Designed Conditioning Is the Key, Doctor Says

Most professional athletes retire prematurely. Many could be playing into their 40s. Some baseball players could be playing into their late 40s and early 50s--and doing well.

Those are the views of Dr. Bill Puett, the conditioning specialist who works with the 39-year-old Angel catcher, Bob Boone.

A former college professor who taught philosophy, preventive medicine and health administration for 17 years, Puett, 42, holds a Ph.D from Cal Western. He also studied at Cal and UCLA. His field is mind/body theory.

“Nobody can promise whether Bob Boone or any other mature athlete will play another year or two--or another 10 years,” Puett said recently.

“But a designed (conditioning) program will help. The design is what’s missing in most athletes’ programs. Playing a little basketball today and doing a few Nautilus things tomorrow won’t do it. The program has to be tailored to the individual.”

The specially tailored Boone program, which is geared to develop what Puett calls power muscles rather than endurance, has the following components:

--Eye exercises for depth perception, visual fatigue and eye endurance.

“Most batters pick up the ball halfway to the plate,” Puett said. “You should see it seven feet from the pitcher’s hand.”

After joining up with Puett, Boone raised his batting average from .202 in 1984 to .248.

--High repetitions with light-weight dumbbells weighing three to a maximum of eight or nine pounds. Repetitions: 30 to 50 a minute. These are power-conditioning drills.

For baseball players, Puett discourages conventional heavy weightlifting, which develops mass muscle rather than power muscles.

He also discourages mimicking a hit with a weighted bat because, “That throws the timing off.”

--Plyometrics. (Controlled jumping or hopping.) The program includes speed hops, distance hops and altitude hops.

This is designed to get explosive power in the leg and stomach muscles.

--Fast hand-eye coordination exercises.

--Speed training. Boone walks 25 yards, jogs 25, strides 25 and then sprints 25. Or he may do it in increments of 50 to a maximum 75 yards. Maximum repetitions: eight.

--Nutrition: a low-protein, complex carbohydrate diet zeroing in on whole grain, vegetables, some fruit, poultry, fish. Ideally, no sugar, salt, beef or pork.

--Supplements: vitamins, minerals, wheat germ, alfalfa, garlic capsules, DMG (to discourage colds), Australian green mussels.

Puett discourages, among other things, swimming and isometrics for most professional athletes. “They build slow muscles,” he said.

“Caution is advised in any program,” he added. “I tell them, ‘Always do less than you can do. Don’t hurt yourself.’ ”

“Thanks a lot,” said Boone, who works out up to four hours daily. “Any way you cut it, this is brutally hard work.”