Did you know this?
I’m a rocket scientist, and I speak six different languages.
Kind of …
What I mean is that I used to be a Nuclear Missile Launch Officer. I sat in a hole in the ground and waited for orders (that never came) to run a checklist of fewer than 10 steps to launch … Not exactly rocket science.
Also, when I say I speak 6 languages, I mean I can say about 5 words in 6 different languages … Not exactly a world-class linguist.
Truthfully, I’m about as far from being a multilingual rocket scientist as one can get.
It’s a bit like some reports we get about coaches who claim to know all about our SAVAGE Training process.
Truthfully, they’re about as far from SAVAGE experts as one can get.
For nearly 30 years, I’ve combined a strong medical background, my history as a division 1 baseball player and coach, and a decade-long dive into the science of motor learning and skill acquisition (the study of how people learn to move).
I’ve authored and published 9 books, and hundreds of blogs and instructional videos on baseball training,
The journey was long, arduous, and fascinating. In the end, SAVAGE Training emerged.
SAVAGE is an acronym that stands for Specific Adaptation thru Variability And Goal-directed Experiences.
The first two operative words are Specific and Adaptation. From the moment our players first play catch with their parents, to their first T-ball practice, to their first training session, we’ve tried to elicit an adaptation. The trouble is, the adaptation we have gotten has not always been Specific to the desired performance outcome.
The “G” in SAVAGE: Goal-directed. Our bodies organize themselves differently for activities that have a clear goal instead of movements that are vague in their intention. Additionally, the motor learning research is clear. When learning movement skills, external focus on the Goal of the activity is far more effective than internal focus on “mechanics.”
The “V” in SAVAGE is for Variability. We use the terms variability, unpredictable, and perturbation interchangeably. We’ll clarify the anatomical and physiological value of variability later. Suffice it to say; we try to expose our athletes to as many unpredictable sensory experiences as possible to encourage a more specific transfer. I would have preferred to use the term “unpredictability” instead of “variability” in the SAVAGE acronym, but then it would have looked like SAUSAGE training, and no one would sign up for that.
The “E” In SAVAGE is for Experience. It’s probably the essential part of the process. Instead of telling you how to move, we immerse you in a sensory experience that encourages your body to move more efficiently.
The old teaching method is known as explicit learning, and it’s a highly cognitive and inefficient way to learn movement. I call it TWIT coaching. In explicit learning, the coach Tells you what to do. He Watches you do it. He Informs you of everything you’ve done wrong, and he Tells you how to do it better. I was a TWIT for a long time, and I was highly ineffective.
SAVAGE Training, on the other hand, employs implicit learning, masterfully manipulating sensory information to elicit the Specific Adaptations desired.
When we started, traditionalist and elitists were not on board.
We endured so much criticism you would have thought we hated babies and wanted puppies to die.
I get it.
We were bucking the system, overthrowing the status quo. We were inciting a revolution in player development. When you challenge ideas into which people have invested their lives, you can expect pushback.
Over time, the tidal wave of negativity and judgement receded to an occasional gurgling swell from a collection of old guys yelling at clouds.
As we developed an army of high-performing pitchers, the baseball world took note.
SAVAGE Training concepts spread like a viral video of a goat riding a donkey.
Our training methods, which were previously considered heresy, became mainstream.
These days, many people claim to know everything about SAVAGE Training.
“Yeah, we do all that stuff they do at The ARMory. You don’t need to go to Florida. We can do it all here.”
Faux rocket scientists and linguists, I guess.
It strikes me that “We do everything they do at The ARMory, only cheaper, isn’t a sustainable business plan.”
Do you want the real deal or a cheap knock off?
I’ve dedicated nearly 30 years of my life researching, implementing, and improving the process that has become SAVAGE Training.
I’ve personally conducted over 30,000 movement screens and video analyses on throwing athletes of all ages, and I still perform the initial evaluation and write the training plan for every athlete that enters our doors.
At The ARMory, we’ll continue to learn and push player development with new and innovative advances while remaining grounded in the lessons learned over the years. We don’t claim to have it all figured out, but we’re well ahead of the pack and getting better every day.
Insatiable curiosity matters.
Track record matters.
– Over 450 90 mph pitchers developed.
– Millions in college scholarships earned.
– More than 24 million in MLB signing bonuses over the last 5 drafts.
The debate is over.
The Florida Baseball ARMory’s SAVAGE Training has become the most successful process in the history of baseball player development.
If you’re ready for a road map to transformational gains in velocity, command, secondary stuff, and arm health, don’t settle for junior varsity substitutes.
Come to the place where SAVAGE Training began.
Here are 3 ways to get started (click on one):
Enroll in our extended stay (M-F) SAVAGE Winter Training Program
Come to one of our SAVAGE Weekend Training Camps.
Or, call us at 866-787-4533 for a One Day, One-on-One Precision Strike experience.
You deserve to be served by the original.
You deserve the best.
Let’s Get SAVAGE!
Randy Sullivan, MPT, CSCS CEO, Florida Baseball ARMory