Watching this year’s WCWS you heard the announcers constantly mention how hitters were “staying in their legs” or “really using their legs”. Discover a great drill to help make sure your players are using their legs.

Getting into your legs is made easier with this simple drill that’s taken from a conditioning exercise. See how powerful your hitters can become by using their legs.

Using your legs when hitting can get confusing. Some players think it means they need to take a huge stride, while others think they need to twist their back foot. When in reality, the term “legs” is far too vague. What hitters really use in order to increase their power is the big toe of the back foot, their glute and their back hip.

We saw frame after frame of the Oklahoma hitters with their wide stances, and bent knees – all while hearing how much they focused on getting into their legs. I agree, using your legs is critical to hitting the ball hard, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy to teach.

I was struggling one day teaching this concept of “using your legs more” when I suddenly realized that what I was feeling when I was demonstrating what it looks like to use your legs, was an exercise I’ve done in the gym before. Many of you might recognize it; it’s called “skaters”. To do Skaters you stand with your feet wider than shoulder width and push back and forth sideways, between your feet. You always want to keep your feet wider than your body and your head between your feet. You want to make sure you bend your legs down into your knees and take your time on each leg – don’t rush. The exercise helps build leg strength.

Anyway, I suddenly felt the connection between skaters and what I was trying to get this hitter to do, so I had her try and incorporate skaters while standing in her batting stance. And it was amazing!! It immediately worked for her and had her hitting the ball like she’d never hit it before.

Here’s what it looks like:

Your hitter will start by spreading her feet wide – probably wider than she’s used to doing, and wider than she wants to do at first – and with the bat resting on her shoulder, simply pushing back and forth from her front foot to her back foot. Here are a few keys to keep in mind:

• Focus on the Big toes of both feet doing the pushing
• Push with the feet and not with the upper body
• Keep the knees inward and bent
• Keep the head over your belly button
• And go slow, speed isn’t the goal

It might take some of your players a little longer to get the hang of it than others, so be patient. Learning how to move their lower body is a large part of learning to hit powerfully. Any players that have done skaters before in the gym will get the hang of this much quicker than those who are learning it for the first time.

This simple drill is a great way for your players to feel what it feels like to use their legs when they swing.