Boston Sports Medicine and Performance Group, LLC Blog

It’s simple, female basketball players need to get strong!

It’s not uncommon to hear the following from players after a long competitive season, “Coach, what can I do to...”

1.    Jump higher?
2.    Improve my jump shot?
3.    Play better defense? (defensive stance)
4.    Run faster?
5.    Move quicker?
6.    Etc., Etc., Etc.

My response is usually, “Get stronger!”

Likewise, coaches often approach me stating, “We need to..?

1.    Get more athletic!
2.    Play better defense! (defensive stance)
3.    Run faster!
4.    Move quicker!
5.    Get in better condition!
6.    Etc., Etc., Etc.

My response is usually, “Coach, let’s continue to get stronger!”

Let’s be honest, today’s athletes are consistently looking for a quick fix.  Most want to get better at playing their sport but very few are willing to do the things that can really improve their game. When a player asks me what they can do to improve their athleticism, I simply tell them to get stronger. Of course, a well-designed training program is going to include soft tissue work, mobility work, core work, speed work, plyometrics, explosive training, corrective exercises, and other forms of training to enhance athleticism. However, for the purpose of this article, I want to talk about the importance of building pure strength.

I work with the women’s basketball team at the University of Wisconsin and every off-season my goal is to get our team stronger than the previous year. Why? Because if there is one physical attribute that a female basketball player needs more than any other it’s strength. On the other hand, I am still amazed that some basketball coaches continue to underestimate the importance of strength. 

I was talking with a strength coach who was frustrated at his head coach because she wants her players to run during the post-season.  The reason; “We need to get in better condition”.  I do not profess to have all the answers but why do players need to be in “basketball” shape in April, May or June for that matter?  Official basketball practice does not start until mid-October.  I’ll be honest; I am not a fan of players running or conditioning in the post-season. I believe the post-season is a time to heal from the long competitive season and for preparing your athletes for off-season training. The last thing basketball players need in the off-season is pre-season style conditioning.  However, basketball players do need lots of strength work and this especially holds true for female athletes. 

The myths surrounding females and strength training are quite disturbing and in some cases have negatively impacted our ability to train women despite the tremendous amount of research on the topic. These myths include:

1.    Women can’t get strong
2.    Strength training will make women look bulky and masculine
3.    Women should avoid high-intensity training or high-load training
4.    Women should train differently than men
5.    Women only need to do cardio and if they decide to lift weights, they should be very light.

As strength and conditioning professionals, it is imperative that we educate our coaches and athletes on the benefits of strength training, particularly when dealing with female athletes. This is extremely important when we are introduced to new recruits (freshmen) with limited strength training experiences.
 
Some people will argue what exactly is strength? Is a female capable of performing a 20-rep squat at 60 percent of their one-rep max a form of strength? Or is a female capable of squatting 1.5 times her bodyweight a form of strength?  I would say both scenarios are examples of strength (strength endurance versus maximal strength). 

However, the basis of this article is to discuss maximal strength development of which female athletes don’t do enough of. Now don’t get me wrong, I understand the importance of movement and function and I don’t see the world through the hole of a 45-pound plate (a great article posted previously on this blog). However, it’s okay to challenge and encourage your female players to lift heavier weights during a training session to develop the strength needed to effectively compete in their sport. 

As quoted by Lou Schuler in his book entitled The New Rules of Lifting for Women, “results come from hard work and hard work occasionally includes lifting heavier weights.” Basically, it’s alright for females (if capable and taught proficiently) to squat heavy, deadlift heavy, perform chin-ups/pull-ups, perform sled work, perform kettlebell work and the list goes on!

So what are the benefits for getting strong? (I am sure this comes to no surprise for those reading this article.) First and foremost, we all know that female athletes are more prone to sport-related injuries when compared to male athletes. Therefore, the stronger females can become, the less likely they will get injured. Second, strength is the foundation for improving movement efficiency, central nervous system efficiency, balance, coordination, stability, power, speed, elasticity, acceleration, deceleration, quickness, reaction, and conditioning.

