Fundamentals of Strength Training – Part 2
- Julius Francis
- Mar 24, 2016
- 2 min read
Looking back at part 1, I talked about there being 3 fundamental movements that athletes needed to master to create their foundation for building strength and improving athleticism. The first movement was the SQUAT. Today, we are going to talk about:
The Pull Up:
This is the exercise that will target the majority of the muscles in your back. Having a strong back will help an athlete in all aspects of their game. Shooting, defense, driving to the hoop, finishing, EVERYTHING. A strong back means increased balance, and increased balance means a more productive athlete. One example of a player with an INSANELY strong back is…Dwyane Wade. One of the best finishers in the NBA; a strong back allows him to absorb contact when finishing, explode faster and more powerfully when he jumps for rebounds and shooting, and helps him react faster on defense.
SO…how do you actually do a pull up correctly? Here’s the breakdown:
What you need:
-A straight bar to hang from (or a pull-up bar)
Starting Position:
-Place hands about shoulder with apart on the bar
-Lower yourself so arms are completely extended and you are stretching the back
Up Portion:
-Try to push your chest out and pull your shoulders back (we want your elbows to stay wide on this)
-Pull yourself up until your chin is level with the bar and exhale as you're going up
-Pause for 1 second at the top
Down Portion:
-Lower yourself back down for a 2 count and inhale as you're going down
Finishing Position:
-Return to starting position
-Fully lower yourself to stretch the back
-Repeat
It may take some time for you to build the strength to be able to do a full pull-up with your own body weight. A great substitute in the beginning is the Lat Pulldown. You can use the same mechanics that are above on this machine. Start off slow with this exercise and REALLY FOCUS on getting perfect form with each rep. The weight you use with each exercise matters 0% if your form is horrible. The better your form, the more you are going to use each muscle, and the stronger they are going to get because of that. Let go of the ego when you’re lifting. The strength will come and you’ll be 10X stronger doing these exercises the right way.
So we got two exercises down and one to go.
Check out part 3 and let’s do this!
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