Strength Training for Softball Players: The 7 Best Exercises + Workout

Strength Training for Softball Players: The 7 Best Exercises + Workout

Like most team sports, softball is a full-body activity.

While batting and throwing involve different muscles, players usually do both, so they need to be fit and strong enough to perform these activities well. 

In addition to batting and throwing, softball players must be able to jog, run, sprint, and even jump.

Because the ball often bounces or rolls unpredictably, the ability to move in every direction (forward, backward, sideways, diagonally) is critical too. 

Strength training can help improve every aspect of softball performance.  

Despite being a non-contact sport, injuries are not uncommon in softball.

Pitchers often suffer shoulder problems, and things like torn hamstrings and wrenched knees are problems faced by fielders and batters alike. 

The good news is that strength training can help lower the risk of injuries by increasing joint stability and muscle, tendon, and ligament integrity and resilience. 

So, better performance and less time on the injured list?

It sounds like anyone who plays softball can benefit from a well-designed strength training program! 

This article reveals the seven best strength training exercises for softball players and provides you with a sample workout to follow. 

The Best Strength Training Exercises for Softball Players 

Are you looking to improve your strength for softball or bulletproof your body against the risk of injury?

These are the exercises that you should include in your workouts! 

#1. Goblet squat with glute band 

Muscles worked: Quadriceps, hamstrings, gluteus maximus, abductors, adductors, core. 

The squat is a fundamental movement pattern in softball and in life.

Players often spend minutes at a time in a squat position, so it pays to do this movement in training.

Also, squats are arguably the best way to strengthen your lower body for faster sprints and higher jumps. 

Finally, squats with a glute band will strengthen your outer hips for faster, more powerful lateral movements and healthier, more stable hips and knees. 

How to do it: 

1. Place a glute (aka booty) band around your legs, just above or below your knees.
2. Step out into a shoulder-width stance; toes turned slightly outward. 
3. Hold a dumbbell or kettlebell in front of your chest.
4. Pull your shoulders down and back, and brace your abs. 
5. Bend your knees and squat down until your thighs are roughly parallel to the floor.
6. Push your knees out against the tension of the band. 
7. Take care not to round your lower back. 
8. Stand back up and repeat. 

#2. Single-leg Romanian deadlift

Muscles worked: Hamstrings, gluteus maximus, abductors, adductors, core. 

The hip hinge is an essential movement in softball.

It’s a big part of sprinting and something most players do when they bend down to catch or pick up the ball.

Doing this exercise on one leg will improve your balance, which is an important aspect of softball. 

How to do it: 

1. Stand with your feet together and arms by your sides.
2. Hold a dumbbell or kettlebell in your right hand.
3. Brace your abs and pull your shoulders down and back. 
4. Shift your weight over onto your right foot.
5. Your supporting knee should be slightly bent but rigid. 
6. Leaning from your hips, bend over and lower the weight down toward the floor.
7. Do not round your lower back.
8. Extend your left leg out behind you for balance. 
9. Stand up straight and repeat. 
10. Complete your set, rest a moment, and then switch legs.
11. Do the same number of reps on both legs. 

#3. Lateral band walks 

Muscles worked: Gluteus maximus, abductors, adductors.

Softball involves a lot of lateral movements, such as moving sideways to intercept the ball.

However, most strength training exercises are done in the sagittal plane, i.e., forward and backward.

This exercise will increase your strength and power for sideways movements and also improve your knee and hip joint stability for fewer injuries. 

How to do it: 

1. Place a glute (aka booty) band around your legs, just above or below your knees.
2. Step out into a shoulder-width stance, toes pointing forward.
3. Bend your knees and descend into a quarter to half-depth squat. 
4. Step sideways for the required number of reps, staying in the semi-crouched position. 
5. Side-step back again for the same number of reps. 
6. Make this exercise more quads-centric by adopting a deeper squat. 

#4. Deficit push-ups 

Muscles worked: Pectorals major, anterior deltoids, triceps, core. 

Softball players need upper body strength but don’t necessarily want big, bulky muscles.

The push-up is arguably the most convenient way to achieve this goal.

Doing push-ups with a deficit means your shoulders get a good stretch, increasing mobility and stability for fewer aches and pains. 

