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Strength Training for Basketball
Edited by Javair Gillett, William Burgos-Fontanez Jr. and NSCA -National Strength & Conditioning Association
Foreword by Patrick Ewing
Series: Strength Training for Sport
288 Pages
Developed with the expertise of the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), Strength Training for Basketball shows you how to design resistance training programs that will develop your athletes’ strength on the court—helping them to jump higher, accelerate faster, and abruptly change direction. The book will help you understand the specific physical demands of each position—point guard, shooting guard, small forward, power forward, and center. You will also find the following:
- 20 testing protocols for measuring and assessing athletes’ strength, reactive strength, power, speed, agility, endurance, and anaerobic capacity
- 18 total body exercises with 2 variations
- 19 lower body exercises with 3 variations
- 17 upper body exercises
- 11 anatomical core exercises with 5 variations
- 16 sample programs for off-season, preseason, in-season, and postseason resistance training
Backed by the NSCA and the knowledge and experience of successful high school, college, and professional basketball strength and conditioning professionals, Strength Training for Basketball is the authoritative resource for creating basketball-specific resistance training programs to help your athletes optimize their strength and successfully transfer that strength to the basketball court.
Earn continuing education credits/units! A continuing education course and exam that uses this book is also available. It may be purchased separately or as part of a package that includes all the course materials and exam.
Introduction by Javair Gillett and Bill Burgos
Part I. Principles of Sport-Specific Resistance Training
Chapter 1. Importance of Resistance Training
Bill Burgos
Chapter 2. Analysis of the Sport and Sport Positions
Steve Smith, Robby Sikka, and Tyler A. Bosch
Chapter 3. Testing Protocols and Athlete Assessment
Andrew Barr, Alexander Reeser, and Tania Spiteri
Chapter 4. Sport-Specific Program Design Guidelines
Katie Fowler and Amanda D. Kimball
Part II. Exercise Technique
Chapter 5. Total Body Exercise Technique
Bill Foran and Eric Foran
Chapter 6. Lower Body Exercise Technique
Mubarak Malik
Chapter 7. Upper Body Exercise Technique
Bryan D. Doo
Chapter 8. Anatomical Core Exercise Technique
John Shackleton
Part III. Program Design Guidelines and Sample Programs
Chapter 9. Postseason Programming
Josh Bonhotal and Bryce Daub
Chapter 10. Off-Season Programming
Josh Bonhotal and Bryce Daub
Chapter 11. Preseason Programming
Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
Chapter 12. In-Season Programming
Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) is the world’s leading organization in the field of sport conditioning. Drawing on the resources and expertise of the most recognized professionals in strength training and conditioning, sport science, performance research, education, and sports medicine, the NSCA is the world’s trusted source of knowledge and training guidelines for coaches and athletes. The NSCA provides the crucial link between the lab and the field.
Javair Gillett, MS, CSCS, RSCC*D, is the head strength and conditioning coach and director of athletic performance for the Houston Rockets. Prior to joining the Rockets, Gillett spent 14 years with the Detroit Tigers, and he has worked with the Orlando Magic, Indiana University, and Penn State University.
Gillett is certified as a Registered Strength and Conditioning Coach (RSCC*D) by the National Strength and Conditioning Association. He has a master of science degree in human movement from A.T. Still University and completed his bachelor’s degree at DePauw University, majoring in health and human performance with an emphasis in exercise science. He lettered four seasons with DePauw University’s baseball team and was given All-Conference honors two of those four years as well as All-American Honorable Mention his final season.
Gillett dedicates himself to sharing his knowledge with youth athletes, parents, and coaches. He has been a speaker at numerous educational events and has published research articles and other educational content for a variety of resources. During the off-season, he resides in Houston with his wife, Erin Counts, and daughter, Anabella Rose.
Bill Burgos, MS, CSCS, RSCC*D, is the former head strength and conditioning coach of the Orlando Magic and New York Knicks, immediate past president of the National Basketball Strength & Conditioning Association (NBSCA), and a former member of the National Basketball Association (NBA) Sports Science Committee and the Jr. NBA Leadership Council. His passion for sports performance has driven him to master his craft in this industry; he has worked with technology and traditional sports training, has experience in the field of wearable technology, and has consulted with such companies as Intel and Kinduct.
Burgos has been an invited speaker at several events, including the NFL Technology and Performance Symposium, NBA Health and Performance Summit, National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) Sports Medicine Symposium, and the Rugby Innovation Summit in London, where he spoke on how technology is currently being used in his program and on the significance of communication among a high-performance staff. Helping to make a mark in the industry, he created an applied exercise science (sport science) course that is offered online at Austin Peay State University.
Goals and objectives of preseason strength training
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The complex nature of the game of basketball requires the improvement of strength, power, and aerobic endurance. As basketball athletes begin to increase workload on the court—by the addition of practice, scrimmages, or conditioning—during the preseason, concurrent training in the weight room develops strength and power to prepare them for the physical demands of jumping, cutting, and sprinting. A study by Balabinis and colleagues (1) examined basketball athletes in the preseason phase and determined that concurrent training can significantly increase strength, power, and aerobic endurance during the preseason if the program is properly structured.
For the basketball athlete, although aerobic endurance is extremely important, preseason strengthening programs can still be effective using a concurrent training model. Note that in the previously mentioned study (1), athletes performed aerobic endurance training in the morning and did resistance training seven hours later. It is important to provide appropriate rest between resistance training sessions and basketball activities for both recovery and performance. If strength and power gains are a primary goal, resistance training sessions should take place before conditioning events, but separating skill sessions and conditioning sessions might be most beneficial to allow more complete recovery and limit interference.
During the preseason, resistance training programs increase in intensity and address the development of strength across the entire force-velocity curve while maintaining a balance between power development and basketball-specific conditioning. As a result, the preseason phase should remain relatively short, lasting only four to six weeks regardless of level of play. The off-season should be a longer period that is focused on physical development, where earlier phases of a macrocycle should not have to account for a detrimentally high volume of basketball demands. Unlike other resistance training phases, the preseason introduces a higher volume of basketball-related activities. Therefore, most basketball athletes preparing for the basketball season are taking on high workloads, in both sporting activities and resistance training activities. Athletes are required to complete both resistance training sessions and all basketball activities, causing the preseason mesocycle to align and complement sport-specific skill development.
With appropriate progression, athletes should have completed previous mesocycles focusing on aerobic endurance, hypertrophy, maximal strength, and power. After athletes have completed an off-season resistance training program that has addressed these components, the preseason resistance training program should focus on the athlete's ability to use the stretch-shortening cycle, boosting the athlete's ability to produce high amounts of force in very short periods. As a result, the primary focus is placed on movement velocity to convert the strength and power they have developed in previous mesocycles into more sport-specific reactive strength and explosiveness. A thorough knowledge of basketball requirements is central to the proper selection of programming methods, including frequency, exercise selection, intensity, volume, and other strength and conditioning parameters for preseason training.
Improve jumping, acceleration, and change-of-direction abilities
By Bill Burgos
Explosive basketball athletes require optimal muscle elasticity. Reactive strength is reliant on eccentric force development, elastic energy storage and release, and muscle reflexive properties. Concentric force production is also correlated with the reactive strength index (4). Training to increase reactive strength involves the stretch-shortening cycle and, therefore, serves as another mode of resistance training. Performance in agility tests may also be related to reactive strength attributes. In another analysis, female athletes who exhibited faster agility times had shorter ground contact braking times when compared with slower athletes (59). The ability to move quickly around the basketball court is highly related to the athlete's ability to interact with the ground properly. Stronger athletes exhibit higher ground reaction forces. In many instances a basketball athlete must stop very quickly and move in another direction. Other times, a center will jump vertically to rebound a ball that bounces around the rim. The delay will require the athlete to land and quickly jump up a second time. People with superior lower body strength have higher peak power output during jumping activities (10). As a result, the stronger athlete will be able to minimize ground contact time while still being able to reach near maximal jump height in
the second jump.
Over the total distance covered in a game, a basketball athlete can experience various movement demands that place a tremendous amount of mechanical stress on the body. To grasp the importance of resistance training for the basketball athlete, a coach must understand that performance attributes like agility, power, and speed rely heavily on strength. The neuromuscular adaptations brought on by mechanical stress will be specific to the manipulation of several resistance training variables such as load, sets, repetitions, tempo, and rest period length.
Each quality of strength is unique and plays a role in injury prevention and reaching optimal physical performance. Change of direction involves multiple components of strength including eccentric (braking), isometric (planting), and concentric (propulsive) phases (59). Movements such as jumping and cutting rely on the ability to absorb the forces effectively in order to redirect those forces and produce maximal concentric power. Therefore, the ability to decelerate and reaccelerate quickly is related to eccentric strength. Accentuated eccentric overload training appears to improve muscle architecture, strength, power, and velocity more than traditional resistance training does (12, 30). As a result, eccentric training should also play an integral role in a basketball athlete's resistance training program.
Resistance training improves a basketball athlete's ability to jump, accelerate, and change directions in the face of an opponent.
The stretch-shortening cycle plays an important role in countermovement activities. Stronger muscles are able to contract and store elastic energy better than weaker muscles. Elastic energy, which is stored in the muscle-tendon unit, is created in the eccentric phase. Naturally, this form of stored energy can be transferred into the concentric, acceleration phase. The greater an athlete's ability to transfer this energy, during what is called the amortization phase, the greater her or his ability will be to perform explosive countermovement activities. For example, Bridgeman and colleagues (7) showed that lower body eccentric strength is highly related to overall jump performance. Resistance training increases eccentric strength, and combining eccentric resistance training with traditional, concentrically focused training modes can have positive effects on jump performance (41). Furthermore, although type II fibers may be recruited regardless of load when sets are performed to failure, heavy loads require type II fiber recruitment. In addition, heavy loads appear to be more effective for eliciting neural adaptations that, in turn, facilitate strength improvements (31, 45, 36). Therefore, heavy or explosive resistance training may be an effective means by which to augment power production during the countermovement activities encountered in basketball.
