A weight lifting program for basketball is sport specific. Basketball requires speed, strength, vertical jump and ball handling as well as mental training and motivation. How you perform in season can be based on your off-season workouts.
If you don’t spend time in the off-season with a weight lifting program for basketball then you’ll spend too much time and energy trying to get the players back into shape once the season begins. Coaching, and playing, would be much easier if the players arrived ready to play.
The basketball season is needed to fine-tune offensive and defensive plays and not the time to work on getting back into shape. It is the off-season in which you work toward endurance, strength, speed, coordination and agility. In order to be successful, an off-season program must include warm up exercises to reduce the risk of injury and increase the benefits from exercise, flexibility exercises, strength development, endurance work and a cool down period.
A weight lifting program for basketball should be an integral part of strength training. Players shouldn’t be strangers to the gym. Proper training will enhance athletic performance. As with weight training in any other sport, you should first receive medical clearance for the weight lifting program for basketball. The doctor will determine if there are any medical issues that will impact your training. And you shouldn’t weight train more than 3 times per week and always leave 48 hours between training sessions to allow the muscles to recover.
The question of weight training for children often arises when dealing with a sport that starts at an early age. Weight training for children can be dangerous when excessive weight is placed on growing joints. It can damage the growth plates and cause the child to have orthopedic problems and growth issues for the rest of their lives. But weight lifting isn’t always about lifting weights but rather using the resistance of their own bodies to achieve the same results without stress on the joints.
The core of strength training and weight lifting program for basketball is progressive resistance for those students who no longer have a question about growth plate damage. This means that as the body becomes accustomed to one amount of weight over time the athlete can add weight to add stress to the muscle. Athletes should never add repetitions and weights during the same week.
Depending upon the position the athlete plays will determine a bit more about the type of weight lifting program for basketball that is performed. If the athlete is a small guard or forward they should work toward adding muscle tone – using less weight and more repetitions, while a center or power forward must work towards a bit more bulk.
Because basketball is a fast-paced, speed-based game, players should also be concerned about endurance and interval training. Integrate interval training between days of weight lifting program for basketball and by the end of the off season your players will be ready to hit the courts running.
Resources:
BodyBuilding: Fit for Court Domination
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/md75.htm
Youth USA Basketball: Strength and Conditioning
http://youth.usab.com/training-room/strength-and-conditioning
Huskies: Strength Training for Basketball
http://www.gohuskies.com/fls/30200/pdf/strength/11NSCA_Basketball.pdf
CCSU Bluedevils: Strength and Conditioning Programs
http://ccsu.prestosports.com/athletics/strength/programs/index
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