How to do it: 

1. Place two yoga blocks, push-up handles, dumbbells, or bricks on the floor slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. 
2. Squat down and place your hands on the raised surfaces. 
3. Walk your feet out and back so your body is straight.
4. Brace your abs and pull your shoulders down and back. 
5. Bend your arms and lower your chest down between your hands.
6. Keep your upper arms tucked into your sides.
7. Get a slight stretch in your shoulders and chest. 
8. Extend your arms and repeat. 
9. Make this exercise easier by bending your legs and resting on your knees, or harder by putting your feet on a chair or bench. 

#5. Pull-ups/chin-ups 

Muscles worked: Latissimus dorsi, biceps, rhomboids, trapezius, forearms, core. 

Pull-ups (overhand grip) and chin-ups (underhand grip) work all your major pulling muscles.

Doing either of these exercises will develop the opposite muscles used during push-ups.

Throwing and batting involve all your upper body muscles, so they need to be developed evenly. 

Pull-ups and chin-ups are also a great way to test and build your relative strength, which is your muscular performance relative to your body weight.

If you find pull-ups hard, you may benefit from losing some weight, which invariably makes them easier. 

How to do it: 

1. Hang from an overhead bar with a slightly wider than shoulder-width overhand grip or a shoulder-width or less underhand grip.
2. Your arms should be straight, shoulders pulled down, and back. 
3. Bend your arms, drive your elbows down and back, and pull your chin up and over the bar.
4. Do not crane your neck to reach the bar. 
5. Descend smoothly and under control, and repeat. 
6. Make pull-ups and chin-ups easier by using a strong resistance band for assistance.
7. You can also do incline rows, aka Australian pull-ups if classic chin-ups/pull-ups are too challenging right now. 

#6. Dumbbell Cuban press  

Muscles worked: Deltoids, trapezius, rhomboids, rotator cuff, biceps, triceps. 

Softball is a very safe sport, but injuries still happen.

Shoulder problems are the most common because softball is a dynamic but repetitive sport that involves a lot of throwing.

The dumbbell Cuban press will help strengthen, mobilize, and stabilize your shoulders to reduce the risk of injury. 

How to do it: 

1. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent for balance. 
2. Hold a dumbbell in each hand in front of your thighs; palms turned toward your legs.
3. Pull your shoulders down and back, and brace your abs. 
4. Bend your elbows and row the dumbbells up the front of your body until your upper arms are parallel to the floor. 
5. Rotate the dumbbells forward and up until they’re roughly level with your ears. 
6. Press the weights up and overhead. 
7. Lower the weights slowly and smoothly by reversing this movement. 

#7. Twisting side plank 

Muscles worked: Rectus abdominis, obliques, transverse abdominis, erector spinae, deltoids.  

Side planks are a great core exercise, but they’re not especially softball specific.

Adding a twist means they more closely mimic throwing and batting and challenge your shoulder and lumbar spine stability more. 

How to do it: 

1. Lie on your side with your lowermost arm bent, forearm flat on the floor.
2. Lift your hips so your body is straight.
3. Brace your abs and pull your supporting shoulder down and back.
4. Extend your free arm up toward the ceiling. 
5. Bring your arm down and reach beneath your body as far as you can without losing your balance or alignment. 
6. Reach back up to the ceiling and repeat. 
7. Do the same number of reps on both sides. 

Strength Training for Softball Players Workout 

While simply doing these exercises will probably improve your softball performance, you’ll get better results if you follow a more structured program. 

Do this full-body softball workout 2-3 times a week on non-consecutive days, e.g., Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. 

Before you begin, make sure you spend a few minutes preparing your muscles and joints by warming up.

Start with 5-10 minutes of cardio, followed by some dynamic mobility and flexibility for your major joints and muscles. 

This workout is a circuit.

That means you do one set of each exercise in turn, resting just a few seconds between each one.

You then rest 2-3 minutes after the final movement before repeating the entire sequence a couple more times. 

This training approach builds fitness and strength at the same time.

AMRAP = As Many Reps as Possible. Rep out to within 1-3 reps of failure, stopping just as you feel your form start to break down. 

Strength Training for Softball Players – Wrapping Up 

If you only play softball occasionally or for fun, you probably don’t need to train specifically for this popular sport.

A general fitness workout will be more than enough to prepare your body for the demands of softball. 

But, if you take your softball more seriously, play at a higher level, or want to become a better player, some sport-specific strength training will help. 

Use the exercises and the workout in this article to develop your softball muscles, improve your balance and stability, and injury-proof your joints.

You only need a couple of hours per week and a few pieces of basic training equipment.