Research related to skill training points to one thing - specificity. Training to improve skill (and ultimately performance) must be specific, that is, with the same equipment, the same motion performed with no deviation from the ideal path and no resistance other than the weight of the implement(s) used in the movement.
Research related to strength training points to another - maximum overload. Muscles must be challenged with heavy weights (for 8-12 repetitions) to stimulate the degree of change necessary to improve performance.
Skill training - no resistance: Strength training - maximum resistance. Simple enough.
Apparently not.
The flood of sport-specific exercise and performance programs around the country deny the apparent - they combine skill and strength training (train movement patterns in what is called "functional" training). The result? A compromise of both skill and strength - muscle groups that never reach their strength potential and movement patterns that are likely to interfere with the specificity required of skill training.
How should it be done? Separate the two. Strengthen the muscles involved in the movement independent of how they are to be used. Once they are as strong as they can be, plug them into the movement in the only way possible, by practice of the skill itself.
Anything else is insane, commercial or both.
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