Basically, strength is one of the catalysts for enhancing athleticism. Athleticism is the catalyst for providing a solid foundation for developing a skill. Therefore, if you want to improve your ability to post up a defender – get strong; if you want to improve your rebounding capabilities - get strong; if you want to improve your ability to play man-to-man defense – get strong; if you want to improve your ability to absorb contact when driving to the basket – get strong; if you want to set hard screens or get through screens – get strong, if you want to improve your jump shot - get strong! I think you get the point!

Third, all basketball players need to play at an optimal weight/body composition regardless of position.  Researchers found that unlike men, women typically don't gain size from strength training, because compared to men; women have 10 to 30 times less of the hormones that cause muscle hypertrophy. So, lifting heavier weights will develop functional strength without the expense of adding unwanted size. 

I believe there is also a psychological benefit for females when developing strength. When a female athlete becomes stronger, they become more confident and their self-esteem soars through the roof.  Confidence translates into toughness. Toughness is an attribute that is needed to win games. Why, because you need toughness to play defense, to dive on the floor for loose balls, to make free throws, to run your offensive sets, to erase a ten point deficit or to maintain a 10-point lead.

Within a team environment, getting stronger can foster team unity and enhance team toughness simply by having players push themselves (and each other) in the weight room. Make no mistake, female athletes want to be challenged and in most cases; in the same manner as a male athlete. They want to train in an intense and competitive environment and some relish the experience. 

Lastly, studies have shown that strength training (strength work) reduced depression symptoms and anxiety levels more successfully than standard counseling sessions. Newly released studies show that after a strength training session, endorphin levels (feel good hormones) are increased by more than 60 percent leaving you feeling rejuvenated and even euphoric, keeping your mind trouble-free.

Mentally, players have to prepare for a long season which can be quite stressful. Players are under extreme stress because of classes, study sessions, and practices. Games are normally played on Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays and during winter break sessions. Social activities with friends and family are at a minimal. If you ever been to Madison, Wisconsin the cold weather and snow can sometimes make life miserable. Let’s not forget, losing streaks are stressful as well. Stress can make or break a season!  Weight training can be quite therapeutic.

So remember, if you want your female players to be athletic, lean, competitive, self-confident, tough and stress free; lift some heavy stuff once in awhile!

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Register for the Boston 2010 Basketball and Hockey Conference in May!  DISCOUNT ENDS SOON!

Regardless of which side of the “barefoot” fence you sit, recent scientific developments by Harvard professor and barefoot enthusiast, Dr. Daniel Lieberman is sure to have you thinking about whether you should be reaching for your high top sneakers prior to your next stroll around the neighborhood or forgoing them all together in place of nature’s offering.  For those that continue to debate that running barefoot is just not feasible and perhaps dangerous, I’d have to offer a rebuttal…. I mean, barefoot running and training doesn’t mean going on an eight hour run looking for your next meal.  Unfortunately, the term “barefoot training” has been hijacked and equated with burning your shoes followed by a life of hugging trees and growing your hair out.  I mean, we’ve all tried to increase our bench press max right? But we didn’t start day one with 350 lbs on the bar.  Like everything else, the decision of how to and when to go barefoot is dependent on a number of factors, but is certainly governed by the law of progressive overload and common sense.  Several practical suggestions on how to implement some barefoot work into your team’s training can be found in the March issue of Training and Conditioning.  I’m not advocating you send your starting basketball center who’s been wearing Nike shocks their whole life for a run and plyo workout, but I’m pretty sure they have had shoes off recently, (maybe as recent as this morning when they woke up and walked to the bathroom) and their foot didn’t break right? So why don’t we take advantage of Mr. Wolff’s law and challenge your foot, ankle, and lower extremity just a little bit.  
Barefoot training won’t cure cancer but it just might put a smile on your feet again.