Muscle architecture influences the athlete's ability to move explosively. When looking at dynamic movements such as the countermovement jump, jump height, peak force, and peak velocity are all related to greater vastus lateralis thickness and gastrocnemius pennation angle (32). In general, resistance training improves muscle thickness, pennation angle, and fascicle length (12, 32). Regardless of training goals, an important goal is to bridge the gap between injury prevention and reaching optimal performance. Carefully designed resistance training programs performed in combination with ballistic, high-velocity basketball-specific movements may optimize muscle geometry and enhance performance in a dynamic, explosive sport such as basketball.
Length, structure, and organization of in-season programs
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The in-season phase is a significant period that athletes need to take advantage of, and they should continue to develop general and specific aspects of strength while competing in-season. This period can last 16 to 20 weeks for high school, up to 24 weeks for college, and as long as 30 weeks for professional basketball athletes. As a result, this phase is likely be the longest mesocycle of the year, offering a significant opportunity to implement a resistance training program. Although these weeks are filled with practices, games, travel, and other obstacles, proper planning and programming of resistance training sessions will prevent regression and aid in the continual growth of a developing athlete. The emphasis of in-season resistance training should be to continue to develop overall athleticism and ultimately maximize athletic performance in playoff competition.
High School
High school basketball athletes should be expected to complete one to two resistance training sessions per week strategically scheduled around their classes, practices, game schedule, and extracurricular activities. Total body resistance training programs for the high school athlete should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. The frequency per week of resistance training sessions should be adjusted around the volume of basketball activities, providing not only adequate recovery periods between resistance training sessions but also appropriate recovery leading up to the next game.
College
The collegiate basketball athlete's in-season phase ranges between 20 and 24 weeks and should consist of a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week. Each session should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. In-season training frequency should be structured around game schedule, travel schedule, academic calendar, and extracurricular activities. Previous training cycles may have allowed consistent training schedules such as a four-day or five-day training split with no basketball requirements, but in-season resistance training programs require coordination with academics, practices, games, and NCAA regulations.
Professional
The professional season can last anywhere between 24 and 30 weeks including playoffs. The overall game distribution, the length of the season, and travel requirements present a unique challenge when attempting to maximize performance for the professional athlete. One of the challenges that a strength and conditioning professional faces because of the demands of longer travel stints is access to a weight room that fits the basketball athlete's training needs. In the professional setting three to four games can spread throughout the week, including games on back-to-back nights that are sometimes played on the road for one and at home for the other. But with the redesign of the NBA schedule, games typically take place every other day. This setting can make it challenging for the coach to balance workloads on practice days and determine when it is time either to push an athlete or to promote recovery. In general, a professional athlete should take part in a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week lasting 30 to 45 minutes.
Goals and objectives of preseason strength training
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The complex nature of the game of basketball requires the improvement of strength, power, and aerobic endurance. As basketball athletes begin to increase workload on the court—by the addition of practice, scrimmages, or conditioning—during the preseason, concurrent training in the weight room develops strength and power to prepare them for the physical demands of jumping, cutting, and sprinting. A study by Balabinis and colleagues (1) examined basketball athletes in the preseason phase and determined that concurrent training can significantly increase strength, power, and aerobic endurance during the preseason if the program is properly structured.
For the basketball athlete, although aerobic endurance is extremely important, preseason strengthening programs can still be effective using a concurrent training model. Note that in the previously mentioned study (1), athletes performed aerobic endurance training in the morning and did resistance training seven hours later. It is important to provide appropriate rest between resistance training sessions and basketball activities for both recovery and performance. If strength and power gains are a primary goal, resistance training sessions should take place before conditioning events, but separating skill sessions and conditioning sessions might be most beneficial to allow more complete recovery and limit interference.
During the preseason, resistance training programs increase in intensity and address the development of strength across the entire force-velocity curve while maintaining a balance between power development and basketball-specific conditioning. As a result, the preseason phase should remain relatively short, lasting only four to six weeks regardless of level of play. The off-season should be a longer period that is focused on physical development, where earlier phases of a macrocycle should not have to account for a detrimentally high volume of basketball demands. Unlike other resistance training phases, the preseason introduces a higher volume of basketball-related activities. Therefore, most basketball athletes preparing for the basketball season are taking on high workloads, in both sporting activities and resistance training activities. Athletes are required to complete both resistance training sessions and all basketball activities, causing the preseason mesocycle to align and complement sport-specific skill development.
With appropriate progression, athletes should have completed previous mesocycles focusing on aerobic endurance, hypertrophy, maximal strength, and power. After athletes have completed an off-season resistance training program that has addressed these components, the preseason resistance training program should focus on the athlete's ability to use the stretch-shortening cycle, boosting the athlete's ability to produce high amounts of force in very short periods. As a result, the primary focus is placed on movement velocity to convert the strength and power they have developed in previous mesocycles into more sport-specific reactive strength and explosiveness. A thorough knowledge of basketball requirements is central to the proper selection of programming methods, including frequency, exercise selection, intensity, volume, and other strength and conditioning parameters for preseason training.
Improve jumping, acceleration, and change-of-direction abilities
By Bill Burgos
Explosive basketball athletes require optimal muscle elasticity. Reactive strength is reliant on eccentric force development, elastic energy storage and release, and muscle reflexive properties. Concentric force production is also correlated with the reactive strength index (4). Training to increase reactive strength involves the stretch-shortening cycle and, therefore, serves as another mode of resistance training. Performance in agility tests may also be related to reactive strength attributes. In another analysis, female athletes who exhibited faster agility times had shorter ground contact braking times when compared with slower athletes (59). The ability to move quickly around the basketball court is highly related to the athlete's ability to interact with the ground properly. Stronger athletes exhibit higher ground reaction forces. In many instances a basketball athlete must stop very quickly and move in another direction. Other times, a center will jump vertically to rebound a ball that bounces around the rim. The delay will require the athlete to land and quickly jump up a second time. People with superior lower body strength have higher peak power output during jumping activities (10). As a result, the stronger athlete will be able to minimize ground contact time while still being able to reach near maximal jump height in
the second jump.
Over the total distance covered in a game, a basketball athlete can experience various movement demands that place a tremendous amount of mechanical stress on the body. To grasp the importance of resistance training for the basketball athlete, a coach must understand that performance attributes like agility, power, and speed rely heavily on strength. The neuromuscular adaptations brought on by mechanical stress will be specific to the manipulation of several resistance training variables such as load, sets, repetitions, tempo, and rest period length.
Each quality of strength is unique and plays a role in injury prevention and reaching optimal physical performance. Change of direction involves multiple components of strength including eccentric (braking), isometric (planting), and concentric (propulsive) phases (59). Movements such as jumping and cutting rely on the ability to absorb the forces effectively in order to redirect those forces and produce maximal concentric power. Therefore, the ability to decelerate and reaccelerate quickly is related to eccentric strength. Accentuated eccentric overload training appears to improve muscle architecture, strength, power, and velocity more than traditional resistance training does (12, 30). As a result, eccentric training should also play an integral role in a basketball athlete's resistance training program.
Resistance training improves a basketball athlete's ability to jump, accelerate, and change directions in the face of an opponent.
The stretch-shortening cycle plays an important role in countermovement activities. Stronger muscles are able to contract and store elastic energy better than weaker muscles. Elastic energy, which is stored in the muscle-tendon unit, is created in the eccentric phase. Naturally, this form of stored energy can be transferred into the concentric, acceleration phase. The greater an athlete's ability to transfer this energy, during what is called the amortization phase, the greater her or his ability will be to perform explosive countermovement activities. For example, Bridgeman and colleagues (7) showed that lower body eccentric strength is highly related to overall jump performance. Resistance training increases eccentric strength, and combining eccentric resistance training with traditional, concentrically focused training modes can have positive effects on jump performance (41). Furthermore, although type II fibers may be recruited regardless of load when sets are performed to failure, heavy loads require type II fiber recruitment. In addition, heavy loads appear to be more effective for eliciting neural adaptations that, in turn, facilitate strength improvements (31, 45, 36). Therefore, heavy or explosive resistance training may be an effective means by which to augment power production during the countermovement activities encountered in basketball.
Muscle architecture influences the athlete's ability to move explosively. When looking at dynamic movements such as the countermovement jump, jump height, peak force, and peak velocity are all related to greater vastus lateralis thickness and gastrocnemius pennation angle (32). In general, resistance training improves muscle thickness, pennation angle, and fascicle length (12, 32). Regardless of training goals, an important goal is to bridge the gap between injury prevention and reaching optimal performance. Carefully designed resistance training programs performed in combination with ballistic, high-velocity basketball-specific movements may optimize muscle geometry and enhance performance in a dynamic, explosive sport such as basketball.
Length, structure, and organization of in-season programs
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The in-season phase is a significant period that athletes need to take advantage of, and they should continue to develop general and specific aspects of strength while competing in-season. This period can last 16 to 20 weeks for high school, up to 24 weeks for college, and as long as 30 weeks for professional basketball athletes. As a result, this phase is likely be the longest mesocycle of the year, offering a significant opportunity to implement a resistance training program. Although these weeks are filled with practices, games, travel, and other obstacles, proper planning and programming of resistance training sessions will prevent regression and aid in the continual growth of a developing athlete. The emphasis of in-season resistance training should be to continue to develop overall athleticism and ultimately maximize athletic performance in playoff competition.
