Referee Training for Basketball Part 2

Now that you have identified what fibers and energy systems to train what do you do?

Here are a few ideas.  There is no reason to spend jogging in the pre-season all it will do is recruit Type II fibers to join the Type I fibers.  Not a good idea when you consider that you will be sprinting during every game you referee.  The Type IIB fiber are the one most important for sprinting.  Remember high intensity (90% muscle force), and short duration (< 10 seconds).  You must train them to prepare them for the season.  If you don't they won't be there when you have to sprint.

What to do about sprinting.  Begin with short sprints 30-40 feet about half court.  Think quick start and start from different standing positions.  Think about from the lead to trail and you must see a last second shot or mark a three.  Decelerate well when you do these sprints.  Most injuries occur during deceleration, lower your hips and shorten strides gradually coming to a stop.  Do not try to stop on a dime.

A heart rate (HR) monitor is a valuable tool for all activity but for these it is very important to use.  Long sprints of 12-15 seconds.  These are conditioning.  Get your HR up to about 75-85% of your max HR.  Increase the number of sprints and reduce the rest time between sprints as your conditioning improves based on HR. 

Change of direction (COD) is very important for officials and these drills are a great conditioner as well.  Combine quick movements including sprinting, back peddling, crossover run, kariocia and shuffling over short distances (about 30 feet max).  Combine the movements together as well as changes of direction.  Whatever you do one direction do the other direction.  For example begin with a back peddle to a shuffle to a sprint incorporating quick changes of direction.  Think accelerate-decelerate-COD and start again.

Lastly plyometrics or jump training will train your Type IIB fibers.  Quick hops or jumps done with the intent of not staying on the floor for a long time are great exercises.  You need to consider your size and age when doing these and contact a trainer for proper landing techniques before you begin.  Don't do these more than 1-2 days a week depending on your bodies ability to recover.