For a cliff note version of Dr. Lieberman’s Harvard work click here.

Art Horne Is the Coordinator of Care and Strength & Conditioning Coach for the Men’s Basketball Team at Northeastern University, Boston MA.  He can be reached at a.horne@neu.edu.

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Click here to register for the 2010 conference in May!

  Discount ends soon!!

Whether you’re a casual follower of basketball, a strength and conditioning coach at the university level, or an aspiring young coach, Brian McCormick’s “Hard2Guard Player Development Newsletter” is a must read and covers everything from teaching the cross-over dribble, inspiring young kids to work hard, and developing high school athletes for the rough and tumble life on the college court.  In his most recent post, Brian interviews Keith D’Ameilo, strength coach for the Stanford Men’s Basketball program and guest speaker for this year’s Second Annual Hockey Summit and Basketball Symposium in Boston MA, May 22nd and 23rd.  Keith talks about developing the college athlete and what fundamental skills high school athletes should be developing in order to thrive at the college level. 

View Brian McCormick’s Interview with Keith D’Ameilo here.

Also, click here to register for the Hockey Summit and Basketball Symposium!  With an all-star lineup, it's not to be missed!

    This past year I was blessed with an opportunity to work alongside Dr. Larry Cahalin and Dr. Paul Canavan, both of the Northeastern University Physical Therapy Department on a study relating to increasing on-ice performance of the non-weight room variety.  I usually try and jump on any opportunity I have to work with professionals of substantial greater cognitive function than myself in order to expand both my professional and knowledge base, however, this time, I found myself severely overmatched.  As a strength coach I have fallen into the trap of associating VO2 with endurance athletes, and like many other strength coaches, unsure of an appropriate balance between aerobic an anaerobic training.  VO2 max is very important for Ice hockey despite the short work periods during a typical game.  A shift on average is only about 40 seconds long, and a recent study found that the average heart rate in a NHL player during a normal shift is around 90% HRMax (Leone, 2006).  With this intensity an athlete is sure to build up lactic acid during a shift, and it is important for sustained performance to recover quickly.  An increase in VO2 max will allow an individual to have a higher threshold or critical level.  Meaning they will be able to perform a moderate, sustained activity at a higher intensity without the continuous build up of lactic acid, or more specific to hockey they will be able to recover quicker from shorter, high intensity bouts.  

    We examined the affects of Inspiratory muscle training (IMT) on VO2 max.  We had our experimental group perform 2 days/week of IMT following the Test of Incremental Respiratory Endurance (TIRE).  After 6 weeks of the IMT we were able to show a significant increase in VO2 max.  More importantly the IMT helped to decrease pressure within the thoracic cavity, and ultimately improve venous return.  Healthy people have a normal negative pressure within the intrathoracic, intraplueral, and the intraalveolar areas, however the IMT was able to improve this negative pressure in order to facilitate a performance enhancement in these healthy athletes.  The increased venous return caused a greater stretch to the left ventricle wall (Starlings Law) and resulted in an increase stroke volume and cardiac output.  The improvements to the inspiratory muscles also helped to increase the tidal volume within the lungs, and decrease the residual volume as well.  The improved contractibility of the inspiratory muscles, changes in pressure and improved cardiac output is what makes up the increase in inspiratory capacity.  Muscles are able to perform more anaerobic and aerobic exercise, because of the improved ability to uptake O2 and remove CO2.  For hockey this is crucial between shifts.  The improved vital capacity allows a hockey player to deliver more oxygenated blood to the working fat and replace the O2 debt faster.  Athletes are able to sustain a higher work level throughout a game.

    The hockey season is one of the longest in collegiate sports, and there are so many important areas that we need to cover during training with very little time.  The IMT was a commitment that yielded important benefits for our team and required a time investment of only 30 minutes 2 times/week.  The importance of recovery throughout as game is clear.  Success is dependent on the ability to sustain work levels throughout three periods of hockey and maybe more importantly recovery from night to night.