High School
High school basketball athletes should be expected to complete one to two resistance training sessions per week strategically scheduled around their classes, practices, game schedule, and extracurricular activities. Total body resistance training programs for the high school athlete should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. The frequency per week of resistance training sessions should be adjusted around the volume of basketball activities, providing not only adequate recovery periods between resistance training sessions but also appropriate recovery leading up to the next game.
College
The collegiate basketball athlete's in-season phase ranges between 20 and 24 weeks and should consist of a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week. Each session should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. In-season training frequency should be structured around game schedule, travel schedule, academic calendar, and extracurricular activities. Previous training cycles may have allowed consistent training schedules such as a four-day or five-day training split with no basketball requirements, but in-season resistance training programs require coordination with academics, practices, games, and NCAA regulations.
Professional
The professional season can last anywhere between 24 and 30 weeks including playoffs. The overall game distribution, the length of the season, and travel requirements present a unique challenge when attempting to maximize performance for the professional athlete. One of the challenges that a strength and conditioning professional faces because of the demands of longer travel stints is access to a weight room that fits the basketball athlete's training needs. In the professional setting three to four games can spread throughout the week, including games on back-to-back nights that are sometimes played on the road for one and at home for the other. But with the redesign of the NBA schedule, games typically take place every other day. This setting can make it challenging for the coach to balance workloads on practice days and determine when it is time either to push an athlete or to promote recovery. In general, a professional athlete should take part in a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week lasting 30 to 45 minutes.
Goals and objectives of preseason strength training
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The complex nature of the game of basketball requires the improvement of strength, power, and aerobic endurance. As basketball athletes begin to increase workload on the court—by the addition of practice, scrimmages, or conditioning—during the preseason, concurrent training in the weight room develops strength and power to prepare them for the physical demands of jumping, cutting, and sprinting. A study by Balabinis and colleagues (1) examined basketball athletes in the preseason phase and determined that concurrent training can significantly increase strength, power, and aerobic endurance during the preseason if the program is properly structured.
For the basketball athlete, although aerobic endurance is extremely important, preseason strengthening programs can still be effective using a concurrent training model. Note that in the previously mentioned study (1), athletes performed aerobic endurance training in the morning and did resistance training seven hours later. It is important to provide appropriate rest between resistance training sessions and basketball activities for both recovery and performance. If strength and power gains are a primary goal, resistance training sessions should take place before conditioning events, but separating skill sessions and conditioning sessions might be most beneficial to allow more complete recovery and limit interference.
During the preseason, resistance training programs increase in intensity and address the development of strength across the entire force-velocity curve while maintaining a balance between power development and basketball-specific conditioning. As a result, the preseason phase should remain relatively short, lasting only four to six weeks regardless of level of play. The off-season should be a longer period that is focused on physical development, where earlier phases of a macrocycle should not have to account for a detrimentally high volume of basketball demands. Unlike other resistance training phases, the preseason introduces a higher volume of basketball-related activities. Therefore, most basketball athletes preparing for the basketball season are taking on high workloads, in both sporting activities and resistance training activities. Athletes are required to complete both resistance training sessions and all basketball activities, causing the preseason mesocycle to align and complement sport-specific skill development.
With appropriate progression, athletes should have completed previous mesocycles focusing on aerobic endurance, hypertrophy, maximal strength, and power. After athletes have completed an off-season resistance training program that has addressed these components, the preseason resistance training program should focus on the athlete's ability to use the stretch-shortening cycle, boosting the athlete's ability to produce high amounts of force in very short periods. As a result, the primary focus is placed on movement velocity to convert the strength and power they have developed in previous mesocycles into more sport-specific reactive strength and explosiveness. A thorough knowledge of basketball requirements is central to the proper selection of programming methods, including frequency, exercise selection, intensity, volume, and other strength and conditioning parameters for preseason training.
Improve jumping, acceleration, and change-of-direction abilities
By Bill Burgos
Explosive basketball athletes require optimal muscle elasticity. Reactive strength is reliant on eccentric force development, elastic energy storage and release, and muscle reflexive properties. Concentric force production is also correlated with the reactive strength index (4). Training to increase reactive strength involves the stretch-shortening cycle and, therefore, serves as another mode of resistance training. Performance in agility tests may also be related to reactive strength attributes. In another analysis, female athletes who exhibited faster agility times had shorter ground contact braking times when compared with slower athletes (59). The ability to move quickly around the basketball court is highly related to the athlete's ability to interact with the ground properly. Stronger athletes exhibit higher ground reaction forces. In many instances a basketball athlete must stop very quickly and move in another direction. Other times, a center will jump vertically to rebound a ball that bounces around the rim. The delay will require the athlete to land and quickly jump up a second time. People with superior lower body strength have higher peak power output during jumping activities (10). As a result, the stronger athlete will be able to minimize ground contact time while still being able to reach near maximal jump height in
the second jump.
Over the total distance covered in a game, a basketball athlete can experience various movement demands that place a tremendous amount of mechanical stress on the body. To grasp the importance of resistance training for the basketball athlete, a coach must understand that performance attributes like agility, power, and speed rely heavily on strength. The neuromuscular adaptations brought on by mechanical stress will be specific to the manipulation of several resistance training variables such as load, sets, repetitions, tempo, and rest period length.
Each quality of strength is unique and plays a role in injury prevention and reaching optimal physical performance. Change of direction involves multiple components of strength including eccentric (braking), isometric (planting), and concentric (propulsive) phases (59). Movements such as jumping and cutting rely on the ability to absorb the forces effectively in order to redirect those forces and produce maximal concentric power. Therefore, the ability to decelerate and reaccelerate quickly is related to eccentric strength. Accentuated eccentric overload training appears to improve muscle architecture, strength, power, and velocity more than traditional resistance training does (12, 30). As a result, eccentric training should also play an integral role in a basketball athlete's resistance training program.
Resistance training improves a basketball athlete's ability to jump, accelerate, and change directions in the face of an opponent.
The stretch-shortening cycle plays an important role in countermovement activities. Stronger muscles are able to contract and store elastic energy better than weaker muscles. Elastic energy, which is stored in the muscle-tendon unit, is created in the eccentric phase. Naturally, this form of stored energy can be transferred into the concentric, acceleration phase. The greater an athlete's ability to transfer this energy, during what is called the amortization phase, the greater her or his ability will be to perform explosive countermovement activities. For example, Bridgeman and colleagues (7) showed that lower body eccentric strength is highly related to overall jump performance. Resistance training increases eccentric strength, and combining eccentric resistance training with traditional, concentrically focused training modes can have positive effects on jump performance (41). Furthermore, although type II fibers may be recruited regardless of load when sets are performed to failure, heavy loads require type II fiber recruitment. In addition, heavy loads appear to be more effective for eliciting neural adaptations that, in turn, facilitate strength improvements (31, 45, 36). Therefore, heavy or explosive resistance training may be an effective means by which to augment power production during the countermovement activities encountered in basketball.
Muscle architecture influences the athlete's ability to move explosively. When looking at dynamic movements such as the countermovement jump, jump height, peak force, and peak velocity are all related to greater vastus lateralis thickness and gastrocnemius pennation angle (32). In general, resistance training improves muscle thickness, pennation angle, and fascicle length (12, 32). Regardless of training goals, an important goal is to bridge the gap between injury prevention and reaching optimal performance. Carefully designed resistance training programs performed in combination with ballistic, high-velocity basketball-specific movements may optimize muscle geometry and enhance performance in a dynamic, explosive sport such as basketball.
Length, structure, and organization of in-season programs
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The in-season phase is a significant period that athletes need to take advantage of, and they should continue to develop general and specific aspects of strength while competing in-season. This period can last 16 to 20 weeks for high school, up to 24 weeks for college, and as long as 30 weeks for professional basketball athletes. As a result, this phase is likely be the longest mesocycle of the year, offering a significant opportunity to implement a resistance training program. Although these weeks are filled with practices, games, travel, and other obstacles, proper planning and programming of resistance training sessions will prevent regression and aid in the continual growth of a developing athlete. The emphasis of in-season resistance training should be to continue to develop overall athleticism and ultimately maximize athletic performance in playoff competition.
High School
High school basketball athletes should be expected to complete one to two resistance training sessions per week strategically scheduled around their classes, practices, game schedule, and extracurricular activities. Total body resistance training programs for the high school athlete should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. The frequency per week of resistance training sessions should be adjusted around the volume of basketball activities, providing not only adequate recovery periods between resistance training sessions but also appropriate recovery leading up to the next game.
College
The collegiate basketball athlete's in-season phase ranges between 20 and 24 weeks and should consist of a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week. Each session should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. In-season training frequency should be structured around game schedule, travel schedule, academic calendar, and extracurricular activities. Previous training cycles may have allowed consistent training schedules such as a four-day or five-day training split with no basketball requirements, but in-season resistance training programs require coordination with academics, practices, games, and NCAA regulations.
Professional
The professional season can last anywhere between 24 and 30 weeks including playoffs. The overall game distribution, the length of the season, and travel requirements present a unique challenge when attempting to maximize performance for the professional athlete. One of the challenges that a strength and conditioning professional faces because of the demands of longer travel stints is access to a weight room that fits the basketball athlete's training needs. In the professional setting three to four games can spread throughout the week, including games on back-to-back nights that are sometimes played on the road for one and at home for the other. But with the redesign of the NBA schedule, games typically take place every other day. This setting can make it challenging for the coach to balance workloads on practice days and determine when it is time either to push an athlete or to promote recovery. In general, a professional athlete should take part in a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week lasting 30 to 45 minutes.
