Basketball players,
Your strength training should be a top priority for both injury prevention and maximizing performance. However, how many players do their strength training doesn’t accomplish either goal.
I have written about the first three big mistakes I see basketball players make when doing their strength training. You can check out Part 1 here. You can check out Part 2 here. You can check out Part 3 here.
Today, I am diving into the fourth big mistake I see, and it all has to do with what you are focused on.
MISTAKE #4: FOCUSING ON THE WRONG THINGS
When you lift weights, what are you thinking about while you are doing the exercise?
If you are like most people, your answer is probably something along the lines of, “Lifting the weight,” or, “My music.”
I used to be the exact same way.
All through college and even for a couple years after, my workouts were all about everything that was outside of my body.
It was, “Put my headphones on, tune out the rest of the world, and push myself as hard as I possibly can as I go to war with the weights.”
And you know what?
I got strong. Really strong.
And I could jump really high.
And I could build a lot of muscle.
And my body felt horrible.
Absolutely terrible.
Tightness and pain radiating from my foot all the way up to my neck.
And yet, I would set those feelings aside every day and go back to my workouts because that was the time when I didn’t have to feel my body.
But it left me broken physically.
Then, I made a shift. I learned from some brilliant mentors and I completely changed how I approached my strength training.
No longer was it about the amount of weight I was lifting, but rather how much I was challenging my body.
No longer was it about blocking my body out, but rather feeling and experiencing my body working and connecting with it as I rebuilt my strength and function.
Out of all the things I learned from my mentors during this time, one of the most impactful teachings was this…
When you are lifting weights, the only thing you should be focusing on is squeezing your muscles.
You’re not focused on trying to move the weight up.
You’re not focused on your music.
You’re not focused on grinding out reps.
You are only focused on connecting with and squeezing your muscles.
I kid you not, making this one change changed everything for me regarding how my body felt and functioned.
So now I want to pass this advice along to you…
When you do your strength training, only focus on squeezing your muscles.
It does not matter how much weight you lift. It does not matter if you even lift the weight at all.
In fact, if you use less weight than you are accustomed to using and if you move through less range of motion than you are accustomed to moving through, but you focus on squeezing your muscles the entire time you doing the exercise, I guarantee you will have better results from strength-building, muscle-building, recovery, and injury-prevention standpoint.
Why?
Because when you focus on squeezing your muscles, your brain automatically starts sending more signals to those muscles to contract and squeeze. Those signals are what help you to build strength. Those signals are what help you to build muscle. And those signals help you stay in tune with your body so you are uber-aware of how much is enough for your body and what changes you should make to not overtax yourself and to decrease your risk for injury.
Try this the next time you are going to lift weights–instead of using your regular weight, cut it so you are using anywhere from 50% to 70% of what you would normally use. Then, when you do the exercise, don’t think at all about trying to lift the weight. Instead, feel your muscles squeezing and just focus on intensifying that squeeze.
As a result, the motion will happen, but that is secondary to the squeeze.
Keep your focus on the squeeze both while you are lifting the weight and while you are lowering it back down. And if you add in a pause on either end, keep your focus on the squeeze during that time, too.
You are likely going to notice a few things:
And, if you do this right, you will actually leave your workout feeling stronger and more mobile and ready to perform your best.
Give this a shot during your workouts over the next week and see how it goes. In fact, do it for an entire month and I guarantee you that your body will feel completely different than it does right now in terms of achiness, soreness, and pain.
And, if you’d like my help implementing this into your workouts, I now have a virtual option available to all levels of players worldwide. Just click here to fill out and submit the application and I will be in contact with you.
Charlie
Charlie Cates is the leading consultant to high-level professional, college, and high school basketball players in the Chicagoland area for injury prevention, recovery, and muscle performance.
As one of Chicago’s most sought-after Muscle Activation Techniques® practitioners, he is certified in the highest levels of MAT®, including MATRx, MATRx Stim, and MAT® Athlete.
A former college basketball player, he uses his personal experience and understanding of the game and player demands to create customized exercise options for his clients to recover faster and perform their best.
He sees clients in-studio at Muscle Activation Schaumburg as well as in-home.You can schedule your MAT® assessment with him by clicking here, and be sure to follow him on Instagram at @CharlieCates!