Muscle memory is a popular term for neuromuscular facilitation, which is the process of nerves and muscles memorizing motor skills. Muscle memory is ingrained over time through repetition of an activity, until it becomes virtually habit. This is very important for the softball player who is striving to become a better player. The old adage “practice makes perfect” is largely relating to your body’s ability to commit specific movements to memory. The problem comes in when the player is not “practicing perfect”. Improper mechanics can also be committed to memory…often referred to as bad tendencies.

The human brain is a powerful resource when utilized effectively. This can now be leveraged by softball players when learning how to become a better hitter. A patent-pending batting trainer, called the Insider Bat is currently sweeping the country. This revolutionary batting trainer is engineered to put the player in essentially the perfect hitting position each and every time they swing the bat. This is important for coaches, because they can ensure that players are “practicing perfect” and it’s great for players because they don’t have to really “think” about hitting the proper way. All they have to do is hit, which makes practice easy, fun and effective.

The problem with most batting trainers is that there are many ways to swing a baseball bat and make contact. I’ve seen it so many times. A coach is holding a hitting stick, throwing batting practice or soft toss and the player is just repeating a flawed swing, over and over again…comitting it to memory. It pains me to watch it. But let’s face it, there are not always going to be good coaches for every player and even the best coaches can’t be there to watch every swing. That’s why a muscle memory device is such a great tool. It can serve as a virtual swing coach even when you don’t have one.

I believe that the people at Insider Bat have hit on a huge sweet spot. They have engineered their training device to enforce perfect hitting mechanics so you can make sure that you are “practice perfect”. There was never any doubt that the more you practice, the better you get…as long as you are practice the right things, in the right way. That’s why good coaches are so valuable.