Hoop It Up

Athletes training for a dynamic sport like basketball go about their workouts with a different mindset than athletes whose goal, is say, to run a marathon.

"To tell a basketball player that we're going to focus just on his quadriceps or his calves just doesn't make any sense," says Kevin Wentz, P.T., C.S.C.S, owner and driector of physical therapy at Professional Orthopedic and Sports Care in Pasadena, California. "You have to think of training movements."

Wentz, who works with athletes at every competitive level, sees little benefit for basketball players in isolating a specific muscle:"You can't simply strengthen individual muscles by themselves and expect them to work efficiently on court. There's no memory when you get off of the machine. There's no carry-over to performance. So you want to do things that are going to stimulate the muscles when you're playing basketball."

In addition to dynamic movement training, Wentz's gym rats perform their routines with a sense of purpose. You won't find anybody in his facility loafing from set to set and grinding through repetitions. Wentz's athletes are expected to attack their workouts and consequently receive as much cardiovascular benefit as muscular benefit.

"We have a saying that if you want to play slow then train slow," says Wentz. "If you're constantly fatigued and not willing to give 100 percent effort, then that's how you're going to perform in the game."

The exercises on the following page are only a sample of Wentz's program designed to benefit high-level basketball players looking to improve performance. You can adjust the intensity based on your current state of physical fitness.

Hang Clean

This exercise is ideal for improving vertical leap. (Nobody likes a big man whose feet are cemented to the floor.) The dynamic lift simulates the motion of leaping skyward but with a lot more resistance. Practice this explosive action, and you'll be floating above the rim in no time.

Use a full-size bar bell with a weight of about 80 to 90 percent of your one-repetition clean maximum. Wear a weight belt and use chalk on your hands. Grab the bar with both hands, palms down, just wider than shoulder width. Stand with your feet parallel at shoulder width. Lift and steady the weight at just below knee level, with youe legs bent about 45 degrees. Hold your head up and take a deep breath, then explode upward with your legs on the exhale and execute a shoudler shrug and bicep curl, raising the bar vertically. (A common mistake is to lift the bar outward and try to loop it back toward your body.) As the bar is moving upward, quickly squat and slip you rbody beneath, catching the bar across your chest with your palms facing up. From the squat position, raise your body to a full standing position. Then slowly bend your knees and lower the weight back down to the starting position at just below your knees. That's one repetition. The heavy weight will preclude your doing more than three reps per set. If you can do more than that, the weight you're using is too light. Repeat the set five or six times with a between-set recovery period of about three minutes. Perform the hang clean three times per week.

Medicine Ball

Medicine balls are roughly the same size and shape as a basketball-only a lot heavier. This means that muscles built hoisting a medicine ball will help transform you into a monster on the boards.

The first medicine-ball exercise is the simple chest pass. Stand about eight feet away from your partner and hold the ball against your chest with your palms facing outward. Your legs should be slightly and push the ball away from you as hard and as fast as possible. Your partner should reach out for the ball with his palms facing away, catch it and bring it into his or her chest to soften the blow. (Real tough guys just let the leather sphere nail them in the chest.) The catcher then propels the ball back to his partner as quickly as possible and with maximum force. Repeat the exercise until each person has thrown the ball 10 times. Rest 30 seconds and do two more sets.

Now assume the same stance, but hold the ball over your head. Fire it across to your partner who should catch it above his or her head and return it as forcefully. Do three sets overhead with a 30-second rest between sets. Medicine ball drills should done three times per week.

Cable Trunk Rotations

A lot of heavy banging and pulling goes on under the boards, so rebounders and screen-setters need great upper body and torso strength, along with the good balance and stability. This trunk twisting exercise is good for at least four more boards per game.

Hook the small V-bar of a cable crossover weight machine to one of the upper connections. Stand about two feet from the machine with your right shoulder facing the bar. Your feet should be shoulder width apart and sligthly staggered.

Rotate your torso to the right, toward the machine, and grab the bar with both hands. This is your starting position. Now pull the cable back around your body as quickly and powerfully as you can downward toward your left hip. During this motion, shift your weight from your right foot to your left. Without pausing, control the weight back to your starting position. The movement should be made using mainly your abdominal and oblique muscles. (A common mistake is to use your arms too much.)

Repeat this movement 10 times. Rest 30 seconds and switch positions so that your left shoulder faces the machine. Repeat the rotation 10 times for your left side, rest 30 seconds and go back to the right side. Do three sets of 10 on each side. Cable trunk rotations should be done three times per week.

Real Edge May/June 2000