This document provides information on how a sports performance consultant, Jodi Fulwood, uses Interactive Metronome training to help athletes improve their performance. It discusses how IM training can enhance key skills like concentration, coordination, timing and decision-making. It also describes how IM can be used to create personalized programs that target the specific mental and physical demands of different sports, like analyzing baseball/softball swing mechanics and pitching motions. The document emphasizes that IM training fills a gap, as athletes often can't train these complex skills on their own, and one size does not fit all.

1. Jodi Fulwood
Sports Performance Consultant

2.  Sports Performance Consultant
 Bachelor Degree of Applied Science in Exercise
and Sport
 Experience working with a variety of sporting
athletes
 Athletic ability ranges from amateur to national
level

3. ALL SKILLS VITAL TO
PERFORMANCE
 Increase the ability to concentrate & focus for
longer periods of time
 Increase ability to avoid & block out distractions
 Improve rhythm, timing, coordination & balance
 Fine tune motor planning & sequencing & decision
making

4. Ask an athlete if they
THINK
these skills are important?
“YES”
Ask them do they know
HOW
to train these skills?
“NO!”
ONE SIZE DOES
NOT FIT ALL
Regular coaching &
training available to athletes
Unique sporting skills now
identified by athletes as important
Personalized
IM Program
Using the Interactive Metronome to “FILLTHE GAP”

5. OBSERVATION &
ANALYSIS
Observation is more than just watching a sport
Identify the:
(1) PHYSICAL requirements:
 Movements
 Skill requirements
(2) MENTAL requirements:
 Concentration
 Focus
 Decision making
(3) ENVIRONMENTAL requirements:
Analyse:
 How, why, frequency, duration of the mental & physical skills?
 Can you duplicate them in an IM program?

6. BASIC PRINCIPLES OF IM
Training Focus (A) Training Focus (B) Training Focus (C)
Physical, Mental, Environment Demands

7. TARGETYOURTRAINING AREA
Simulate
ENVIRONMENT
Challenge
MENTALLY
Simulate
MOVEMENT
A BALANCED IM PROGRAM
SHOULD INCLUDE ALLTHESE AREAS

8. OPTIMUM POWER
GENERATED
INTENDED POINT OF
BALL CONTACT
Perfect Swing Timing is:
OPTIMUM POWER with MINIMUM ENERGY expenditure
Difficult skill to teach and acquire due to the essential
millisecond coordination and acceleration of the whole
body WITH precise timing

10. Swing Rhythm is the TEMPO of SwingTiming
SwingTiming FOCUS
Emphasis on correct sequence
Swing Rhythm FOCUS
Is on tempo of components
 Difficult to observe split-second, complex body components
 Correct swing timing often relies on “trial and error”
 Most effective teaching tool is the rhythm of music
Movement Sequence for Swing Rhythm – first movement occurs in the distal
of the swing lever system and progressively moves to each component one
increment closer to the final impact point

11. “HITTING is TIMING,
Pitching is upsetting TIMING”
Warren Spahn, Baseball Hall of Famer
HITTING IS TIMING ....THE SWING IS MUSCLE MEMORY
 A pitch at 85 mph takes approx. 0.425 seconds to go from pitchers
hand to the hitting zone
 Average human reaction time is ¾ of a second = 0.750 seconds.
Players reaction time alone is not fast enough
 A batter must begin his swing the same time the pitcher begins his
motion

12. RHYTHM &
TIMING OF SWING
PITCH SPEED &
LOCATION
ESSENCE OF
HITTING
Correct mechanics allows a hitter to do 4 things:
 Help players to see the ball better
 Gives players a shorter swing, allowing them more time to see
the ball and make better decisions
 Generate maximum bat speed to hit the ball harder
 Give players better balance and control through the swing

13. A baseball pitcher uses the entire body
during the pitching motion, beginning with
the lower extremities, advancing to the
trunk, shoulder, elbow, wrist and hand
ANY ALTERATION IN ANY
SEGMENT OF THIS CHAIN
CAN AFFECT THE OUTCOME

14. Commonly used phases of pitching
WINDUP
Setting phase of
pitching motion.
Purpose is to set a
rhythm and
synchronized
timing of the body
parts
COCKING
Divided into early
cocking and late
cocking according
to the contact of
the forward foot
on the ground
ACCELERATION
During this phase the
speed of the arm has
increased significantly
FOLLOW –
THROUGH
Occurs from the
point of ball
release,
completion of the
motion when the
support leg stops
forward motion

15. STATIC
STABLIZINGDYNAMIC
 Dynamic balance is very important
 Double plays require a combination of skill, ability, coordination
and dynamic balance at the same time
 Lunging movement is vital, requires static and dynamic balance
 Agility is the ability to decelerate, accelerate and change
direction

16. Visual EyeTracking
“YOU CAN’T HIT WHAT YOU CAN’T SEE”
 Need to see the location, motion and rotation of the
ball
 Speed and efficiency of players’ visual processing
allows keep eyes on the ball
 Visual skills can impact softball and baseball
performance

17. Interactive Metronome® Training may impact performance in the following ways:
• Bat more consistently
• Sharpen pitch location
• Make faster decisions on field
• See location, motion, rotation of ball
• Speed of processing visual information
• Reaction time
• Know when to swing, when to throw and where
• Enhance pitch recognition
• Increase the velocity off the bat
• Improve timing, balance and confidence
• React more quickly to infield plays
• Develop visual confidence at the plate

18. The ability to throw the ball accurately with speed,
requires the entire body to work together
ARM MOTION:
• Arm motion when throwing a ball
makes a circular motion
• Circular motion provides natural
momentum
• Front shoulder to point in the direction
of where you are throwing
LOWER BODY:
• Lower body movements line up with the upper body

19. BEING RELAXED IS IMPORTANTTO ALLOWING A
PLAYERS MINDTO FOCUS SHARPLY
 Concentrating on HIGH VELOCITY balls
 Concentration is IMPORTANT to be able to hit the ball or return a shot
 SPEED and SPIN increase difficulty
 FOCUS is needed
 …but, Focus is impossible to maintain for an entire game, so DONT TRY
 Relax focus after a play / before the next play
 Relax focus after a pitch / before the next pitch
 Relax focus after a swing / before the next swing
 Relax focus after team finishes part of an inning / before the next part

20. Weather:
• Heat
• Wind
• Rain
Crowds:
• Large crowds
• Stadium seating
• Open courts
What effect can these have on players?
Umpire:
Bad calls from the plate
umpire or base umpires

21. RE-EVALUATE THE PROGRAM
Is it
CHALLENGING
to athlete’s skill
level?
Is it
INTERESTING
enough?
Are the (MS)
scores reflecting
IMPROVEMENT?
Is it FLEXIBLE?
When designing a personalized IM program it is important to:

22. OBSERVE
ANALYZE
THINK OUTSIDETHE BOX FILLTHE GAP

23.  Check out the full presentation for more great
tips on using IM training for training baseball and
softball players.
 Full version includes:
 Extended discussion of baseball/softball mechanics
 More information on softball vs baseball differences
 Training videos
 …and more valuable information to take your clients’
skills to the next level.

24. If you are looking for CEUs, look no further than
Interactive Metronome®.
We have an extensive catalog of over 100 webinars with
topics on everything from autism to motor deficits to
ensuring clinical profitability and success with IM.
And our new badging system makes it easy to identify the
information that is tailored to your practice. No more
wasting time looking for CEUs! It is time to take your
clients’ training to the next level!

25. visit www.interactivemetronome.com
or call (877) 994-6776 (*US Only)
Know your party’s extension?
call (954) 385-4660