RBI Performance Podcast

In Episode 25 of the RBI Performance Podcast, Steven and Blair travel to Montgomery, TX and catch up with Ron Wolforth, head of the Texas Baseball Ranch. Ron started the Texas Baseball Ranch in 2003 and has since consulted with numerous MLB organizations and NCAA squads, regularly speaks at national conferences, and has trained over 80 athletes who went on to be drafted. Ron is a passionate coach and speaker, and he spoke with our hosts about developing athletes, why playing games is overrated, how to talk to an athlete about arm pain, and the most important thing most coaches aren't doing to develop players.    http://www.texasbaseballranch.com/

Steven and Blair (finally) catch up and review the best of 2017 and where they want to head in 2018.

In episode 23 of the RBI Performance Podcast, we sit down with Zach Dechant, head strength and conditioning coach for the Texas Christian University baseball team, and discuss what it takes to train a championship-level baseball team for peak in-season performance, all while keeping athletes healthy and recovered.  Learn more about Zach here: http://www.zachdechant.com/ Follow Zach on Twitter @zachdechant Please enjoy!

In episode 22 of the RBI Performance Podcast, Steven and Blair are joined by John Wolf, a master of the unconventional and current Chief Fitness Officer for the Onnit Academy in Austin, TX. John has an exceptional fitness and training background, and has been tasked with helping achieve Onnit's goal of "Total Human Optimization."   So far, our Summer Strength Series has explored traditional means of strength and conditioning and how they apply to baseball players - in this episode, John takes us outside of the box into his world of unconventional training methods and explains how his unique approach to training athletes can have a positive impact on athletic performance and resiliency. 

In episode 21 of the RBI Performance Podcast, Steven and Blair continue exploring the Summer Strength Series by taking a closer look at core training. What exactly is the core? Why has it been so cool and trendy for so long? Is it possible to do a core exercise without a bouncy physioball or half-ball device? Short answer - YES! Within this episode, you'll hear what exercises the guys prefer, when they prefer to do them, and you'll also see them both get on their soapboxes and give some hot takes. Enjoy!

In episode 20 of the RBI Performance Podcast, Steven and Blair continue the summer strength series and take a look at some of the accessory lifts for baseball players, specifically grip training. Most of you out there with some baseball experience have probably spent some quality time with the wrist roller or a rice bucket, but does it do you any good? What’s the point of training your grip besides having sweet looking forearms? The guys dive deep into the potential of working the forearm flexor/pronator mass to prevent UCL injuries, if working your grip and forearms have the potential to make you swing a bat faster or hit a ball farther, and discuss some practical ways to implement grip training into your routine. As always, please enjoy.

In Episode 19 of the RBI Performance Podcast, we continue the Summer Strength Series by taking a look at the highly controversial bench press. Join us as we separate fact from fiction and explore why the bench is so contentious amongst the baseball population, the basic requirements we would like to see from an athlete before allowing them anywhere near a bench press, and discuss some shoulder-friendly alternatives that allow for you to continue chasing performance on the diamond, while still looking good with your shirt off. As always, please enjoy!

On this very special 18th episode of the RBI Performance Podcast, you'll hear Steven and Blair sit down with their dads and discuss growing up and playing baseball.    Blair's interview begins @ 1:00 Steven's interview begins @ 34:00   Please enjoy!

Welcome back to episode 17 of the RBI Performance Podcast, where Steven and Blair continue the Summer Strength Series and take a closer look at the controversial deadlift. They discuss the pros and cons and the potential athletic carryover of including some form of the deadlift into a well-designed training program, the different types of deadlifts, and how they would start a young athlete looking into learning and properly executing the lift. They also discuss what a wrecking ball is, how big Blair's neck was in high school, and update you on the Texas High School Baseball Playoffs.

In episode 16 of the RBI Performance Podcast, Steven and Blair continue the Summer Strength Series with an in-depth discussion on squatting for athletic performance. They dive into how to squat correctly, what different kinds of squats there are and when they might be appropriate, and how athletes with an injury can still benefit from squatting variations. Enjoy!

In episode 15 of the RBI Performance Podcast, Steven and Blair take a look at the hips and make some recommendations on exercises that can lead to improved performance on the diamond (as well as a better-fitting pair of pants). Please enjoy!    Kibler et al. The Disabled Throwing Shoulder: spectrum of pathology - 10-year Update. Arthroscopy 2013. (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23276418). 

In episode 14 of the RBI Performance Podcast, Steven and Blair take a look at the "why" behind summer ball. Is it just a given that every kid should play summer ball and showcase their talents? Or are there better ways to spend your summer? 

