Back in the swing

This is my favorite time of year, by far.  I love the in-between feeling of Spring and Summer, the emerging green grass and leaves, and, best yet, the start of softball. 

I had my first game last night and am geared up for more.  Many criticize baseball/softball as a lazy sport, where there’s not a consistent level of activity and thus is not good exercise.  Very true for some people . . . not me.

A little background, first – I’m on a co-ed team with a few people who have never played organized sports, let alone softball (makes for interesting moments).  On top of that, we were short two players last night.  In a situation like that, I become the ultimate utility player, trying to cover shortstop and most of left field, trying to snag any fly ball in the same zip code.  I was huffing and puffing nearly the whole game.  Amazingly, or maybe because the other team was lacking skill, we managed to win short-handed.

There are plenty of sprinting opportunities during a game, between batting/running bases and chasing balls in the field on defense – at times, it felt a little like one of my HIIT workouts. I’m also feeling some DOMS already, from tapping into those base-running muscles.

I’m not going to advocate for softball as a replacement for regular workouts, but it certainly has a place in my fitness regimen.  Every summer, I drop several pounds, which I largely attribute to the summer sports, primarily softball.  I also have the opportunity to play Monday nights as well, but I’ve decided to limit it to one night/week so I can maintain my weightlifting regimen ideally 3 days/week.