Referee Training for Basketball Part 4

Many have asked the type of activities we do with officials getting ready for the season. First, it depends on when they begin to train for the season and the older we get the sooner we should start. We often tell officials that early season injuries are normally due to a lack of training. Your body is just not ready for the intensity of those 16-23 year old kids.

We begin our workouts with a warm-up about 10-12 minutes long. The key here is to get to the fibers that you use during the session. If your going to do some sprinting then your warm-up must get to the intensity that warms the type IIB muscle fibers. If you don't get to them you'll know it when you start to sprint. Warm-up should prepare your body to be able to "recall" the prepared muscle fibers.

We then go through a series of activities that include skipping rope. Skipping rope is a great conditioner. It get s your heart rate up and can be a high tempo trainer much like the speed of a basketball game.

Med Ball training is used to train the "core" as well as put the body through functional and coordinated movements. We call our "core" training pillar training. Many people name back and abdominal training "core training." We use the term pillar because it is symbolizes support, much like the pillars that hold up a house or bridge. Needless to say we spend time on this training due to its obvious importance.

We then move to resistance training. We use different movements and equipment. From body weight to kettle bells to dumbbells to resistance tubing. It's amazing the comment we get from officials by just changing movement, foot position or grip of the equipment.

The last step of our conditioning plan is the change of direction (COD), short or long sprint and/or plyometric work. This is intense work that we push to simulate the movements an official will go through during a game. For example beginning sprints in different start positions (teaching proper movement from each position).

Finally, we recover with warm-down, hydration, nutrition, elongating muscle, the rest of recovery is up to the official. Some use compression garment or an ice bath, but we do educate officials that the changes or adaptations occur during recovery.