Goals and objectives of preseason strength training
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The complex nature of the game of basketball requires the improvement of strength, power, and aerobic endurance. As basketball athletes begin to increase workload on the court—by the addition of practice, scrimmages, or conditioning—during the preseason, concurrent training in the weight room develops strength and power to prepare them for the physical demands of jumping, cutting, and sprinting. A study by Balabinis and colleagues (1) examined basketball athletes in the preseason phase and determined that concurrent training can significantly increase strength, power, and aerobic endurance during the preseason if the program is properly structured.
For the basketball athlete, although aerobic endurance is extremely important, preseason strengthening programs can still be effective using a concurrent training model. Note that in the previously mentioned study (1), athletes performed aerobic endurance training in the morning and did resistance training seven hours later. It is important to provide appropriate rest between resistance training sessions and basketball activities for both recovery and performance. If strength and power gains are a primary goal, resistance training sessions should take place before conditioning events, but separating skill sessions and conditioning sessions might be most beneficial to allow more complete recovery and limit interference.
During the preseason, resistance training programs increase in intensity and address the development of strength across the entire force-velocity curve while maintaining a balance between power development and basketball-specific conditioning. As a result, the preseason phase should remain relatively short, lasting only four to six weeks regardless of level of play. The off-season should be a longer period that is focused on physical development, where earlier phases of a macrocycle should not have to account for a detrimentally high volume of basketball demands. Unlike other resistance training phases, the preseason introduces a higher volume of basketball-related activities. Therefore, most basketball athletes preparing for the basketball season are taking on high workloads, in both sporting activities and resistance training activities. Athletes are required to complete both resistance training sessions and all basketball activities, causing the preseason mesocycle to align and complement sport-specific skill development.
With appropriate progression, athletes should have completed previous mesocycles focusing on aerobic endurance, hypertrophy, maximal strength, and power. After athletes have completed an off-season resistance training program that has addressed these components, the preseason resistance training program should focus on the athlete's ability to use the stretch-shortening cycle, boosting the athlete's ability to produce high amounts of force in very short periods. As a result, the primary focus is placed on movement velocity to convert the strength and power they have developed in previous mesocycles into more sport-specific reactive strength and explosiveness. A thorough knowledge of basketball requirements is central to the proper selection of programming methods, including frequency, exercise selection, intensity, volume, and other strength and conditioning parameters for preseason training.
Improve jumping, acceleration, and change-of-direction abilities
By Bill Burgos
Explosive basketball athletes require optimal muscle elasticity. Reactive strength is reliant on eccentric force development, elastic energy storage and release, and muscle reflexive properties. Concentric force production is also correlated with the reactive strength index (4). Training to increase reactive strength involves the stretch-shortening cycle and, therefore, serves as another mode of resistance training. Performance in agility tests may also be related to reactive strength attributes. In another analysis, female athletes who exhibited faster agility times had shorter ground contact braking times when compared with slower athletes (59). The ability to move quickly around the basketball court is highly related to the athlete's ability to interact with the ground properly. Stronger athletes exhibit higher ground reaction forces. In many instances a basketball athlete must stop very quickly and move in another direction. Other times, a center will jump vertically to rebound a ball that bounces around the rim. The delay will require the athlete to land and quickly jump up a second time. People with superior lower body strength have higher peak power output during jumping activities (10). As a result, the stronger athlete will be able to minimize ground contact time while still being able to reach near maximal jump height in
the second jump.
Over the total distance covered in a game, a basketball athlete can experience various movement demands that place a tremendous amount of mechanical stress on the body. To grasp the importance of resistance training for the basketball athlete, a coach must understand that performance attributes like agility, power, and speed rely heavily on strength. The neuromuscular adaptations brought on by mechanical stress will be specific to the manipulation of several resistance training variables such as load, sets, repetitions, tempo, and rest period length.
Each quality of strength is unique and plays a role in injury prevention and reaching optimal physical performance. Change of direction involves multiple components of strength including eccentric (braking), isometric (planting), and concentric (propulsive) phases (59). Movements such as jumping and cutting rely on the ability to absorb the forces effectively in order to redirect those forces and produce maximal concentric power. Therefore, the ability to decelerate and reaccelerate quickly is related to eccentric strength. Accentuated eccentric overload training appears to improve muscle architecture, strength, power, and velocity more than traditional resistance training does (12, 30). As a result, eccentric training should also play an integral role in a basketball athlete's resistance training program.
Resistance training improves a basketball athlete's ability to jump, accelerate, and change directions in the face of an opponent.
The stretch-shortening cycle plays an important role in countermovement activities. Stronger muscles are able to contract and store elastic energy better than weaker muscles. Elastic energy, which is stored in the muscle-tendon unit, is created in the eccentric phase. Naturally, this form of stored energy can be transferred into the concentric, acceleration phase. The greater an athlete's ability to transfer this energy, during what is called the amortization phase, the greater her or his ability will be to perform explosive countermovement activities. For example, Bridgeman and colleagues (7) showed that lower body eccentric strength is highly related to overall jump performance. Resistance training increases eccentric strength, and combining eccentric resistance training with traditional, concentrically focused training modes can have positive effects on jump performance (41). Furthermore, although type II fibers may be recruited regardless of load when sets are performed to failure, heavy loads require type II fiber recruitment. In addition, heavy loads appear to be more effective for eliciting neural adaptations that, in turn, facilitate strength improvements (31, 45, 36). Therefore, heavy or explosive resistance training may be an effective means by which to augment power production during the countermovement activities encountered in basketball.
Muscle architecture influences the athlete's ability to move explosively. When looking at dynamic movements such as the countermovement jump, jump height, peak force, and peak velocity are all related to greater vastus lateralis thickness and gastrocnemius pennation angle (32). In general, resistance training improves muscle thickness, pennation angle, and fascicle length (12, 32). Regardless of training goals, an important goal is to bridge the gap between injury prevention and reaching optimal performance. Carefully designed resistance training programs performed in combination with ballistic, high-velocity basketball-specific movements may optimize muscle geometry and enhance performance in a dynamic, explosive sport such as basketball.
Length, structure, and organization of in-season programs
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The in-season phase is a significant period that athletes need to take advantage of, and they should continue to develop general and specific aspects of strength while competing in-season. This period can last 16 to 20 weeks for high school, up to 24 weeks for college, and as long as 30 weeks for professional basketball athletes. As a result, this phase is likely be the longest mesocycle of the year, offering a significant opportunity to implement a resistance training program. Although these weeks are filled with practices, games, travel, and other obstacles, proper planning and programming of resistance training sessions will prevent regression and aid in the continual growth of a developing athlete. The emphasis of in-season resistance training should be to continue to develop overall athleticism and ultimately maximize athletic performance in playoff competition.
High School
High school basketball athletes should be expected to complete one to two resistance training sessions per week strategically scheduled around their classes, practices, game schedule, and extracurricular activities. Total body resistance training programs for the high school athlete should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. The frequency per week of resistance training sessions should be adjusted around the volume of basketball activities, providing not only adequate recovery periods between resistance training sessions but also appropriate recovery leading up to the next game.
College
The collegiate basketball athlete's in-season phase ranges between 20 and 24 weeks and should consist of a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week. Each session should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. In-season training frequency should be structured around game schedule, travel schedule, academic calendar, and extracurricular activities. Previous training cycles may have allowed consistent training schedules such as a four-day or five-day training split with no basketball requirements, but in-season resistance training programs require coordination with academics, practices, games, and NCAA regulations.
Professional
The professional season can last anywhere between 24 and 30 weeks including playoffs. The overall game distribution, the length of the season, and travel requirements present a unique challenge when attempting to maximize performance for the professional athlete. One of the challenges that a strength and conditioning professional faces because of the demands of longer travel stints is access to a weight room that fits the basketball athlete's training needs. In the professional setting three to four games can spread throughout the week, including games on back-to-back nights that are sometimes played on the road for one and at home for the other. But with the redesign of the NBA schedule, games typically take place every other day. This setting can make it challenging for the coach to balance workloads on practice days and determine when it is time either to push an athlete or to promote recovery. In general, a professional athlete should take part in a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week lasting 30 to 45 minutes.
Goals and objectives of preseason strength training
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The complex nature of the game of basketball requires the improvement of strength, power, and aerobic endurance. As basketball athletes begin to increase workload on the court—by the addition of practice, scrimmages, or conditioning—during the preseason, concurrent training in the weight room develops strength and power to prepare them for the physical demands of jumping, cutting, and sprinting. A study by Balabinis and colleagues (1) examined basketball athletes in the preseason phase and determined that concurrent training can significantly increase strength, power, and aerobic endurance during the preseason if the program is properly structured.
For the basketball athlete, although aerobic endurance is extremely important, preseason strengthening programs can still be effective using a concurrent training model. Note that in the previously mentioned study (1), athletes performed aerobic endurance training in the morning and did resistance training seven hours later. It is important to provide appropriate rest between resistance training sessions and basketball activities for both recovery and performance. If strength and power gains are a primary goal, resistance training sessions should take place before conditioning events, but separating skill sessions and conditioning sessions might be most beneficial to allow more complete recovery and limit interference.
During the preseason, resistance training programs increase in intensity and address the development of strength across the entire force-velocity curve while maintaining a balance between power development and basketball-specific conditioning. As a result, the preseason phase should remain relatively short, lasting only four to six weeks regardless of level of play. The off-season should be a longer period that is focused on physical development, where earlier phases of a macrocycle should not have to account for a detrimentally high volume of basketball demands. Unlike other resistance training phases, the preseason introduces a higher volume of basketball-related activities. Therefore, most basketball athletes preparing for the basketball season are taking on high workloads, in both sporting activities and resistance training activities. Athletes are required to complete both resistance training sessions and all basketball activities, causing the preseason mesocycle to align and complement sport-specific skill development.
