Pain Free Performance w/ the Complete Athlete

Every once in a blue moon somebody rises above all the new trends, techniques and gizmos routinely introduced to improve the great game.

And, when they do, baseball people take note from the sandlots up into MLB. Slowly of course, because baseball is a game steeped in tradition -- passed from father to son -- and it doesn't take kindly to newbies messing with the the status quo.

A little background here.

Injuries to pitchers and now position players are approaching epidemic numbers. In fact in the last five of a ten-year study, surgeries climbed to 6X the levels of the 1st five years for high school players. Colleges went up 3X, Pros 2X. So clearly, the patterns of overuse, poor and wrong conditioning, and coaching the wrong mechanics are failing our youth players.

Some would argue that numbers have gone up because more people are pushing surgery as an option. And others have blamed the singular approach to sports common today as more and more players become 1-sport specialists early on. Add up both of those factors, and it still doesn't equate to the horrendous number of orthopedic episodes occurring daily. And the study only tracked players who went in for surgery, not those that quit playing or switched sports.

Enter the Complete Athlete
Brainchild of 3-time softball All American Jenifer Wells, and 16-yr D1 Assistant and Head Coach Donnie Watson, this emerging company is tackling the issues in a four-pronged approach to pain free performance. And it's doing it with the blessing of the nation's best sports surgeon.

About a year ago, according to Donnie, he received a call from Dr. James Andrews (yes, that Dr Andrews) in response to a letter he'd written asking just how to educate coaches, trainers and players on methods to break the cycle of injury/repair/injury so may athletes were enduring in ever-shortened careers.

"I kept seeing my trainer taking my players through football lifting drills to develop pretty muscles with no bearing in baseball. says Watson, "And I kept seeing a cycle of short rest, poor mechanics, and lousy nutrition making pitchers weaker and weaker until season-ending injuries culled them from the rosters."

So Watson and Andrews met in Birmingham, and crafted a plan to bring thousands of coaches and trainers "to the table" so the message could be heard. The change was afoot, although no small challenge given the sport's tendency to "push back" when new systems (especially medical or science-driven ones) were being introduced.

Through nearly a year of grassroots effort in Birmingham, Gulfbreeze FL (where Andrews has a 2nd institute) and Dallas/Fort Worth, Watson and Wells are making headway.

Two new affiliations, with baseball academy TPA in Euless, Texas, and with the upcoming PrimeTimePlayer (Deion Sanders is a partner) facility in Frisco, Texas are launching a series of teaching symposiums, pitcher-prep programs, motion analyses (they have a mobile M/A lab), nutritional assessments and mental/emotional analyses through summer projected to teach upwards of 150 players (and parents) through the systems with the end goal of making them all self-sufficient. TPA's Stix Baseball program is even making Complete Athlete's patented Dynamic Warmup® mandatory for their summer teams.

They'll also continue to grow the ranks of certified faculty-level and coaching-level instructors to grow the program.

"We know, there's only so much of us to go around," says Wells. "But it was never about us, we're facilitating change in softball and baseball by duplicating ourselves over and over again."

Add to the mix the interest and demand for their service that parents are fostering. Shouldn't be surprising that the people helping Johnny and Suzy play in select leagues, player showcases and booster-driven school programs are very interested in their sons and daughters remaining healthy in their pursuit of the dream. And they're a vocal lot, sharing information, symposium materials and upcoming dates with the coaches.

"They have a bigger responsibility to their kids than anyone else, and they're pushing to be heard." adds Watson.

There is no question this company has all the potential to grow, and become a leader in baseball and softball (the girls are getting hurt just as often or more) development. The combination of science, passion, personality, and business-sense pretty much guarantees they'll succeed. Add to that the skins Donnie and Jenifer have in their respective sports as players, coaches, recruiters and teachers and the barriers should fall sooner than later.

The only question is will the sport listen and learn from years of mistakes. And then take action.

For more information on the Complete Athlete, go to www.complete-athlete.com, or email Donnie Watson at donnie@complete-athlete.com

Watch this space for more as their "season" continues...