself. My friends Dan and Lucas at Warbird Academy, where the team is, are the other two coaches for the younger team. The other day we were talking about basic pitching drills and mechanics. Well that is the stuff that interests me, because I never heard any of that this summer. The sponging learning process never stops.
As far as pitching goes and what I am doing right now, it isn’t much. I am always wondering if I am doing enough work compared to what other players are doing back home. At the end of the day I think I have been putting in enough extra work to where I am on par with guys who are still outside playing everyday. The instructional league in Orlando just ended, but the Arizona league and winter leagues around the world are just starting to pick up. Throwing right now is not something I do, but I feel like I could. I mean guys are still throwing all year round in their respective leagues, and playing catch wouldn’t be too taxing I think. The good part about being home and not being on a schedule is I can workout and do drills whenever I want. Eleven at night and I want something to do, then I can walk outside and do drills, or do mechanical drills in the living room.
I know there isn’t much to discuss as far as baseball updates right now, but they will be coming. There is a lot of work to do this off season. This off season to me is more important that last year, because I have to make the adjustments they want or who knows what will happen.
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