With appropriate progression, athletes should have completed previous mesocycles focusing on aerobic endurance, hypertrophy, maximal strength, and power. After athletes have completed an off-season resistance training program that has addressed these components, the preseason resistance training program should focus on the athlete's ability to use the stretch-shortening cycle, boosting the athlete's ability to produce high amounts of force in very short periods. As a result, the primary focus is placed on movement velocity to convert the strength and power they have developed in previous mesocycles into more sport-specific reactive strength and explosiveness. A thorough knowledge of basketball requirements is central to the proper selection of programming methods, including frequency, exercise selection, intensity, volume, and other strength and conditioning parameters for preseason training.
Improve jumping, acceleration, and change-of-direction abilities
By Bill Burgos
Explosive basketball athletes require optimal muscle elasticity. Reactive strength is reliant on eccentric force development, elastic energy storage and release, and muscle reflexive properties. Concentric force production is also correlated with the reactive strength index (4). Training to increase reactive strength involves the stretch-shortening cycle and, therefore, serves as another mode of resistance training. Performance in agility tests may also be related to reactive strength attributes. In another analysis, female athletes who exhibited faster agility times had shorter ground contact braking times when compared with slower athletes (59). The ability to move quickly around the basketball court is highly related to the athlete's ability to interact with the ground properly. Stronger athletes exhibit higher ground reaction forces. In many instances a basketball athlete must stop very quickly and move in another direction. Other times, a center will jump vertically to rebound a ball that bounces around the rim. The delay will require the athlete to land and quickly jump up a second time. People with superior lower body strength have higher peak power output during jumping activities (10). As a result, the stronger athlete will be able to minimize ground contact time while still being able to reach near maximal jump height in
the second jump.
Over the total distance covered in a game, a basketball athlete can experience various movement demands that place a tremendous amount of mechanical stress on the body. To grasp the importance of resistance training for the basketball athlete, a coach must understand that performance attributes like agility, power, and speed rely heavily on strength. The neuromuscular adaptations brought on by mechanical stress will be specific to the manipulation of several resistance training variables such as load, sets, repetitions, tempo, and rest period length.
Each quality of strength is unique and plays a role in injury prevention and reaching optimal physical performance. Change of direction involves multiple components of strength including eccentric (braking), isometric (planting), and concentric (propulsive) phases (59). Movements such as jumping and cutting rely on the ability to absorb the forces effectively in order to redirect those forces and produce maximal concentric power. Therefore, the ability to decelerate and reaccelerate quickly is related to eccentric strength. Accentuated eccentric overload training appears to improve muscle architecture, strength, power, and velocity more than traditional resistance training does (12, 30). As a result, eccentric training should also play an integral role in a basketball athlete's resistance training program.
Resistance training improves a basketball athlete's ability to jump, accelerate, and change directions in the face of an opponent.
The stretch-shortening cycle plays an important role in countermovement activities. Stronger muscles are able to contract and store elastic energy better than weaker muscles. Elastic energy, which is stored in the muscle-tendon unit, is created in the eccentric phase. Naturally, this form of stored energy can be transferred into the concentric, acceleration phase. The greater an athlete's ability to transfer this energy, during what is called the amortization phase, the greater her or his ability will be to perform explosive countermovement activities. For example, Bridgeman and colleagues (7) showed that lower body eccentric strength is highly related to overall jump performance. Resistance training increases eccentric strength, and combining eccentric resistance training with traditional, concentrically focused training modes can have positive effects on jump performance (41). Furthermore, although type II fibers may be recruited regardless of load when sets are performed to failure, heavy loads require type II fiber recruitment. In addition, heavy loads appear to be more effective for eliciting neural adaptations that, in turn, facilitate strength improvements (31, 45, 36). Therefore, heavy or explosive resistance training may be an effective means by which to augment power production during the countermovement activities encountered in basketball.
Muscle architecture influences the athlete's ability to move explosively. When looking at dynamic movements such as the countermovement jump, jump height, peak force, and peak velocity are all related to greater vastus lateralis thickness and gastrocnemius pennation angle (32). In general, resistance training improves muscle thickness, pennation angle, and fascicle length (12, 32). Regardless of training goals, an important goal is to bridge the gap between injury prevention and reaching optimal performance. Carefully designed resistance training programs performed in combination with ballistic, high-velocity basketball-specific movements may optimize muscle geometry and enhance performance in a dynamic, explosive sport such as basketball.
Length, structure, and organization of in-season programs
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The in-season phase is a significant period that athletes need to take advantage of, and they should continue to develop general and specific aspects of strength while competing in-season. This period can last 16 to 20 weeks for high school, up to 24 weeks for college, and as long as 30 weeks for professional basketball athletes. As a result, this phase is likely be the longest mesocycle of the year, offering a significant opportunity to implement a resistance training program. Although these weeks are filled with practices, games, travel, and other obstacles, proper planning and programming of resistance training sessions will prevent regression and aid in the continual growth of a developing athlete. The emphasis of in-season resistance training should be to continue to develop overall athleticism and ultimately maximize athletic performance in playoff competition.
High School
High school basketball athletes should be expected to complete one to two resistance training sessions per week strategically scheduled around their classes, practices, game schedule, and extracurricular activities. Total body resistance training programs for the high school athlete should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. The frequency per week of resistance training sessions should be adjusted around the volume of basketball activities, providing not only adequate recovery periods between resistance training sessions but also appropriate recovery leading up to the next game.
College
The collegiate basketball athlete's in-season phase ranges between 20 and 24 weeks and should consist of a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week. Each session should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. In-season training frequency should be structured around game schedule, travel schedule, academic calendar, and extracurricular activities. Previous training cycles may have allowed consistent training schedules such as a four-day or five-day training split with no basketball requirements, but in-season resistance training programs require coordination with academics, practices, games, and NCAA regulations.
Professional
The professional season can last anywhere between 24 and 30 weeks including playoffs. The overall game distribution, the length of the season, and travel requirements present a unique challenge when attempting to maximize performance for the professional athlete. One of the challenges that a strength and conditioning professional faces because of the demands of longer travel stints is access to a weight room that fits the basketball athlete's training needs. In the professional setting three to four games can spread throughout the week, including games on back-to-back nights that are sometimes played on the road for one and at home for the other. But with the redesign of the NBA schedule, games typically take place every other day. This setting can make it challenging for the coach to balance workloads on practice days and determine when it is time either to push an athlete or to promote recovery. In general, a professional athlete should take part in a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week lasting 30 to 45 minutes.
Goals and objectives of preseason strength training
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The complex nature of the game of basketball requires the improvement of strength, power, and aerobic endurance. As basketball athletes begin to increase workload on the court—by the addition of practice, scrimmages, or conditioning—during the preseason, concurrent training in the weight room develops strength and power to prepare them for the physical demands of jumping, cutting, and sprinting. A study by Balabinis and colleagues (1) examined basketball athletes in the preseason phase and determined that concurrent training can significantly increase strength, power, and aerobic endurance during the preseason if the program is properly structured.
For the basketball athlete, although aerobic endurance is extremely important, preseason strengthening programs can still be effective using a concurrent training model. Note that in the previously mentioned study (1), athletes performed aerobic endurance training in the morning and did resistance training seven hours later. It is important to provide appropriate rest between resistance training sessions and basketball activities for both recovery and performance. If strength and power gains are a primary goal, resistance training sessions should take place before conditioning events, but separating skill sessions and conditioning sessions might be most beneficial to allow more complete recovery and limit interference.
During the preseason, resistance training programs increase in intensity and address the development of strength across the entire force-velocity curve while maintaining a balance between power development and basketball-specific conditioning. As a result, the preseason phase should remain relatively short, lasting only four to six weeks regardless of level of play. The off-season should be a longer period that is focused on physical development, where earlier phases of a macrocycle should not have to account for a detrimentally high volume of basketball demands. Unlike other resistance training phases, the preseason introduces a higher volume of basketball-related activities. Therefore, most basketball athletes preparing for the basketball season are taking on high workloads, in both sporting activities and resistance training activities. Athletes are required to complete both resistance training sessions and all basketball activities, causing the preseason mesocycle to align and complement sport-specific skill development.
With appropriate progression, athletes should have completed previous mesocycles focusing on aerobic endurance, hypertrophy, maximal strength, and power. After athletes have completed an off-season resistance training program that has addressed these components, the preseason resistance training program should focus on the athlete's ability to use the stretch-shortening cycle, boosting the athlete's ability to produce high amounts of force in very short periods. As a result, the primary focus is placed on movement velocity to convert the strength and power they have developed in previous mesocycles into more sport-specific reactive strength and explosiveness. A thorough knowledge of basketball requirements is central to the proper selection of programming methods, including frequency, exercise selection, intensity, volume, and other strength and conditioning parameters for preseason training.
Improve jumping, acceleration, and change-of-direction abilities
By Bill Burgos
Explosive basketball athletes require optimal muscle elasticity. Reactive strength is reliant on eccentric force development, elastic energy storage and release, and muscle reflexive properties. Concentric force production is also correlated with the reactive strength index (4). Training to increase reactive strength involves the stretch-shortening cycle and, therefore, serves as another mode of resistance training. Performance in agility tests may also be related to reactive strength attributes. In another analysis, female athletes who exhibited faster agility times had shorter ground contact braking times when compared with slower athletes (59). The ability to move quickly around the basketball court is highly related to the athlete's ability to interact with the ground properly. Stronger athletes exhibit higher ground reaction forces. In many instances a basketball athlete must stop very quickly and move in another direction. Other times, a center will jump vertically to rebound a ball that bounces around the rim. The delay will require the athlete to land and quickly jump up a second time. People with superior lower body strength have higher peak power output during jumping activities (10). As a result, the stronger athlete will be able to minimize ground contact time while still being able to reach near maximal jump height in
the second jump.
