Alright so, this is where a lot of hoopers and people who play sports make big mistakes. A lot of athletes go to the gym and spend way too much time doing the wrong type of training and weightlifting , thinking your going to get bigger, faster or more bouncy for the next season.
So, lets break down what your gym program SHOULD and SHOULDN’T have.
- List Your Priorites.
I’ve This bit is simple. Make a list of 3-4 things that you want to focus on improving performance-wise this summer, for example maybe you are easily pushed off balance because your too small and weak, so need to build some muscle mass, or maybe you struggle to get passed defenders so you need to work on your speed or first step.
Really try keep this list to 4 things maximum. Trying to achieve too much will result in sub-par improvements in everything you do.
2. Bodybuilding Vs Athletic Performance.
If your walking into a gym and doing 4 sets of 10+ reps on every exercise looking to get pumped thinking your going to perform better next season, sorry to break your heart but your doing it wrong.
Unfortunately, due to the blow up of the fitness industry along with social media in recent years, the wrong information is given out by a lot of people who just want to sell shitty products or gain some clout, which has led lots of people in the wrong direction.
Doing shit loads of grueling plyometric workouts you see on instagram with loads of exercises with crazy rep and set ranges or exercises so stupid and so heavy there dangerous will leave you one step closer to death instead of becoming an athletic monster next season.
Don’t be stupid, do your research and if your still not sure, just dm me and ask.
So, where should you be looking?
Well, a big tip is avoid workouts from pages designed for bodybuilding and that kind of sort. Yes, pages like Bodybuilding.com or mensfitness.com have lots of useful information, but their workouts and programs are designed by bodybuilders for bodybuilders.
Instead gather your information from websites like stack.com or Youtube pages like Overtime Athletes and PJF Performance will prove much more beneficial.
Stack.com have hundreds of really good workouts and safe programs that you can easily follow and do in any gym, with reps, sets, weekly plans, what weight to use and exercises all laid out for you in an easy understandable way by very reputable trainers. This in my opinion is the safest option if you have no clue what your doing, are new to the gym scene or have no trainer watching over you.
Chris Barnard (Overtime Athletes) is one of the best trainers in the game. His Youtube page is a fountain of information thats expressed in an easy and understandable way. You will however need some basic knowledge on Sports Performance to piece workouts together however, but his videos really provide a deep insight into how athletes of all levels train to improve their bodies. He also have tons of programs you can buy that will transform your performance
Finally, if you really want to dive deep and get better peroformance wise, Paul Fabrietz (PJF Performance) is where you need to look. Some of you may recognise him as James Hardens trainer. He’s the man who transformed Harden into the monster he is now, along with leading Shabazz Napier to a break out MIP year.
Fabrietz however tends to talk in scientific terms and in great detail (great for nerds like me), making him very complex and confusing if you don’t understand sports performance science. His Youtube series ‘Crazy Explosive’ is a great base to gather foundational information of improving athletically, and hes always putting out valuable information of Instagram. He also has two programs ‘Vert Code’ and ‘Vert Code Elite’ which you drastically improving your performance for basketball, as thats his speciality.
3. Staples For Your Program.
We all want to get faster or stronger or bouncier this summer, but one thing we all need in our programs is methods to reduce our suspectibility to injury and rehab old injuries or injury prone parts of our body.
So, how do we do this?
Well theres a couple of things that drastically reduce our chances of getting injured:
A) Proprioception- Big ass word with a simple meaning; balance/stability. Simple little exercises like working on being able to stand and stabilise your body can reduce your chances of injury by 44%!!
B) Core Strength- Training our core for athletic purposes can really help stabilise our body and give us better overall control. That means gaining stability by means of anti-extension, anti-rotation and anti- lateral flexion. I’ll have more of this on my IG in the near future.
C) Strength Gains- Building good strength and size can drastically reduce injury simple due to the fact you’ll be more able to hold your own and absorb contact and not just get pushed and shoved around like a pin ball.
D) Plyometrics- Now please take this one with a pinch of salt. Plyometrics takes a lot of thinking and proper programming in order to make athletic gains. (Pro Tip: No more than 15 minutes of plyometrics is plenty daily. Keep your sets to roughly 3×5 and about a minutes rest in between each set. )
More specifically, training our bodies to rapidly absorb and produce force under controlled conditions (i.e plyometrics) can greatly reduce our chance of injuries. Training plyometrics allows us to develop proper landing and decelaration mechanics and techniques (90% of injuries occur in landing or decelaration phases of movements). So, do your research and get you a good plyos program.
4. Pulling It All Together.
Pulling a program together is hard. I’ve only outlined some guidelines and necessities for a good solid program make some serious athletic gains this off-season. 3-4 plyo exercises is loads programmed properly per workout and 6-9 exercises per workout. There are many different training splits, so find one that works best for you and fits your schedule.
And as usual, PLEASE hit me up if you want help building a program to make you into a BEAST this summer!
Stay workin’
Aaron.
Silent Grind Performance 
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