The importance and types of strength training for basketballers
When most people think of strength training for athletes, what comes to mind is lifting weights with the aim of being able to lift heavier weights over time. However, basketball strength and conditioning training is different from this.
The goal of strength training for basketball players is to improve their game through greater power, acceleration and speed and to prevent injury.
Why would basketball players do strength training?
The main goal of strength training and conditioning for basketball players is to help develop and improve their explosive power. To achieve this, you need a more refined approach than simply lifting heavyweights.
Strength training in basketball is all about power and the production of force during gameplay. This will help you to accelerate faster and jump higher. You can only jump or run as far as the force you can produce.
Strength training focuses on exercises that increasing the strength of your core, glutes, obliques, and other parts of the body.
The ultimate goal is to help you improve your explosive power for higher vertical jumps.
Strength training also helps to improve your speed and acceleration on the court. It can also help to reduce the risk of injuries to your joint and tendons.
Types of strength training for basketball players
Strength training for basketball can be split into three main categories:
1. Absolute or maximal strength training:
This type of training is aimed at improving the absolute strength of a basketball player. Absolute or maximal strength refers to the maximum force that can be exerted by the momentary contraction of a single muscle group. Absolute strength training serves as the foundation for developing speed and muscular power. But absolute strength training is only a means to an end and not the ultimate goal. Routines like this only serve as a foundation for the other two types of strength training.
2. Muscular power training:
power training is a combination of absolute or maximal strength and speed. By increasing either or both of these metrics without reducing the other, a basketball player will be able to increase his/her explosive power.
While maximal strength training serves as a basic foundation of strength training for basketball players, you have to go further with muscular power training. After you have built a certain level of maximal strength, the goal is to convert your gains into more explosive power through muscular power training.
Maximal strength training makes no reference to time (speed). A weightlifter can spend 10 seconds, 30 seconds, or more on lifting weight and it wouldn’t matter much.
This does not work for basketball strength training since a player needs explosive movement for sprinting or jumping in mere seconds. Therefore, once you have built absolute strength, the next step is how you can improve your muscular power with what you have learned.
Plyometrics (jump training) is the most common and arguably most effective form of muscular power training in basketball. This routine combines both strength training and speed to improve your muscular power.
3. Muscular endurance training:
The final category of basketball strength and conditioning training is muscular endurance training. These are routines aimed at improving your ability to perform high-intensity movements repeatedly without fatigue. It is more about your ability to sustain your muscular power.
Muscular endurance training will improve your gameplay by boosting how well you can sprint up and down the court or repeatedly jump without getting worn out or losing power.
Although many basketball players only focus on plyometrics as a way of improving their strength, the development of good overall strength, power and endurance is what is required to be an all-round player. This involves strengthening the core, glutes, obliques, and other parts of the body through a challenging workout that is aimed at maximizing overall performance.
Conclusion
The goal of strength training is to improve maximal strength, build muscular power, and increase endurance. But this is not done all at once. Strength training for basketball players is ideally broken into phases that take place over the course of a year both in an off-season as this is a more effective approach that guarantees beneficial results.