Over the total distance covered in a game, a basketball athlete can experience various movement demands that place a tremendous amount of mechanical stress on the body. To grasp the importance of resistance training for the basketball athlete, a coach must understand that performance attributes like agility, power, and speed rely heavily on strength. The neuromuscular adaptations brought on by mechanical stress will be specific to the manipulation of several resistance training variables such as load, sets, repetitions, tempo, and rest period length.
Each quality of strength is unique and plays a role in injury prevention and reaching optimal physical performance. Change of direction involves multiple components of strength including eccentric (braking), isometric (planting), and concentric (propulsive) phases (59). Movements such as jumping and cutting rely on the ability to absorb the forces effectively in order to redirect those forces and produce maximal concentric power. Therefore, the ability to decelerate and reaccelerate quickly is related to eccentric strength. Accentuated eccentric overload training appears to improve muscle architecture, strength, power, and velocity more than traditional resistance training does (12, 30). As a result, eccentric training should also play an integral role in a basketball athlete's resistance training program.
Resistance training improves a basketball athlete's ability to jump, accelerate, and change directions in the face of an opponent.
The stretch-shortening cycle plays an important role in countermovement activities. Stronger muscles are able to contract and store elastic energy better than weaker muscles. Elastic energy, which is stored in the muscle-tendon unit, is created in the eccentric phase. Naturally, this form of stored energy can be transferred into the concentric, acceleration phase. The greater an athlete's ability to transfer this energy, during what is called the amortization phase, the greater her or his ability will be to perform explosive countermovement activities. For example, Bridgeman and colleagues (7) showed that lower body eccentric strength is highly related to overall jump performance. Resistance training increases eccentric strength, and combining eccentric resistance training with traditional, concentrically focused training modes can have positive effects on jump performance (41). Furthermore, although type II fibers may be recruited regardless of load when sets are performed to failure, heavy loads require type II fiber recruitment. In addition, heavy loads appear to be more effective for eliciting neural adaptations that, in turn, facilitate strength improvements (31, 45, 36). Therefore, heavy or explosive resistance training may be an effective means by which to augment power production during the countermovement activities encountered in basketball.
Muscle architecture influences the athlete's ability to move explosively. When looking at dynamic movements such as the countermovement jump, jump height, peak force, and peak velocity are all related to greater vastus lateralis thickness and gastrocnemius pennation angle (32). In general, resistance training improves muscle thickness, pennation angle, and fascicle length (12, 32). Regardless of training goals, an important goal is to bridge the gap between injury prevention and reaching optimal performance. Carefully designed resistance training programs performed in combination with ballistic, high-velocity basketball-specific movements may optimize muscle geometry and enhance performance in a dynamic, explosive sport such as basketball.
Length, structure, and organization of in-season programs
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The in-season phase is a significant period that athletes need to take advantage of, and they should continue to develop general and specific aspects of strength while competing in-season. This period can last 16 to 20 weeks for high school, up to 24 weeks for college, and as long as 30 weeks for professional basketball athletes. As a result, this phase is likely be the longest mesocycle of the year, offering a significant opportunity to implement a resistance training program. Although these weeks are filled with practices, games, travel, and other obstacles, proper planning and programming of resistance training sessions will prevent regression and aid in the continual growth of a developing athlete. The emphasis of in-season resistance training should be to continue to develop overall athleticism and ultimately maximize athletic performance in playoff competition.
High School
High school basketball athletes should be expected to complete one to two resistance training sessions per week strategically scheduled around their classes, practices, game schedule, and extracurricular activities. Total body resistance training programs for the high school athlete should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. The frequency per week of resistance training sessions should be adjusted around the volume of basketball activities, providing not only adequate recovery periods between resistance training sessions but also appropriate recovery leading up to the next game.
College
The collegiate basketball athlete's in-season phase ranges between 20 and 24 weeks and should consist of a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week. Each session should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. In-season training frequency should be structured around game schedule, travel schedule, academic calendar, and extracurricular activities. Previous training cycles may have allowed consistent training schedules such as a four-day or five-day training split with no basketball requirements, but in-season resistance training programs require coordination with academics, practices, games, and NCAA regulations.
Professional
The professional season can last anywhere between 24 and 30 weeks including playoffs. The overall game distribution, the length of the season, and travel requirements present a unique challenge when attempting to maximize performance for the professional athlete. One of the challenges that a strength and conditioning professional faces because of the demands of longer travel stints is access to a weight room that fits the basketball athlete's training needs. In the professional setting three to four games can spread throughout the week, including games on back-to-back nights that are sometimes played on the road for one and at home for the other. But with the redesign of the NBA schedule, games typically take place every other day. This setting can make it challenging for the coach to balance workloads on practice days and determine when it is time either to push an athlete or to promote recovery. In general, a professional athlete should take part in a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week lasting 30 to 45 minutes.
Goals and objectives of preseason strength training
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The complex nature of the game of basketball requires the improvement of strength, power, and aerobic endurance. As basketball athletes begin to increase workload on the court—by the addition of practice, scrimmages, or conditioning—during the preseason, concurrent training in the weight room develops strength and power to prepare them for the physical demands of jumping, cutting, and sprinting. A study by Balabinis and colleagues (1) examined basketball athletes in the preseason phase and determined that concurrent training can significantly increase strength, power, and aerobic endurance during the preseason if the program is properly structured.
For the basketball athlete, although aerobic endurance is extremely important, preseason strengthening programs can still be effective using a concurrent training model. Note that in the previously mentioned study (1), athletes performed aerobic endurance training in the morning and did resistance training seven hours later. It is important to provide appropriate rest between resistance training sessions and basketball activities for both recovery and performance. If strength and power gains are a primary goal, resistance training sessions should take place before conditioning events, but separating skill sessions and conditioning sessions might be most beneficial to allow more complete recovery and limit interference.
During the preseason, resistance training programs increase in intensity and address the development of strength across the entire force-velocity curve while maintaining a balance between power development and basketball-specific conditioning. As a result, the preseason phase should remain relatively short, lasting only four to six weeks regardless of level of play. The off-season should be a longer period that is focused on physical development, where earlier phases of a macrocycle should not have to account for a detrimentally high volume of basketball demands. Unlike other resistance training phases, the preseason introduces a higher volume of basketball-related activities. Therefore, most basketball athletes preparing for the basketball season are taking on high workloads, in both sporting activities and resistance training activities. Athletes are required to complete both resistance training sessions and all basketball activities, causing the preseason mesocycle to align and complement sport-specific skill development.
With appropriate progression, athletes should have completed previous mesocycles focusing on aerobic endurance, hypertrophy, maximal strength, and power. After athletes have completed an off-season resistance training program that has addressed these components, the preseason resistance training program should focus on the athlete's ability to use the stretch-shortening cycle, boosting the athlete's ability to produce high amounts of force in very short periods. As a result, the primary focus is placed on movement velocity to convert the strength and power they have developed in previous mesocycles into more sport-specific reactive strength and explosiveness. A thorough knowledge of basketball requirements is central to the proper selection of programming methods, including frequency, exercise selection, intensity, volume, and other strength and conditioning parameters for preseason training.
Improve jumping, acceleration, and change-of-direction abilities
By Bill Burgos
Explosive basketball athletes require optimal muscle elasticity. Reactive strength is reliant on eccentric force development, elastic energy storage and release, and muscle reflexive properties. Concentric force production is also correlated with the reactive strength index (4). Training to increase reactive strength involves the stretch-shortening cycle and, therefore, serves as another mode of resistance training. Performance in agility tests may also be related to reactive strength attributes. In another analysis, female athletes who exhibited faster agility times had shorter ground contact braking times when compared with slower athletes (59). The ability to move quickly around the basketball court is highly related to the athlete's ability to interact with the ground properly. Stronger athletes exhibit higher ground reaction forces. In many instances a basketball athlete must stop very quickly and move in another direction. Other times, a center will jump vertically to rebound a ball that bounces around the rim. The delay will require the athlete to land and quickly jump up a second time. People with superior lower body strength have higher peak power output during jumping activities (10). As a result, the stronger athlete will be able to minimize ground contact time while still being able to reach near maximal jump height in
the second jump.
Over the total distance covered in a game, a basketball athlete can experience various movement demands that place a tremendous amount of mechanical stress on the body. To grasp the importance of resistance training for the basketball athlete, a coach must understand that performance attributes like agility, power, and speed rely heavily on strength. The neuromuscular adaptations brought on by mechanical stress will be specific to the manipulation of several resistance training variables such as load, sets, repetitions, tempo, and rest period length.
Each quality of strength is unique and plays a role in injury prevention and reaching optimal physical performance. Change of direction involves multiple components of strength including eccentric (braking), isometric (planting), and concentric (propulsive) phases (59). Movements such as jumping and cutting rely on the ability to absorb the forces effectively in order to redirect those forces and produce maximal concentric power. Therefore, the ability to decelerate and reaccelerate quickly is related to eccentric strength. Accentuated eccentric overload training appears to improve muscle architecture, strength, power, and velocity more than traditional resistance training does (12, 30). As a result, eccentric training should also play an integral role in a basketball athlete's resistance training program.
Resistance training improves a basketball athlete's ability to jump, accelerate, and change directions in the face of an opponent.
The stretch-shortening cycle plays an important role in countermovement activities. Stronger muscles are able to contract and store elastic energy better than weaker muscles. Elastic energy, which is stored in the muscle-tendon unit, is created in the eccentric phase. Naturally, this form of stored energy can be transferred into the concentric, acceleration phase. The greater an athlete's ability to transfer this energy, during what is called the amortization phase, the greater her or his ability will be to perform explosive countermovement activities. For example, Bridgeman and colleagues (7) showed that lower body eccentric strength is highly related to overall jump performance. Resistance training increases eccentric strength, and combining eccentric resistance training with traditional, concentrically focused training modes can have positive effects on jump performance (41). Furthermore, although type II fibers may be recruited regardless of load when sets are performed to failure, heavy loads require type II fiber recruitment. In addition, heavy loads appear to be more effective for eliciting neural adaptations that, in turn, facilitate strength improvements (31, 45, 36). Therefore, heavy or explosive resistance training may be an effective means by which to augment power production during the countermovement activities encountered in basketball.
