“Most athletes spend way too much time training the front side of their bodies—the side they can see in the mirror,” Maxey says. “As a result, imbalances often result from overusing exercises such as the Squat and Bench. In actuality, it’s the muscles you can’t see in the mirror—glutes, hamstrings, erectors, lats and scapular stabilizers—that make you a good athlete. These often neglected muscles have a significant impact on your performance.”

To work these seldom-seen muscles—your “posterior chain” in S&C lingo—Maxey has made the Lunge and variations thereof an integral part of the Tribe’s training. “Your body functions as a total unit on the diamond, so we train it as a total unit in the weight room,” he says. “That’s why the Lunge is a major exercise in the program.”

Muscle symmetry and a solid foundation are also crucial for optimal performance. So, Maxey supplements the Indians’ workouts with secondary lower-body exercises. Overall, his program has built a team that has power at the plate and explosion in the field.

To get on their level, perform the following routine up to twice a week, with at least two days of rest between.

Lunge

• Stand with bar on back and feet slightly closer than shoulder width
• Step forward and slightly toward midline of body
• Lower into lunge position until back knee is about two inches from ground. Focus on getting both knees to 90 degrees
• To return to start position, push back with front heel
• Step forward with opposite foot and repeat

Dumbbell Variation: Same as above, but hold dumbbells at side. Use dumbbells lighter than 40-pounds, and do not swing them during movement.

Sets/Reps/Weight (Off Season): Weeks 1-2: 3x10 at 70%, Weeks 3-4: 4x6 at 78-81%, Weeks 5-6: 4x8 at 75%, Weeks 7-8: 4x5 at 80-82%

Form Matters: When you step forward, land on your whole foot, not the ball of your foot, to take pressure off your knee. To work the right muscles (glutes and hamstrings) and make the movement less quad-dominant, push back with your front heel. Use the back leg as your anchor; keep it planted and pushed back. Do not let the back knee touch the ground; lower it so it’s two inches from the floor. Squeeze your shoulder blades together throughout the whole movement. And, since this is a strength-building exercise, not a power exercise, move slowly through the lunge. When you start going fast, momentum takes over, and the chance of injury increases. Finally, don’t add external resistance until your technique is perfect.

Benefits: Because of the way you use your core and pelvis to balance, you get a lot of stabilization training from this exercise.

Maxey’s Notes: Before we lunge in the off-season, we always perform a warm-up/movement prep and brief core session, which usually includes med ball throws and chops. This ensures that our hip flexors and core are warmed up and functioning in sync. If your lunges are dominated by your hip flexors, your hip extensors (glutes and hamstrings) won’t be doing the work.

Physioball Squat

• Stand with physioball between lower back and wall, holding dumbbells at sides
• Assume stance just wider than shoulder width with toes slightly pointing out
• Slowly push butt back and down to lower into squat position, keeping knees behind toes
• When tops of thighs are parallel to floor, drive into start position

Advanced variation: Perform exercise on one leg

Sets/Reps: 3x12; gradually increase weight

Benefits: This trains double-leg hip, glute and hamstring strength at a slightly different angle than a standard squat. When you change the angle, you change the stress on the muscles.

Dumbbell Straight-Leg Deadlift

• Hold dumbbells in front of thighs with slight flex in knees
• Keeping back flat and shoulder blades together, bend forward at hips and slide dumbbells down thighs to shins
• Driving hips back, lower dumbbells as far as possible without changing flex in knees or spine position
• Move upward to start position through same motion; finish by squeezing glutes together

Sets/Reps: 3x10; gradually increase weight

Benefits: This strengthens your entire posterior chain—glutes, hamstrings and erectors.

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