Program mission: To reduce the possibilities of injury and improve basketball performance
Program goals and tasks:
Words of wisdom:
Training structure:
Strength training is done two times per week with a minimum of two days rest between sessions. The structure of the training session is as follows:
Plyometric training consists of:
1. Medicine ball throws against a wall
2. Jumps with medicine balls
3. Various medicine ball passes
4. Easy jumps
5. Deceleration
6. Jumps, bounds, etc.
With strength training, there are two groups of exercises—core and assistance. Core exercises are those from which we expect the “most bang for our buck,” and they have the greatest transfer to athletic performance. According to improvements in core lifts, we determine how much strength has increased. Core exercises do not rotate and are always performed during this program. Assistance exercises are usually antagonistic exercises such as single leg variations. They rotate every 2–4 weeks to provide multilateral development and prevent overtraining, overuse injuries, and training boredom.
Core exercises: front squat, deadlift, bench press, and standing front press
Assistance exercises: rowing, lunges, pull/chin-ups, Romanian deadlifts
Training that we want to achieve over time is as follows:
Training A
Core exercises
Assistance exercises
Training B
Core exercises
Assistance exercises
Olympic lifts are learned before all other lifts but only when basketball players show increases in strength and stability in exercise technique.
The training progression for core exercises is done by trying to lift more weight every training session by 2.5–5 kg (depending on the movement). Assistance lifts are not so “important,” and we rotate their reps using daily undulating periodization.
When athletes start to “stagnate” in core lifts, we will begin to use alternations in the exercise order, periods of greater/lower volume and intensity (i.e. periodization), and unloading periods. The core exercises will remain the same.
Before we start applying this program, the athletes must be physically and mentally prepared (anatomic adaptation phase). The program that follows represents an introduction to the proposed program.
Training A
Training B
The deadlift and front squat are learned by using no more than five reps per set, starting with the bar only and progressing in weight over time. This enables “quality reps” because it’s shown that athletes start to lose their form when using more than five reps per set in complex movements. This is more evident with kids due to their lower attention capacity. To get an optimal volume of training, larger numbers of sets are done—5–6. Larger number of sets and lower number of reps enables a larger number of pauses and rest, during which the coach can provide corrections and cues for the next set.
Vertical press movement: In the first three weeks, we will start by using
alternating
standing dumbbell presses using 12–10–8 reps (free weight progression). Then we
will switch the exercise to the standing dumbbell press for three weeks, using
the free weight progression as well. The grip is neutral/parallel. After this,
we’ll start to learn the standing front
barbell press using the principles
explained in the front squat and deadlift progression section.
Horizontal pull movement: We’ll begin by doing supported/hanging horizontal rows on the Smith machine bar (hey—at least it has some purpose) for 8–10–12 reps (bodyweight progression). After this, we’ll start using the chest supported T-row, seated row, or dumbbell row for 12–10–8 reps over the weeks (free weight progression). The horizontal pull movements are very important for preventing shoulder problems and kiphotic posture. A gross number of athletes emphasize too much horizontal push movements (bench press) and forget about pull movements, which usually results in injuries like strain/sprain of the rotator cuff tendons.
Hip dominant exercise: For the first three weeks, athletes will use bridge exercises (for glute strengthening) for 8–10–12 reps. The next exercise is the single leg bridge followed by the bridge on a (basket) ball and a single leg variation of the same exercise. During this period, athletes may use hyperextension exercises for a 8–10–12 progression, and then increase the load and start the cycle again. Single leg variations of this exercise can be done too. After this period, we’ll start to utilize double and single leg variations of Romanian deadlifts (or SLDLs). The rest goes into a warm-up or it’s done after Romanian deadlifts for a set or two.
Horizontal push: We’ll start with push-ups using body weight progression (8–10–12). Then, we’ll move on to push-ups on (basket) ball, dips, alternating dumbbell bench presses, and dumbbell bench presses. We then will start learning the barbell bench press in an appropriate progression (same as for any other core exercise). Athletes must realize that the bench is NOT the most important lift, and they shouldn’t force this lift too much. Although the bench press is an excellent exercise for upper body strength, athletes usually overdo it because of its quick and visible results.
Single leg knee dominant exercise: Coaches say that basketball is played with the legs, but I must add that it is played mostly on a single leg. Single leg exercises are so important that it might be smart to replace double leg exercises with them. We’ll start by doing split squats (12–10–8), and then lateral split squats, lunges, step-ups, Bulgarian squats, lunge walks, and side lunge walks.
Vertical pull movements: We’ll begin with supinated pull-ups using the 8–10–12 progression. If the athlete is unable to do eight reps, we’ll use the lat pull-down on the chest (12–10–8). The different variations of a vertical pull movement are used (supinated, pronated, parallel, crossed grip, etc.). When the bench press can be done for 5–8 reps, we’ll do pull-ups with external resistance for 5–8 reps as well.
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