Muscle architecture influences the athlete's ability to move explosively. When looking at dynamic movements such as the countermovement jump, jump height, peak force, and peak velocity are all related to greater vastus lateralis thickness and gastrocnemius pennation angle (32). In general, resistance training improves muscle thickness, pennation angle, and fascicle length (12, 32). Regardless of training goals, an important goal is to bridge the gap between injury prevention and reaching optimal performance. Carefully designed resistance training programs performed in combination with ballistic, high-velocity basketball-specific movements may optimize muscle geometry and enhance performance in a dynamic, explosive sport such as basketball.
Length, structure, and organization of in-season programs
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The in-season phase is a significant period that athletes need to take advantage of, and they should continue to develop general and specific aspects of strength while competing in-season. This period can last 16 to 20 weeks for high school, up to 24 weeks for college, and as long as 30 weeks for professional basketball athletes. As a result, this phase is likely be the longest mesocycle of the year, offering a significant opportunity to implement a resistance training program. Although these weeks are filled with practices, games, travel, and other obstacles, proper planning and programming of resistance training sessions will prevent regression and aid in the continual growth of a developing athlete. The emphasis of in-season resistance training should be to continue to develop overall athleticism and ultimately maximize athletic performance in playoff competition.
High School
High school basketball athletes should be expected to complete one to two resistance training sessions per week strategically scheduled around their classes, practices, game schedule, and extracurricular activities. Total body resistance training programs for the high school athlete should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. The frequency per week of resistance training sessions should be adjusted around the volume of basketball activities, providing not only adequate recovery periods between resistance training sessions but also appropriate recovery leading up to the next game.
College
The collegiate basketball athlete's in-season phase ranges between 20 and 24 weeks and should consist of a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week. Each session should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. In-season training frequency should be structured around game schedule, travel schedule, academic calendar, and extracurricular activities. Previous training cycles may have allowed consistent training schedules such as a four-day or five-day training split with no basketball requirements, but in-season resistance training programs require coordination with academics, practices, games, and NCAA regulations.
Professional
The professional season can last anywhere between 24 and 30 weeks including playoffs. The overall game distribution, the length of the season, and travel requirements present a unique challenge when attempting to maximize performance for the professional athlete. One of the challenges that a strength and conditioning professional faces because of the demands of longer travel stints is access to a weight room that fits the basketball athlete's training needs. In the professional setting three to four games can spread throughout the week, including games on back-to-back nights that are sometimes played on the road for one and at home for the other. But with the redesign of the NBA schedule, games typically take place every other day. This setting can make it challenging for the coach to balance workloads on practice days and determine when it is time either to push an athlete or to promote recovery. In general, a professional athlete should take part in a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week lasting 30 to 45 minutes.
Goals and objectives of preseason strength training
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The complex nature of the game of basketball requires the improvement of strength, power, and aerobic endurance. As basketball athletes begin to increase workload on the court—by the addition of practice, scrimmages, or conditioning—during the preseason, concurrent training in the weight room develops strength and power to prepare them for the physical demands of jumping, cutting, and sprinting. A study by Balabinis and colleagues (1) examined basketball athletes in the preseason phase and determined that concurrent training can significantly increase strength, power, and aerobic endurance during the preseason if the program is properly structured.
For the basketball athlete, although aerobic endurance is extremely important, preseason strengthening programs can still be effective using a concurrent training model. Note that in the previously mentioned study (1), athletes performed aerobic endurance training in the morning and did resistance training seven hours later. It is important to provide appropriate rest between resistance training sessions and basketball activities for both recovery and performance. If strength and power gains are a primary goal, resistance training sessions should take place before conditioning events, but separating skill sessions and conditioning sessions might be most beneficial to allow more complete recovery and limit interference.
During the preseason, resistance training programs increase in intensity and address the development of strength across the entire force-velocity curve while maintaining a balance between power development and basketball-specific conditioning. As a result, the preseason phase should remain relatively short, lasting only four to six weeks regardless of level of play. The off-season should be a longer period that is focused on physical development, where earlier phases of a macrocycle should not have to account for a detrimentally high volume of basketball demands. Unlike other resistance training phases, the preseason introduces a higher volume of basketball-related activities. Therefore, most basketball athletes preparing for the basketball season are taking on high workloads, in both sporting activities and resistance training activities. Athletes are required to complete both resistance training sessions and all basketball activities, causing the preseason mesocycle to align and complement sport-specific skill development.
With appropriate progression, athletes should have completed previous mesocycles focusing on aerobic endurance, hypertrophy, maximal strength, and power. After athletes have completed an off-season resistance training program that has addressed these components, the preseason resistance training program should focus on the athlete's ability to use the stretch-shortening cycle, boosting the athlete's ability to produce high amounts of force in very short periods. As a result, the primary focus is placed on movement velocity to convert the strength and power they have developed in previous mesocycles into more sport-specific reactive strength and explosiveness. A thorough knowledge of basketball requirements is central to the proper selection of programming methods, including frequency, exercise selection, intensity, volume, and other strength and conditioning parameters for preseason training.
Improve jumping, acceleration, and change-of-direction abilities
By Bill Burgos
Explosive basketball athletes require optimal muscle elasticity. Reactive strength is reliant on eccentric force development, elastic energy storage and release, and muscle reflexive properties. Concentric force production is also correlated with the reactive strength index (4). Training to increase reactive strength involves the stretch-shortening cycle and, therefore, serves as another mode of resistance training. Performance in agility tests may also be related to reactive strength attributes. In another analysis, female athletes who exhibited faster agility times had shorter ground contact braking times when compared with slower athletes (59). The ability to move quickly around the basketball court is highly related to the athlete's ability to interact with the ground properly. Stronger athletes exhibit higher ground reaction forces. In many instances a basketball athlete must stop very quickly and move in another direction. Other times, a center will jump vertically to rebound a ball that bounces around the rim. The delay will require the athlete to land and quickly jump up a second time. People with superior lower body strength have higher peak power output during jumping activities (10). As a result, the stronger athlete will be able to minimize ground contact time while still being able to reach near maximal jump height in
the second jump.
Over the total distance covered in a game, a basketball athlete can experience various movement demands that place a tremendous amount of mechanical stress on the body. To grasp the importance of resistance training for the basketball athlete, a coach must understand that performance attributes like agility, power, and speed rely heavily on strength. The neuromuscular adaptations brought on by mechanical stress will be specific to the manipulation of several resistance training variables such as load, sets, repetitions, tempo, and rest period length.
Each quality of strength is unique and plays a role in injury prevention and reaching optimal physical performance. Change of direction involves multiple components of strength including eccentric (braking), isometric (planting), and concentric (propulsive) phases (59). Movements such as jumping and cutting rely on the ability to absorb the forces effectively in order to redirect those forces and produce maximal concentric power. Therefore, the ability to decelerate and reaccelerate quickly is related to eccentric strength. Accentuated eccentric overload training appears to improve muscle architecture, strength, power, and velocity more than traditional resistance training does (12, 30). As a result, eccentric training should also play an integral role in a basketball athlete's resistance training program.
Resistance training improves a basketball athlete's ability to jump, accelerate, and change directions in the face of an opponent.
The stretch-shortening cycle plays an important role in countermovement activities. Stronger muscles are able to contract and store elastic energy better than weaker muscles. Elastic energy, which is stored in the muscle-tendon unit, is created in the eccentric phase. Naturally, this form of stored energy can be transferred into the concentric, acceleration phase. The greater an athlete's ability to transfer this energy, during what is called the amortization phase, the greater her or his ability will be to perform explosive countermovement activities. For example, Bridgeman and colleagues (7) showed that lower body eccentric strength is highly related to overall jump performance. Resistance training increases eccentric strength, and combining eccentric resistance training with traditional, concentrically focused training modes can have positive effects on jump performance (41). Furthermore, although type II fibers may be recruited regardless of load when sets are performed to failure, heavy loads require type II fiber recruitment. In addition, heavy loads appear to be more effective for eliciting neural adaptations that, in turn, facilitate strength improvements (31, 45, 36). Therefore, heavy or explosive resistance training may be an effective means by which to augment power production during the countermovement activities encountered in basketball.
Muscle architecture influences the athlete's ability to move explosively. When looking at dynamic movements such as the countermovement jump, jump height, peak force, and peak velocity are all related to greater vastus lateralis thickness and gastrocnemius pennation angle (32). In general, resistance training improves muscle thickness, pennation angle, and fascicle length (12, 32). Regardless of training goals, an important goal is to bridge the gap between injury prevention and reaching optimal performance. Carefully designed resistance training programs performed in combination with ballistic, high-velocity basketball-specific movements may optimize muscle geometry and enhance performance in a dynamic, explosive sport such as basketball.
Length, structure, and organization of in-season programs
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The in-season phase is a significant period that athletes need to take advantage of, and they should continue to develop general and specific aspects of strength while competing in-season. This period can last 16 to 20 weeks for high school, up to 24 weeks for college, and as long as 30 weeks for professional basketball athletes. As a result, this phase is likely be the longest mesocycle of the year, offering a significant opportunity to implement a resistance training program. Although these weeks are filled with practices, games, travel, and other obstacles, proper planning and programming of resistance training sessions will prevent regression and aid in the continual growth of a developing athlete. The emphasis of in-season resistance training should be to continue to develop overall athleticism and ultimately maximize athletic performance in playoff competition.
