Immediate Acceleration to Terminal Deceleration: How can 160 lbs produce 91 MPH?

Preface

This post will discuss how biomechanics principles can translate into a simple mantra to conceptualize movement.

We use the term “immediate acceleration to terminal deceleration” as a talking point for athletes and coaches to understand the mechanisms of a pitcher’s center of mass traveling down the mound, followed by a dead halt in said displacement. The theory continues to suggest that the next step in the sequence is channeling kinetic energy through the ground, up the body and into the ball. Though the term ‘immediate acceleration to terminal deceleration’ is not be completely sound from a kinematic or biomechanics perspective, thats not really the point. Many people have been able to grasp the overarching concept with the help of this term without focusing on specific mechanical cueing or adjusting a singular body part or movement- which is the goal.

Immediate Acceleration

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