Before you take the court and show off your skills in front of your friends and family, it’s essential to make sure your skills are all in tip-top shape. You’ve heard of shooting or footwork drills, but how about running drills to make sure you can run circles around the other team? Don’t worry. At Rocky Mount Event Center, we have a list of four exercises to get you into peak shape before you come here for your next tournament.
It’s All About The Drills
After you warm up with a few laps around the court and a few minutes of stretching, it’s time to get straight into the drills.
The most basic running drill is to set the timer for one minute and see how many times you can run from sideline to sideline. Try this drill two or three times and see if you can get a new personal best number each time. Give yourself one minute of rest for every one-minute exercise. Rest five minutes between this drill and the next.
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Sprints
Once your rest time from the first drill has elapsed, it’s time to go into sprints. There are two different styles: half-court and full-court sprints.
They’re self-explanatory; half-court sprints begin at the baseline and are a full-speed run to half-court and back. Full-court sprints are the same thing, except going straight to the opposite baseline and back.
- Do a series of 10 half-court sprints with one-minute rest in between each.
- Be sure to rest for five minutes between these and full-court sprints.
- Then, do five full-court sprints, resting one minute in between. Take five minutes to catch your breath in between this and the next one.
Suicides
After you’ve caught your breath, take a second to stretch out and make sure you’re still loose. It’s time for the most infamous basketball drill: suicides.
- For one suicide, the player at the baseline will run to the free-throw line, touch the line, and run back to the baseline.
- Then, they will run to the half-court line, touch the line, and return to the baseline.
- Next, they’ll run from the baseline to the far free-throw line and back.
- Finally, they’ll run from the original baseline to the opposite baseline and back. This sequence completes one suicide.
Do three of these with five minutes of rest in between. Rest five minutes before the final drill.
Now Combine Them
Last but not least, it’s time for a combination running and shooting drill. Full-court layups combine the running and conditioning aspect of practice with game speed and shooting.
- For this drill, players will begin at the baseline, dribble to the opposite baseline, and perform a right-handed layup.
- Then, without rest, rebound and dribble to the opposite baseline and perform a left-handed layup.
- Do five of these back to back, then rest for two minutes.
- Complete this five times.
After you’ve completed all four sets:
- Take some time to cool down with a walk or light jog.
- Finish off with some stretching to prevent cramping or pulling muscles.
- Don’t forget to fuel yourself with water and plenty of electrolytes.
The above is a great running workout but an intense one. Without the proper recovery, the activity can hurt your game in the long run. Make sure to follow these tips through the cool-down, and you’ll be dribbling right past the other team in no time.
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Rocky Mount Event Center On Conditioning
Physical fitness and safety are our top priorities as owners and operators of an athletic venue. We’re happy to help in any way that we can as we embrace everyone using our venue for their athletic endeavors.
If you’re interested in learning more about Rocky Mount Event Center and how we can help you stay fit on the go, visit our website or give us a call at (252) 231-3490.