Dan Boothby is the Strength and Conditioning coach for the Men’s and Women’s Ice Hockey teams at Northeastern University and can be reached at d.boothby@neu.edu

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Register for the May 2010 Conference here!!

I get it.  You’re too busy.  

Right now, in your athletic department, in your sports medicine department or in your strength and conditioning department there is a million and one things to get done, and they were all due yesterday.  Whether it's preparing summer conditioning programs, Christmas break rehabilitation plans or putting the finishing touches on your policy and procedure manual, there’s no time to take on another task, let alone put time aside to develop your skills or trade.

So if you’re too busy, it’s safe to say you won’t be attending a conference this weekend or snuggling up with an anatomy text book tonight in order to better your skills.  And if you’re too busy to improve your particular trade or skill then perhaps you’ll also be too busy to notice the young kid two cubicles down accept your dream job at the college across town or maybe you’re too busy to look up and notice your customers, (ya, customers – I know in most athletic departments they’re called athletes or even student-athletes) have stopped buying what you’ve been selling.

So if you’re too busy and can’t find five minutes to breathe, can I suggest finding two minutes and to read and learn from one of the nation’s top thought leaders?  Seth Godin isn’t a world renowned surgeon, he’s never taped an ankle and he probably can’t even bench his body weight.   But what Seth Godin can do, he does better than anyone else – he’ll stop you dead in your tracks.  Seth Godin will make you think… think about everything you do today and everything you’ll do tomorrow.  He will not make your athletes run faster or return your athlete from ACL surgery quicker – but he will challenge you to find five more minutes in your day to simply get better.

And if Seth Godin were in athletics? Well, Seth Godin would squat a thousand pounds.

Two of my favorite blog posts from Seth Godin:

The least I could do
One way to think about running a successful business is to figure out what the least you can do is, and do that. That's actually what they spent most of my time at business school teaching me.

No sense putting more on that pizza, sending more staff to that event, answering the phone in fewer rings... what's the point? No sense being kind, looking people in the eye, being open or welcoming or grateful. Doing the least acceptable amount is the way to maximize short term profit.

Of course, there's a different strategy, a crazy alternative that seems to work: do the most you can do instead of the least.

Radically overdeliver.

Turns out that this is a cheap and effective marketing technique.

We can do it
Too often, it seems, this attitude is missing from teams, organizations or the community.

It's missing because people are quick to opt out of the 'we' part. "What do you mean, we?" they ask. It's so easy to not be part of we, so easy to make it someone else's problem, so easy to not to take responsibility as a member of whatever tribe you're part of.

Sometimes it's missing because people disagree about what 'it' is. If you don't know what you're after, it's unlikely you're going to find it.

And it's missing because people confuse cynicism with realism, and are afraid to say "can". They'd rather say 'might' or even 'probably won't'.

Just about everything worth doing is worth doing because it's important and because the odds are against you. If they weren't, then anyone could do it, so don't bother.

Product launches, innovations and initiatives by any organization work better when the key people agree on the goal, believe that they can achieve it and that the plan will work.

Do we have a cynicism shortage? Unlikely.

Successful people rarely confuse a can-do attitude with a smart plan. But they realize that one without the other is unlikely to get you very far.

Count me in. Let's go.


Art Horne is the Coordinator of Care and Strength & Conditioning Coach for the Men’s Basketball Team at Northeastern University, Boston MA.  He can be reached at a.horne@neu.edu.

 Click here to register for our conference in May!!!!!!

     A tab on the "Conference Info" page of this website has just been added to show highlights from previous events hosted by BSMPG including the 2009 Boston Hockey Summit.  Be sure to check back as we continue to post additional videos and information in the weeks to come.

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Register for this year's Boston Hockey Summit and Basketball Symposium!

