Because softball and [tag]baseball[/tag] players run short distances at very fast speeds, [tag]running drills[/tag] are good practice for games. They build endurance and fast-twitch muscles, which allow athletes to burst off in a sprint. Before beginning [tag]little league baseball and softball[/tag] running drills, [tag]coaches[/tag] should lead their athletes in a warm-up and light stretching routine to make sure that they do not injure themselves by sprinting on cold muscles and ligaments. Coaches should have athletes stretch relevant muscles lightly for 6-10 seconds before running. Athletes should also wake up their joints and ligaments by rolling their ankles from side to side and flexing their feet and their knees.
Running drills are good for legs and for cardiovascular health. It pushes the heart to work hard, which improves endurance. This drill focuses on heart health, so your athletes will probably need another drill to increase leg strength. Such an exercise is listed below under Leaping Lunges.
There are two main running drills all coaches should lead their athletes in. The first is called Mountains. The second important running drill is simple [tag]sprints[/tag]. We will go into more detailed explanation on each of these drills over the next couple of days.
To stretch out the muscles after running, athletes should put their legs together and hang down, reaching their fingers to their toes. This stretches the back of the legs. After this stretch, they should stretch the quadriceps by bending one leg behind them at the knee and grabbing the foot with the hand, gently pulling the foot as close to the buttocks as possible.