First off, I'd like to thank everyone for providing such unbiased/reasonable information on this forum...
welcome man! ya we try to just cut through the BS and support all that is legit.
I can't help but have mixed feelings as I have just spent, in the past three months, probably over $300 on questionable products that I won't mention here(Let's just say I was in the middle of a Maroko workout...)
damn :/
Now, exasperation aside all I'd like is some constructive advice I can digest that will help me reach closer to my goals: Which is to 1. become faster and more explosive(Increase Game speed and vertical jump) 2. And become an impact D-3 basketball player.
I'd love to have the RIGHT program for me as I recently just got into training - I'm tired of spending money on useless products and worrying if they'll actually work. I'm sick of overanalyzing all these different programs I purchased. I want to do actual work in the gym with 100% pride and confidence knowing that they will deliver me the results providing I put in the work required.
here's my bio:
AGE: 19
Height: 5'10" , 177cm, 6'2" Wingspan
Weight: 139 lbs
Sleep Schedule: Very regular. I try to get to bed before 12 or around it. 11 at the earliest and 1230 at the latest. Wake up around 730 or 8. I don't have trouble falling asleep but when I wake up sometimes I'll feel a little groggy.
BODY TYPE: Athletic but Skinny. I carry a 6% Body Fat
GOALS: I'd like to add at least 20 pounds of muscle, become quicker and more explosive(Cut my 40 yd dash time + Increase my Vertical jump by at least 8 inches or more), improve my basketball skills and become an impact player at the D3 level
CURRENT ABILITY: Basketball-wise, was recruited by several D3 programs and currently not playing in college. Taking a Gap year next school year. I have a 25 inch standing vertical, with a 27 running vertical probably.
INJURY HISTORY: No real injuries. A couple minor ankle sprains here and there.
TRAINING HISTORY & ACHIEVEMENTS: Played 4 years of soccer, basketball and lacrosse at a pretty good prep program. I'm very motivated and believe that I can recruit myself to be a D3 player with the right work, mindset and help around me. I train and play with a healthy chip on my shoulder, I prioritize academics but see training as an extension of my discipline/determination outside the gym. I've only started to train seriously for about three months, bouncing around from workout to workout. I consider myself pretty intermediate - I bench my weight 1RM, I can't squat my weight(I can probably squat around 120lbs), I can do 7 good pullups.
CURRENT ACTIVITY LEVEL AND/OR TRAINING PROGRAM: I've been basically trying to take weight training very seriously(It's only been three months since I realized it could help my athleticism), trying to build up my upper body strength as well as my general explosiveness. I've added some visible muscle to my body but I JUST started gaining some mass. But as I mentioned above I was just in the middle of starting an Alex Maroko workout with chin-ups...
BRIEF OVERVIEW OF CURRENT DIET: I eat very healthy(Lots of raw unprocessed foods and etc), three meals per day with good nutritional balance in-between. As for protein, I only started this about two weeks ago but I take casein protein throughout the day and before bed, and a whey protein after my workout.
IMPORTANT ACTIVITIES: I do prioritize academics so I can't put in like 5 hours per day for training but I CAN guarantee at least an hour to two hours of solid hard work in the gym every single day. I just WANT the right program that will help me reach my goals. I'm a little bit overwhelmed by the superfluousness of the information out there in the athletic industry.
Thank you very much.
first of all, I can see you mean business by how you typed out this bio, it is very clear that you are serious. As for "the right program" etc, from what I see right now, strength & mass in the right areas is the major issue. Your bodyfat percentage is very good, sleep schedule is good, diet seems solid especially with the addition of protein supplements, but the most glaring issue is your strength.
beyond all that is said in s&c, and by most of the 'gimmick' trainers, the majority of gains will be made by focusing on just a few components:
#1 good diet, high in protein
#2 adequate rest & recovery (sleep etc)
#3 seriously improving key lifts that have the most transfer to sport (squat, ghr, lunge, possibly deadlift, calf raise, dips, pullups, and some other general upper body lifts.. You squat BW right now, how fast do you squat it? Let's say you squat it in 3+ seconds.... ok now, spend 6 months getting yourself to 1.7xBW, how fast will you squat BW? Let's say 1.7 seconds... Ok train another 6 months, get your squat to 2.1xBW, now how fast do you squat your bodyweight? 1s or less? That's the key behind lifting.. To develop the ability to produce force rapidly, either by "neural changes" and/or by "lean mass gains (quads/glutes/hams/calfs/shoudlers/lats/etc)".. The gains in performance by going from 3+ seconds on a bodyweight barbell squat, to < 1s, will be EASILY noticable.. this goes for the other lifts as well..
#4 making sure not to slack in the sport-specific skill department. For example, not becoming so obsessed with lifting that basketball becomes secondary, fitness then decreases, etc.. That's where most people getting into performance training fail, they see lifting as "the cure", when really, it's supplementary.. without maintaining proper fitness, strength gains suffer AND have less transfer to athletic movements. Sport specific movements include actual max effort jumping, basketball specific movements, etc.. As for max effort jumping, you want AT LEAST two max effort jump sessions per week.. A max effort jump session is just warming up really good and then focusing on maximum effort jumps with good recovery between each jump, focusing on getting as high as possible each jump, and i mean really focusing..
#5 making sure to incorporate some key reactive exercises: short sprints, rebounding jumps (pogos, MR half tucks, double leg bounds, possibly single leg bounds).
#6 making sure to be consistent, one of the best ways is to journal, so that you can monitor your progress properly.. Check my latest journal entries, even though i'm sick right now, and you'll get an idea of how I journal, including my new form of journaling using my "progress tracker idea", which makes tracking progress very clear.
So that's it really.. By focusing on all of those components, improvements in performance WILL come.. #3 is your biggest issue right now, that's glaringly obvious.. So supplementing a decent resistance routine into your training is the way to go, resistance training sessions can less 45-90 minutes.. You'd be surprised how much you can get done in 45 minutes (after warmup).
Check this "routine out" :
http://www.adarq.org/forum/performance-training-blog/an-introductory-block/Very simple, aimed at improving a few key lifts.. Alot of your "plyo work, conditioning work, etc" should come from basketball itself.. intense practices/game situations, intense skill work, etc.. Alot of those fancy drills people promote are just a waste of time, what you want to do is transfer the strength/mass you're gaining from progressive resistance training TO the specific skills of your sport. Before each lifting session however, you can do some reactive work: short sprints, rebounds, etc, this serves as a great neural warmup for lifting too, but think of it more as simple rebounding drills aimed at IMPROVING THE SKILL of absorbing & producing force very fast, nothing more.. So check that thread out, tell me what you think, if you like it, ask some questions, I can help you work it into your schedule etc, and give you an idea of the reactive work etc. There's other little things we do around here like almost-daily glute activation work and stuff like that, that's not really listed in that article, i probably should list it, but it's stuff like just some sets of glute bridges/calf raises before bed etc, 15minute stuff.
hope that helps so far.
peace man, looking forward to seeing your progress..