In Episode 13 of the RBI Performance Podcast, Steven and Blair travel down to Behemoth Crossfit in Cypress, TX in order to interview the tallest podcast guest to date, Aja Barto. Aja played baseball collegiately at Tulane University and professionally in the Texas Rangers organization for a few years before making the switch to Crossfit, where he reached the highest level of competition, the Reebok Crossfit Games, 3 years in a row. Aja currently serves as a head coach and co-owner of Behemoth Crossfit, and he was kind enough to hang out with us and talk baseball, training, youth sports, and share some great stories from his competitive exercising days.  http://www.behemothcrossfit.com/

In Episode 12 of the RBI Performance Podcast, Steven and Blair tackle the issue of the "Tiger Mom," also known as the overbearing sports parent or coach and their potential influence on a developing athlete's love for the game. Your hosts share their own examples from their childhoods, as well as discuss some common things they see now, both as clinicians and coaches.  Also, Steven and Blair take a stand and make some BOLD MLB PREDICTIONS. These declarations are, of course, ripe with homerism, so feel free to judge them accordingly. 

In episode 11, Steven and Blair take a closer look at what successful athletes do throughout a competitive season to not only maintain their bodies, but set themselves up for peak performance along the way. They discuss the effect a competitive baseball season can have on an athlete and address ways to combat these negative changes, address in-season strength training (so as not to lose those gainz), and come up with a few ideas that everyone could benefit from.   

On episode 10 of the RBI Performance Podcast, Steven and Blair take a deeper look at what a boxes a baseball player should check prior to beginning their competitive season. They discuss what to look for in the throwing shoulder (14:00), the importance of looking at the scapula, hips, and core (16:00), how to best handle athletes who could be classified as "hypermobile" (39:00), and all of the dumb things Steven and Blair made when playing in high school and college (49:00). 

On episode 9 of the RBI Performance Podcast, Steven and Blair sit down with Lenny Macrina, MSPT, SCS, CSCS. Lenny is currently the Director of Physical Therapy and co-founder of Champion PT and Performance in Waltham, MA, and has written numerous articles and textbook chapters regarding numerous topics, including baseball injuries and considerations for adolescent athletes. He was kind enough to sit down with us and share his thoughts on some current topics in the baseball health and performance world. You can find out more about Lenny here - https://championptandperformance.com/. 

Steven and Blair have traveled far and wide (or just to Dallas) to bring you the latest and greatest baseball injury updates. In this episode, they recap their favorite "takeaways" from the American Sports Medicine Institute's 35th Annual Injuries in Baseball Course. You'll learn about updates in shoulder and elbow surgery, varying thoughts on strength training and periodization, the importance of looking at the hip and core in the overall assessment of throwing athletes, more hot takes on weighted balls, and information regarding Blair's favorite month of the year. Please enjoy!   For more information on the American Sports Medicine Institute and their ongoing work, please visit their website - http://asmi.org/. 

This week, Steven and Blair dive into the world of underweight/overweight implements and bring you the latest research on the topic of weighted balls and baseball players. Are they safe? Should you use them? How hard can Steven actually throw a baseball?    Study referenced: http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1941738116679816 Driveline research page: https://www.drivelinebaseball.com/research/

Blair and Steven travel to Round Rock High School to interview Head Baseball Coach John Carter - they discuss high school baseball vs travel baseball, pitch counts, how baseball players should train, and Coach outs Steven as a secret hater of squats. 

Steven and Blair are here to wrap things up with the long term athletic development conversation and touch on a topic that is often overlooked in youth sports - burnout. Learn about what this is and how to identify the signs in your athletes or kids so they can stay healthy and best enjoy the sports they love!

Steven and Blair jump back into the LTAD discussion, dissecting the single sport versus multi sport athlete, effective strategies for each athlete, what they did and might've done differently, and Steven's murky past as a BMXer who probably did a fair amount of loitering in front of gas stations while crushing Mountain Dew with his bros. 

In the first episode of a 3 part series, Steven and Blair are back to break down the complicated topic of long term athletic development and how it applies to young baseball players. 

In this episode, your fearless co-hosts tackle a hot issue in youth sports - should kids be throwing curveballs? We discuss the biomechanics behind a curveball and how it can effect the shoulder and elbow, what the experts say, and what we personally recommend. 

Welcome to the inaugural edition of the RBI Performance Podcast! We created this episode as a way to "get to know" the hosts, Dr. Steven Reinlie,DC, and Dr. Blair Bundy, PT, DPT and discuss their history with baseball and sports medicine and the overall purpose of this podcast. Please enjoy this podcast!