It was first described to me during the summer of 2005 when I visited my good friend Mike Potenza, who was working at the time as the S&C coach at the University of Wisconsin for both the men’s and women’s ice hockey teams (by the way, both teams won national championships that year).  He introduced me to Steve Myrland, a former strength and conditioning coach at both the professional and collegiate level and a guy that I now describe to others as simply “the strength Zen master.”  While having coffee one morning, Steve was describing to Mike and I the frustration he was having with a college strength coach who only “saw the world through the hole in a 45 pound plate,” and the coach’s inability to see and embrace the importance of movement, function and anatomy.  Now, all of us have taken a 45 pound plate from the rack, lifted it to squat bar height, peered through the tiny 2 inch hole and loaded it up onto the bar.  The view just prior to loading is exactly what Steve was talking to me about.  The world, (or weight room or even more simply your athlete’s performance continuum) has a very limited offering if only viewed through this hole, compared to the massive area that the plate encompasses, which basically equates to the entire rest of his or her development.

Up until that point in my very young career, I considered myself a “strength” guy.  If it wasn’t heavy, it wasn’t training. If it didn’t have chains hanging off of it, or if your training partner didn’t have to pull the bar off your throat, then you simply weren’t working hard enough.  About two minutes into our conversation I realized that I was one of the strength coaches that Steve was talking about.  I guess the hole in the plate which I was coaching through at the time never allowed me to see the epidural injections that some of our athletes were getting due to their back pain, or the multiple ACL injuries our female athletes were incurring on a yearly basis.  Steve challenged me to remove the dense piece of iron that obscured my vision and allowed me to evaluate and prescribe a training program that reflected the whole athlete (with respect to his/her sport, previous injury, movement impairments, volume at practice or games, current and future goals and yes, even strength development) and not just the athlete I once saw through the hole in the 45 pound plate.

Now, I’m still a strength guy, but my view on strength development (what really matters – a future blog) vs. numbers improvement (by any means necessary) has changed dramatically.  The next time you load the bar and you peer through that tiny hole, I simply challenge you to think about athletic development in its totality.  If all you have is a hammer then everything looks like a nail; if all you do is load plates, then the window in which you have viewed the world, and the development of your athletes have been limited.  Believe me, the world looks a hole lot different when you begin to look at it with a pair of fresh eyes; or at least a pair not obscured by only iron.

Art Horne is the Coordinator of Care and Strength & Conditioning Coach for the Men’s Basketball Team at Northeastern University, Boston MA.  He can be reached at a.horne@neu.edu.

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Click here to buy tickets for the 2010 Boston Sports Medicine and Performance Group Conference in May at a discounted rate!

Post by: Dr. Adam Naylor, AASP-CC

While attending the 2009 Boston Hockey Summit the name of an important influence in my professional career was mentioned.  Coach Boyle commented that Peter Friesen, strength and conditioning coach for the Carolina Hurricanes, was in town for a game and might be dropping by the conference.  The impact of a strength coach on a sport psychology guy can be unclear at best, but in 2000 Coach Friesen recruited a handful of Carolina players to participate in my dissertation research.  We exchanged only a couple of notes and I doubt Coach Friesen recollects this assistance, but the value of getting access to NHL players for research and helping a doctoral student become a doctor is as they say, “Priceless.”

The research itself examined professional hockey players, who was influential during their professional years, and how much impact these important others had on their performance (Naylor, 2001).  Eighty-two different individuals were identified as influences on players during their minor league careers through retirement from the NHL.  Within this social network, it was found that at about the age of 20 players perceive their relationship with their strength and conditioning coaches as important as close friends.  The strength of this influence only increased as one’s career went on, with strength and conditioning coaches and athletic trainers being viewed as more important than skill and bench coaches when a player was in his thirties (in most instances the only people of greater importance at this time were wives and children!).  The importance of teachings on strength and health were exemplified in a 13 year NHL veteran telling me the key to his longevity was, “Bottles of water and the exercise bike.”  Certainly the increased importance of strength and conditioning professionals can be explained by the need to maintain an aging body, but if you look closely this is only part of the story.

