Post-Season Coaching Essentials to Maximize Your Off-Season, Part 3
Coaches,
The time for your athletes to get stronger and faster starts in the spring. Now multiple weeks into your off-season you probably have accomplished the following:
- The Post-Season Team Meeting (https://midwestelitebasketball.com/news_article/show/139911?referrer_id=4)
- Individual Player Meetings and Staff Evaluations (https://midwestelitebasketball.com/news_article/show/141899?referrer_id=4)
Some high school programs are fresh off a state tournament appearance and still in the midst of a 2-week break. Therefore, they have not got through both sets of meetings; other programs are well into their strength and acceleration programs as well as their skill-development workouts. High school student-athletes have a lot on their plate this time of year. As their basketball coach are you getting commitment from them?
Fight for Your Athletes Time
Many high school coaches are fighting for student-athletes’ time as they focus on academics, compete in track and field, baseball/softball, and golf. This is why you get paid the big bucks (please sense my sarcasm; high school coaches are grossly underpaid). High school coaches have many battles they need to fight in the spring when it comes to getting players in the gym and in the weight room. The truth is (in most cases), you cannot recruit new players for next year, you can only make your current group of athletes better. Therefore, keep fighting for your players’ time and do not take it for granted. Use their time efficiently and effectively to build a stronger, more athletic squad.
Maxing Out in the Weight Room
I have heard both sides of this story…
a) “Seeing how much a long, lanky, basketball player can stack on a bar and lift exposes them to injury, and it isn’t conducive to anything “basketball-related.â€
b) “I test my athletes out so I can build a rep/weight chart for them for their lifts in the weight room; it also makes them mentally and physically tougher.”
I am all about setting goals when it comes to my athletes; therefore, I think testing out is incredibly important. When a player maxes out they get a number which represents how strong they are. Kevin Durant can maybe bench press 175 lbs, and he is one of the best players in the world right now. Bench pressing does not make a basketball player; however, if an athlete maxes out at 185 lbs to start the spring and they max out at 205 lbs at the start of the summer (6-8 weeks later), this is a great indication that he has worked hard in the weight room and earned substantial strength. Also, a high level of confidence is built in each athlete when they see results. As a coach, I can see the proof in the pudding. Many high school coaches are K-12 teachers as well. Quite frankly, your schedule may not allow you to be in the weight room every day, every lift, every rep. Athletes need to hold themselves accountable. By maxing out and giving your athletes a number, they will be held accountable based on their test-out results 6-8 weeks later. As a coach, I also want to know if my strength program is effective. If athletes are not seeing gains (or just minimal gains) either they are not working hard or my program needs to be changed.
If you are concerned about athletes compromising form and potentially hurting themselves when maxing out then do not encourage 1-rep max outs. Focus instead of maxing using a range of 2-8 reps (the higher the reps performed, the less accurate the max number will be). To calculate what the athlete’s max lift is based on reps, punch the numbers into a “one-rep max calculator,†such as this one: http://www.timinvermont.com/fitness/orm.htm
Note: Make sure to post the maxes in the locker room and/or in the weight room so each athlete can see the number they are battling each day. I recommend maxing in bench press, squat (proper form), and pull-ups (palms facing out). At the college level as a player and as a coach I have always tested on power cleans as well. This is up to you as a high school coach if you want to include power cleans but do not include this lift as a max if your athletes do not have proper form established first.
Speed, Vertical, and Agility Testing
- Athletes love to see how fast they are and how high they jump. However, there is no point in testing speed, vertical and agility if you do not have a plan of attack for the athletes to improve. You need to have a 6-8 week acceleration program in place to follow the testing. Different tests that I have my athletes do include:
Standing Vertical (I allow each of my players to have a pivot foot on the ground and pivot into their jump) - 1-Foot Running Vertical
- 2-Foot Running Vertical
- Sideline-to-Sideline Speed Test (self-explanatory… athlete starts behind one sideline, they run to the other sideline and touch the line with their hand, then they run back through the line they started)
- Mile Run: I have seen articles blasting this for basketball players. However, I support it 110%. When I recruited NCAA D1 prospect Armani Flannigan to Central Wyoming College, Boylan Catholic High School (IL) Head Coach Steve Goers told me he ran a 5:30 mile. Ironically, when Armani arrived on campus the 6’8 big man ran the floor better than anyone I had seen before, he was mentally tougher on the court when he was tired (i.e. he fought through fatigue), and he didn’t have bad eating or drinking habits. While this is just one example, I could present case studies all day on this. Running a good mile will not make you good at basketball; however, if you are a skilled player there is a direct correlation between a successful mile time and a more complete player. Test it!
- Dot Drill (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PR7s4nXtWSw)
The Overall Benefits of Maxing Out in the Weight Room and Testing Speed, Vertical, and Agility [1]
- Predict Future Performance
- Indicate Weaknesses
- Measure Improvement
- Enable Coaching Staff to Assess the Success of His/Her Training Program
- Place each Athlete in Appropriate Training Group
- Motivate the Athlete
Lifting Program
It is very difficult to have a “basketball-specific†weight lifting program at the high school level. Too many athletes play multiple sports. While dead-lifting isn’t known as a “basketball staple†in lifting, it is in football and it improves strength from an athlete’s achilles to the back of their head. My advice is to find a program that focuses on strength and mass building. Here is the rule of thumb in regards to repetitions:
- 1-5 Reps – Primarily builds strength
- 6-12 Reps – Primarily builds both strength and mass
- 13+ Reps – Primarily builds stamina, tone and definition
Try to find a program that focuses your players lifting primarily between the rep ranges of 6-12 reps. Make sure your athletes are lifting until failure each set. If the athlete can’t do 6 reps, then the weight is too heavy. If the athlete can do 12 or more reps, then the weight is too light. Younger athletes (pre-puberty) should be geared more towards the 13+ rep range (this will also help build tendon strength for future heavier lifting).
Basketball-Specific Acceleration Program
Coaches, I would love to help you out with this. I have a program which I was put through during my collegiate playing days and which I put my athletes through as a college coach. The program can be done in the gym or even on the track or football field. I like to mix it up so my athletes get a good variety of settings.
For a free copy of this program, email me at craig@midwestelitebasketball.com and I will send it off to you.
Now is the time to get bigger, faster, and stronger. Fight for your athletes’ time and use it efficiently and effectively. Test your athletes out and get started in the weight room and on the court. A faster, stronger team is also more confident and more effective. Stronger players rebound better, defend better, seal the block more effectively, finish with contact, and are less prone to injury. Put in the work this spring and you will reap the benefits next winter.
In Hoops,
Craig Doty
Craig Doty is the Co-Owner of Midwest Elite Basketball and the former Head Men’s Basketball Coach (Interim) at Central Wyoming College. His coaching experience includes stops as an Assistant at Central Wyoming College (Riverton), Morningside College (Sioux City, IA), Riverland Community College (Austin, MN), as well as being the Head Boy’s Basketball Coach at Akron-Westfield High School (IA).