Archive for February, 2010
Springbak Basketball Training Tips – Footwork Skills
Posted by: | CommentsArticle by William Crow – Former Professional Basketball Player – Chairman Springbak Inc.
Great footwork skills are necessary to beat a defender on a drive to the basket. Why? This ability is extremely important because the more the ability the offensive player has to drive past a defender, the more a footwork skills come into play. Great footwork skills will cause the defender to play further off the offensive player making it easier to get off a jump shot.
How do I beat a defender on a drive to the basket?
Step one: Create a driving alley either left or right.
Step two: The first movement if driving to the left is to first (as quickly as possible) plant your right foot onto the floor for a quick push off to the left. The entire inside length of your right shoe should hot the floor at the same time (to take any stress off your ankle).
As soon as the shoe hits the floor, spring to the left. If you are wearing Springbak Springsoles in your shoes, the spring effect of the Springsoles will quicken your push off to the left. Your cut to the left is in effect a low lateral jump to the left, to move your body into that driving lane before the defender can react and get there before you do. If you get there at the same time and collide, the foul is on the defender. If you get to the alley before the defender, you have a drive to the basket.
As you spring off your right foot, you should simultaneously step out with your left leg and lean your shoulder to the left. When you left ankle hits, push off hard towards the basket. To drive to the right, (and you need a move in both directions) just reverse the move to the left instructions.
Have fun and practice great footwork to improve your game tremendously.
William Crow – Chairman Springbak Inc.
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For more tips and information:
Visit the Official Springbak® Website at www.springbak.net
Peak Performance Springsoles / Insoles – Run Faster, Jump Higher, Lessen Fatigue
Marathon Running Tips: by Brendan Brazier – World Class Ironman Triathlete
Posted by: | CommentsWhy Endurance Athletes Need Strength:
Clearly marathon running is an endurance event, and not necessarily a strength sport. But for a marathoner, the ability to lift more weight offers a significant advantage and benefit.
For example, if two runners are equal in every respect except for muscular strength, the stronger athlete will be faster over any distance. If one runner can squat 10% more weight than another, his muscles will not have to work as hard to move the body forward, maximizing his endurance gains. And when muscles don’t need to work as hard, they also don’t require as much oxygen or circulating blood, putting less demand on the heart, lowering one’s heart rate and improving endurance significantly. Greater strength equals greater endurance!
What Body Parts to Train:
While you would expect the focus for runners and cyclists to be the legs, muscle gains and upper-body strength can offer a significant performance advantage.
Using your arms and upper body improves the muscle function in those areas. Each time muscles contract, oxygen levels and nutrients in the blood are needed. As with the legs, your arms will draw upon the heart to deliver oxygen and nutrition and remove waste products (lactate) so that they can continue moving fluently. Therefore, it makes sense to increase your upper-body strength as well so that it doesn’t become too much of an oxygen draw on your system and increase your heart rate.
Training Fuel:
Nutrition is a vital part of physical training. Of course, what you eat becomes the building blocks used to reconstruct the muscle tissue that your training has broken down. Make sure to consume a nutrient-packed smoothie after each workout. Quick and efficient recovery from each workout is key. The faster you can recover, the sooner you can train again. This is what leads to true gains and will improve your performance more than any other single principal. Visit Brendan’s site at www.brendanbrazier.com
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For more tips and information:
Visit the Official Springbak® Website at www.springbak.net
Peak Performance Springsoles / Insoles – Run Faster, Jump Higher, Lessen Fatigue