High School
High school basketball athletes should be expected to complete one to two resistance training sessions per week strategically scheduled around their classes, practices, game schedule, and extracurricular activities. Total body resistance training programs for the high school athlete should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. The frequency per week of resistance training sessions should be adjusted around the volume of basketball activities, providing not only adequate recovery periods between resistance training sessions but also appropriate recovery leading up to the next game.
College
The collegiate basketball athlete's in-season phase ranges between 20 and 24 weeks and should consist of a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week. Each session should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. In-season training frequency should be structured around game schedule, travel schedule, academic calendar, and extracurricular activities. Previous training cycles may have allowed consistent training schedules such as a four-day or five-day training split with no basketball requirements, but in-season resistance training programs require coordination with academics, practices, games, and NCAA regulations.
Professional
The professional season can last anywhere between 24 and 30 weeks including playoffs. The overall game distribution, the length of the season, and travel requirements present a unique challenge when attempting to maximize performance for the professional athlete. One of the challenges that a strength and conditioning professional faces because of the demands of longer travel stints is access to a weight room that fits the basketball athlete's training needs. In the professional setting three to four games can spread throughout the week, including games on back-to-back nights that are sometimes played on the road for one and at home for the other. But with the redesign of the NBA schedule, games typically take place every other day. This setting can make it challenging for the coach to balance workloads on practice days and determine when it is time either to push an athlete or to promote recovery. In general, a professional athlete should take part in a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week lasting 30 to 45 minutes.
Goals and objectives of preseason strength training
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The complex nature of the game of basketball requires the improvement of strength, power, and aerobic endurance. As basketball athletes begin to increase workload on the court—by the addition of practice, scrimmages, or conditioning—during the preseason, concurrent training in the weight room develops strength and power to prepare them for the physical demands of jumping, cutting, and sprinting. A study by Balabinis and colleagues (1) examined basketball athletes in the preseason phase and determined that concurrent training can significantly increase strength, power, and aerobic endurance during the preseason if the program is properly structured.
For the basketball athlete, although aerobic endurance is extremely important, preseason strengthening programs can still be effective using a concurrent training model. Note that in the previously mentioned study (1), athletes performed aerobic endurance training in the morning and did resistance training seven hours later. It is important to provide appropriate rest between resistance training sessions and basketball activities for both recovery and performance. If strength and power gains are a primary goal, resistance training sessions should take place before conditioning events, but separating skill sessions and conditioning sessions might be most beneficial to allow more complete recovery and limit interference.
During the preseason, resistance training programs increase in intensity and address the development of strength across the entire force-velocity curve while maintaining a balance between power development and basketball-specific conditioning. As a result, the preseason phase should remain relatively short, lasting only four to six weeks regardless of level of play. The off-season should be a longer period that is focused on physical development, where earlier phases of a macrocycle should not have to account for a detrimentally high volume of basketball demands. Unlike other resistance training phases, the preseason introduces a higher volume of basketball-related activities. Therefore, most basketball athletes preparing for the basketball season are taking on high workloads, in both sporting activities and resistance training activities. Athletes are required to complete both resistance training sessions and all basketball activities, causing the preseason mesocycle to align and complement sport-specific skill development.
With appropriate progression, athletes should have completed previous mesocycles focusing on aerobic endurance, hypertrophy, maximal strength, and power. After athletes have completed an off-season resistance training program that has addressed these components, the preseason resistance training program should focus on the athlete's ability to use the stretch-shortening cycle, boosting the athlete's ability to produce high amounts of force in very short periods. As a result, the primary focus is placed on movement velocity to convert the strength and power they have developed in previous mesocycles into more sport-specific reactive strength and explosiveness. A thorough knowledge of basketball requirements is central to the proper selection of programming methods, including frequency, exercise selection, intensity, volume, and other strength and conditioning parameters for preseason training.
Improve jumping, acceleration, and change-of-direction abilities
By Bill Burgos
Explosive basketball athletes require optimal muscle elasticity. Reactive strength is reliant on eccentric force development, elastic energy storage and release, and muscle reflexive properties. Concentric force production is also correlated with the reactive strength index (4). Training to increase reactive strength involves the stretch-shortening cycle and, therefore, serves as another mode of resistance training. Performance in agility tests may also be related to reactive strength attributes. In another analysis, female athletes who exhibited faster agility times had shorter ground contact braking times when compared with slower athletes (59). The ability to move quickly around the basketball court is highly related to the athlete's ability to interact with the ground properly. Stronger athletes exhibit higher ground reaction forces. In many instances a basketball athlete must stop very quickly and move in another direction. Other times, a center will jump vertically to rebound a ball that bounces around the rim. The delay will require the athlete to land and quickly jump up a second time. People with superior lower body strength have higher peak power output during jumping activities (10). As a result, the stronger athlete will be able to minimize ground contact time while still being able to reach near maximal jump height in
the second jump.
Over the total distance covered in a game, a basketball athlete can experience various movement demands that place a tremendous amount of mechanical stress on the body. To grasp the importance of resistance training for the basketball athlete, a coach must understand that performance attributes like agility, power, and speed rely heavily on strength. The neuromuscular adaptations brought on by mechanical stress will be specific to the manipulation of several resistance training variables such as load, sets, repetitions, tempo, and rest period length.
Each quality of strength is unique and plays a role in injury prevention and reaching optimal physical performance. Change of direction involves multiple components of strength including eccentric (braking), isometric (planting), and concentric (propulsive) phases (59). Movements such as jumping and cutting rely on the ability to absorb the forces effectively in order to redirect those forces and produce maximal concentric power. Therefore, the ability to decelerate and reaccelerate quickly is related to eccentric strength. Accentuated eccentric overload training appears to improve muscle architecture, strength, power, and velocity more than traditional resistance training does (12, 30). As a result, eccentric training should also play an integral role in a basketball athlete's resistance training program.
Resistance training improves a basketball athlete's ability to jump, accelerate, and change directions in the face of an opponent.
The stretch-shortening cycle plays an important role in countermovement activities. Stronger muscles are able to contract and store elastic energy better than weaker muscles. Elastic energy, which is stored in the muscle-tendon unit, is created in the eccentric phase. Naturally, this form of stored energy can be transferred into the concentric, acceleration phase. The greater an athlete's ability to transfer this energy, during what is called the amortization phase, the greater her or his ability will be to perform explosive countermovement activities. For example, Bridgeman and colleagues (7) showed that lower body eccentric strength is highly related to overall jump performance. Resistance training increases eccentric strength, and combining eccentric resistance training with traditional, concentrically focused training modes can have positive effects on jump performance (41). Furthermore, although type II fibers may be recruited regardless of load when sets are performed to failure, heavy loads require type II fiber recruitment. In addition, heavy loads appear to be more effective for eliciting neural adaptations that, in turn, facilitate strength improvements (31, 45, 36). Therefore, heavy or explosive resistance training may be an effective means by which to augment power production during the countermovement activities encountered in basketball.
Muscle architecture influences the athlete's ability to move explosively. When looking at dynamic movements such as the countermovement jump, jump height, peak force, and peak velocity are all related to greater vastus lateralis thickness and gastrocnemius pennation angle (32). In general, resistance training improves muscle thickness, pennation angle, and fascicle length (12, 32). Regardless of training goals, an important goal is to bridge the gap between injury prevention and reaching optimal performance. Carefully designed resistance training programs performed in combination with ballistic, high-velocity basketball-specific movements may optimize muscle geometry and enhance performance in a dynamic, explosive sport such as basketball.
Length, structure, and organization of in-season programs
By Nic Higgins and Scott Thom
The in-season phase is a significant period that athletes need to take advantage of, and they should continue to develop general and specific aspects of strength while competing in-season. This period can last 16 to 20 weeks for high school, up to 24 weeks for college, and as long as 30 weeks for professional basketball athletes. As a result, this phase is likely be the longest mesocycle of the year, offering a significant opportunity to implement a resistance training program. Although these weeks are filled with practices, games, travel, and other obstacles, proper planning and programming of resistance training sessions will prevent regression and aid in the continual growth of a developing athlete. The emphasis of in-season resistance training should be to continue to develop overall athleticism and ultimately maximize athletic performance in playoff competition.
High School
High school basketball athletes should be expected to complete one to two resistance training sessions per week strategically scheduled around their classes, practices, game schedule, and extracurricular activities. Total body resistance training programs for the high school athlete should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. The frequency per week of resistance training sessions should be adjusted around the volume of basketball activities, providing not only adequate recovery periods between resistance training sessions but also appropriate recovery leading up to the next game.
College
The collegiate basketball athlete's in-season phase ranges between 20 and 24 weeks and should consist of a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week. Each session should last 30 to 45 minutes and include a proper warm-up and cool-down. In-season training frequency should be structured around game schedule, travel schedule, academic calendar, and extracurricular activities. Previous training cycles may have allowed consistent training schedules such as a four-day or five-day training split with no basketball requirements, but in-season resistance training programs require coordination with academics, practices, games, and NCAA regulations.
Professional
The professional season can last anywhere between 24 and 30 weeks including playoffs. The overall game distribution, the length of the season, and travel requirements present a unique challenge when attempting to maximize performance for the professional athlete. One of the challenges that a strength and conditioning professional faces because of the demands of longer travel stints is access to a weight room that fits the basketball athlete's training needs. In the professional setting three to four games can spread throughout the week, including games on back-to-back nights that are sometimes played on the road for one and at home for the other. But with the redesign of the NBA schedule, games typically take place every other day. This setting can make it challenging for the coach to balance workloads on practice days and determine when it is time either to push an athlete or to promote recovery. In general, a professional athlete should take part in a minimum of one to two total body resistance training sessions per week lasting 30 to 45 minutes.
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