Improve your 3-point shooting with weight training

Women's Basketball, Aug 2003 by Ramus, Laura

Who doesn't like to shoot? Everyone loves to watch a player shoot and score at will. But for many basketball players, becoming proficient at the 3-point shot is very difficult. If this is true for you, the missing key might be lack of upper-body strength.

Research in recent years has shown that strength training in basketball is very important in improving performance. But, like many things, it must be performed correctly to be effective. One common myth in basketball involves weightlifting. Many believe weight training negatively affects shooting touch. A well-designed, functional strength-training program will improve your 3-point shooting. Demonstrated by Elaine Powell of the Detroit Shock. The first strength-training exercise is the overhead press. This can be performed on a machine or with dumbbells.

Next, perform the "Quick" Dumbbell Forward Raise. Stand in a shooting position with knees slightly bent. Begin with your elbows bent to 90 degrees and pulled back. Quickly raise your arms up with elbows level with your chin. Elbows remain bent at 90 degrees. Then reverse the motion and return your arms back to the starting position. Both movements are quick and explosive.

Now use a 3kg or 4kg medicine ball to perform shooting motion. Visualize perfecting shooting form and perform this with the medicine ball. Do not shoot at an actual basketball hoop. Instead, concentrate on form. Line up your feet, knees, hips and shoulders, and follow through. Let the ball hit the ground and bounce. Repeat 15 times.

Finally, pull out your basketball and shoot. Shoot 50 3-point shots. Shoot 10 shots in the following five positions: directly in front of the rim, at the right arc, at the left arc, at the right baseline and at the left baseline.

For optimum results you must know how much weight to lift during exercises one and two. To determine weight loads for each lift, you can use a percentage of body weight, a percentage of your strength or the trial-and-error method.

To keep this simple we will use the trial-and-error method. Here's how it works. Warm up with a light weight to prevent injury. For the first set of the exercise, choose a comfortable weight that you can lift without straining while completing all of the repetitions.

Gradually increase the weight over time to become stronger and better conditioned.

This type of weight-training program should be typically started in the off-season. During the off-season, perform the weight training two or three times per week, using three sets of 10 repetitions. In season, weight train the arms only once per week, using one set of 10, 8 and 6 repetitions.

Laura Ramus, PT, ATC, is the athletic trainer and strength and conditioning coach for the WNBA's Detroit Shock. Since 1994, she has also served as the manager of sports medicine for St. John Hospital in Detroit. For more information, log onto her Website, www.girlscanjump.com