Introduction by Richard Todd, WebBall

Every time we watch a ballplayer throw the ball or swing the bat, we get distracted. What we see are arms and legs in motion. With the result that we could easily fall into the traditional trap of making the limbs the focus of our training programs. We talk about improving the throwing arm, strengthening the legs, and developing quick hands and feet.

But when we do that, we're missing something - the core. In truth, none of that limb movement would be possible without the core that keeps all those moving parts connected and in sync.

All well and good, and it certainly explains why there are so many programs out there that claim to "power the core". But before we delve into the details, we need to get an understanding of what it is that we expect from our core.

2 key roles of the core  

Don't confuse the core with the abs. The core is the entire collection of muscles that power all the rotational, vertical and lateral movements within the center of the body. It includes lats, abs, glutes and more, in all the complex surface and subsurface layers required. It is a combination of Type I, IIa and IIb muscle types - both slow and fast twitch. (See "muscle fibers".)

But the added complexity is in what we expect our core to do for us. In reality it has two often conflicting roles.

1. The core provides stability. It's what keeps us standing, balanced, a strong base on which to perform.
2. The core generates movement. It's what drives our bodies in any direction with speed and power.

When we train the core what are we really impacting - are we training those Type 1 muscle groups that provide a stable base, or the fast-twitch muscles that let us pounce on a quick grounder or jump on the perfect pitch? As expected the answer is both.

3 Training Paradigms 

In training the core to be the body's stabilizer, we often have to create an unstable platform - that's what wobble boards and body blades are for. It involves training aspects such as proprioception and kinesthetic awareness (more about that later).

In training the core to be powerful, we have to increase the resistances applied - that's what everything from tubing to medicine balls are for, if used in conjunction with rotational (X-factor) stretching (more about that later, too).

In training the core to be quick and responsive, we have to engage the Type IIb muscles - that's why core work also includes agility exercises. In fact, the same body motion done slower or faster can actually engage different muscle types and therefore produce different training results. It's all in knowing which to do when.

Sport specifity & rhe right resouces 

Is any core program the same as any other ... can we use a routine by a trainer whose background is in other sports will do, or should we make sure we trust a baseball specialist? Well, while the principles are the same or similar, it should be clear from the points above that simply doing any exercise in anyway that moves the core may or may not be what works best for baseball.

The exercise has to either generate the necessarity instability to encourage the core to stabilize internally, and/or be dynamic and explosive enough to match the speed required for elite-level baseball.

To get us there, this section will tap many experts in the field - not only for theory, but for practicle routines that will help you find the power in your own core. Watch for continued expansion in this section during 2009.