A lot of personalities and various perspectives were shared at the Boston Hockey Summit, but I suspect the coaches whose athletes made the greatest gains in the weight room and on the ice had one thing in common – close, trusting relationships.  Even the best, laid conditioning plan fails to fully benefit athletes if the coach is unable to extend beyond the science of programming.   A great coach must chose to be and become a respected and responsive collaborator with the athlete.  In examination of strength-coach athlete relationships, McCormick (2002) found that the benefits of a true working alliance in the gym extend beyond increased strength, speed, and injury prevention… self-efficacy grows.  More specifically, it was found that college athletes that have close, interdependent relationships with their strength coaches have greater confidence in their ability to succeed both in the squat rack and on the playing field.

Quality strength and conditioning coaches are important to both their athlete’s physical prowess and mental fortitude.  Furthermore, these impacts appear to only increase as the pro athlete ages.  Thanks Coach Friesen… for setting these findings in motion and helping a young sport psych guy go from “prospect to professional.”  I look forward to the 2010 Summit, while much will be said about the development of strength, speed, flexibility, and the prevention of injuries – I hope between sessions and during casual discussions a dialogue will begin about how great coaches make the science stick and build most resilient athletes – both physically and mentally.

Naylor, A.H. (2001). The Developmental Environment of Elite Athletics: An Evolving System. Doctoral dissertation. Boston University.

McCormick, H.C. (2002). Strength Coach-Athlete Relationships and Self-Efficacy. Doctoral dissertation. Boston University.
Dr. Adam Naylor, AASP-CC. is the Director of the Boston University Athletic Enhancement Center (www.bu.edu/aec).  He has serves as a mental conditioning and player development resource for players at all stages of their sports career.  More reflections on player development and sport psychology can be found at http://prosportpsychsym.wordpress.com and Dr. Naylor can be reached at ahnaylor@bu.edu.

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Click Here to register for the 2010 BSMPG Conference and get tickets at a discounted rate!

BSMPG aims to provide strength coaches, athletic trainers, physical therapists and other health and fitness professionals opportunities and access to leaders in their respective fields through the use of conferences, webinars and online content.

Last year we hosted the First Annual Boston Hockey Summit which brought the likes of Mike Boyle fresh off Boston University Men’s Ice Hockey National Championship, Jim Snider from the University of Wisconsin sporting his Women’s National Championship ring along with other notable Hockey professionals such as Nico Berg from Vancouver, Canada and Darryl Nelson from the USA U-19 team.  With an all-star lineup presenting, we were equally as blessed to have just as many notable professionals in the audience.  The event was such a success we decided to run the program again, this time bringing in the likes of Matt Nichol (former S&C coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs), legendary 1980 Olympic Gold Medal Strength and Conditioning coach for USA Hockey, Jack Blatherwick along with San Jose Sharks S&C coach, Mike Potenza and a return visit from Coach Boyle.

Like any family, Boston Hockey’s little brother, in this case Basketball, felt neglected so we decided to bring in the brightest basketball strength coaches from around the country in a concurrent lecture setting.  Basketball fans have the opportunity to hear an array of former NBA strength coaches now at the college level, along with the mind and muscle behind the University of Pittsburgh Men’s Basketball program, Tim Beltz and National Champion Amanda Kimball from the University of Connecticut Women’s program to name just a few.  Whether you choose the Basketball or Hockey track, each group will have the opportunity to hear Recovery guru, Dr. Bill Sands and Corrective Exercise expert Bill Hartman in a general session for all.

Stay tuned for upcoming pictures and video from last year’s event along with updated training information from North America’s brightest minds in sports performance, medicine and rehabilitation.

See you in Boston!

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Click Here to register for the 2010 BSMPG Conference and get tickets at a discounted rate!