The past few days have been full of information on my end.  Cressey Performance has been playing host to the Cressey Performance Elite Baseball Mentorship for the past three days, and it’s been unbelievable the amount of knowledge bombs Eric Cressey, Eric Schoenberg, and Matt Blake have been sharing with the over 30 people who have travelled from all over the country – New England, New York, Texas, Seattle, to name a few – to attend.

Sunday was entirely lecture based where the crew discussed much of the lame status quo in the baseball community regarding its often archaic through process with regards to “arm care” and how to train baseball players in general.

In short:  the system is broken what with teams “accepting” that injury is just part of the process.  One stat that really jumped out at me was the fact that injuries in 2011 cost clubs $487 million – or about $16 million PER TEAM – in lost revenue.

Sadly, teams are more prone to spend exorbitant amounts of benjamins on facilities, equipment, and the like, yet skimp out when it comes to spending any amount of money on proper, up-to-date, and relavent rehab.  Or even more proactive, preventative measures for that matter.

Too, the crew spent a lot of time discussing common injuries (and their mechanisms) on Sunday.  One line that I absolutely LOVED was when Eric Schoenberg noted:

If you throw with JUST your arm, than do an “arm care” program!

Essentially, Eric noted that if you’re only working on a “shoulder/arm care” program, you’re missing the whole picture.  It’s a garbage term.

Take for example that anterior core drills can actually be considered an “arm care” program.  I  mean, if one lacks appropriate core stiffness to elevate their arms over their head (which is kind of important for a baseball player to do), and their lats are stiffer than a 2×4, what’s the likelihood their shoulder is going to flip them the middle finger at some point?

Some food for thought, no?

In addition, program design and strength training considerations were discussed.  Like how one would go about managing a strength training program for a pitcher who’s “lax” as opposed to one who’s “stiff.”

And, Matt Blake spent a fair amount of time breaking down pitching mechanics and what he often looks for when tweaking guys’ deliveries.

In short, after attending on Sunday (and Monday where assessment and corrective exercise was heavily discussed) I’m pretty sure if I was at a carnival and walked past one of those “fast pitch” thingamajigs, I’d sit 90MPH, easy.

Needless to say there was a crap ton (ie: a lot) of information shared, and I definitely have a few posts lined up in my head that I write up which I think many of you will enjoy and find beneficial (even if your goal isn’t to throw a 12-6 curveball and make a batter destroy the back of his pants).

Okay, with that out of the way, lets get to this week’s list of Stuff to Read While You’re Pretending to Work:

The Men’s Health Big Book: Getting Abs – Adam Bornstein

Since it’s now officially 2013, and many people are hightailing it to their respective local gyms in droves, I figured it was fitting to point people in the direction of a brand spankin new book that I, along with many of my fitness industry friends – Adam Bornstein, Mike Robertson, John Romaniello, James Smith, Chris Mohr, Nick Tumminello, and many others contributed to.

If you want abs, this is your ticket.

And even if you don’t want abs (or you already have them), this book is chock full of ideas and insights to help you get in the best shape possible.

Be the Man You Would Want Your Sister to Train With – Chad Landers

I thought this was a fantastic article dealing with some of the minor (albeit profound) subtleties that come with training women.

Chad hits the nail on the head with this one, and I highly recommend this to ANY trainers out there who may be reading.

Seriously, don’t skip this one.

4 Strength Training Tips You Won’t Find in Books – Jim Smith

This was an absolute gem written by Smitty (as if that’s any surprise).  I particularly like tip #3:  Not Everyone Can Be a Powerlifter. Or, for that matter, should train like one.

And that’s this week’s list.

On that note, please feel free to share or send me any articles or links to articles you like!  I’m always looking for new material to read, and could always use some new “ammo” for this series.  Either share them below to shoot me an email.

Thanks!