Staying healthy

Hey ladies! I wanted to give a few tips about staying healthy when it comes to playing a sport, ANY sport. Here are a few great tips to staying in shape all year long!

Eating Healthy- I''m sure you have heard this all over the television, in magazines and on the internet. Yes its true, eating a good serving of fruits and veggies is essential to having a healthy diet. Good carbs are great to have as well especially 2-4 hours before practice and a game. Eating foods like pasta will help boost your energy naturally! Fruits are always great, but remember to eat fruits on an empty stomach so that you can absorb all of the nutrients, other wise burgers and other fatty foods will just make those fruits sit on top and you wont get the good stuff.  Please be weary that NOT eating enough or Eating too much will most certainly affect your ability to play hard and focus. So eat right and always DRINK PLENTY OF WATER OR Sports drinks!

Exercise- Although playing a sport is great exercise by its self, running , push ups, sit ups and even weight work outs will keep you strong and healthy as well. Be sure to consult a doctor and often times a trainer before you go off and do these great work outs. You certainly don't want to hurt yourself and want to make sure your body can handle all of the pressure that extra working out can put on your body.

Stretching- A good stretch is key to preventing injuries. When you stretch your muscles you make them long and flexible, so when you make certain moves on the court your body will be able to handle the different angles that your bones and muscles may go in. Women are prone to having tears in their knees more often than men because of the structure of a woman's hips and body in general. So please be sure to get a good stretch in for approximately 12-15 seconds for each stretching move. Always warm up before you stretch and be sure to stretch after practice, after you work out and after a game. You will ease the tightness that your muscles will make when you stretch and will prevent soreness later on down the line.

Yoga- Yoga is a great way to stay healthy both for your body and your mind. Some may think that yoga is easy but its not as easy as it looks. If you are able to take some yoga classes I encourage you to do so. You may also look online for some beginner yoga moves that will stretch muscles that you never knew you had. Again stretching is essential for the prevention of injuries!





Swimming - Swimming is one exercise / sport that works out every single muscle in your body, from your lungs, to your legs to your brain. Swimming is also great for the prevention or healing of injuries as it has less stress on the body versus running on concrete or working out in the gym. There are many athletes that choose swimming over other types of exercises, and they do it daily for a few hours. If you have access to a pool and can swim 10 -20 laps a day you will be in great shape after some time.

                                                                          Join a gym- If you are able to join a gym and get training from an expert then I suggest that you do.It may be a bit costly but it is well worth it to have someone who is trained to show you the proper way to lift weights and give you advice on other ways to strengths your body and prepare you for some hard core playing. You can join name brand gyms such as 24-hour fitness or LA fitness or you can go to your local YMCA or find other small gyms in your area. Its always best to have access to fitness equipment and of course consult a doctor before going to any gym.  You can even get a good workout from video games such as Wii fit or Kinect games on XBox 360. Staying active will do the trick!

Preventing injuries- Injuries happen, from a tweaked ankle to a torn acl. Sometimes injuries just can't be avoided. For instance if you fall on top of someone or are elbowed in the face and suffer from a busted lip.. Just member to play hard but play safe. No one can take your hustle away from you, but it you can try to stay away from running into other players or jumping into chairs or stepping on someones shoes then try your hardest to play safe. If you do wind up becoming injured please consult a physician IMMEDIATELY! Always follow your recovery program and rest as often as possible. When you are able to get back up and work out, be sure to take your time and dont over strain your injury. Not recovering 100% can lead to even worse injuries and CAN stop the healing process and keep you off the court longer than you want.

These are just a few tips, I suggest you research more on great ways to stay healthy. Of course staying away from drugs, tobacco, alcohol and fried or some fatty foods will be your first step.

Pingates
www.HyperSmash.com

Become a GREAT free throw shooter

Free throws are an important aspect to the game of basketball. It takes extreme focus and a great body memory ( from LOADS OF PRACTICE) to have a great free throw shot.

It's amazing to me that the free throw seems to be one of the easiest shots, yet is one of the hardest shots to make for many basketball players of ALL levels. EVEN THE NBA AND WNBA! Just think about it, you are there, all alone, the pressure is on, everyone is watching you, lined up on the sides of you, fans in front of you, fans on the side, fans behind you, and the ref hands you the ball, your face is dripping with sweat, you are breathing hard from that last foul the opposing player landed on you and suddenly you zone in, hear your heart beat and remember the B.E.E.F.F. Remember you have 10 seconds to shoot the ball, so take your time and relax.

• Balance- Maintain a good balance. Locate the black dot on the floor, it's on every court in the world to indicate the middle of the basket. Place your shooting foot ( right foot for right hand shooters and left foot for left hand shooters) centered on the do. Keep your feet shoulder width apart. Get a good rhythm together, every ball player has their own rhythm, find yours. Repeat in your head,"bounce ... bounce..." and clear out all the noise and distractions on the court. 

• Elbow- Your elbow should be lined up with your shooting foot, remember  ( right foot for right hand shooters and left foot for left hand shooters) and make an L right under the ball. Spread your figers and have some space in between the ball and the palm of your hand. Your finger tips should be comfortably on the ball as well. 

• Eyes- Fix your eyes on the back of the rim, you should be looking through the net. Shoot towards the back of the rim.

• Focus- The crowd is going wild, your hearing the boos and the screams from the fans, the coaching staff on both teams yelling our directives and so forth. But this is your time alone with the basket. Focus on all the shooting drills you did in practice and on your own time. Nothing should enter your head except. Balance, "Bounce...Bounce..." Elbow, Eyes, Focus and follow through. 

• Follow through- Once you have completed the above and taken your relaxed, controlled free throw you should end with your hand looking like a duck bill and slightly leaning forward. 

Here is the full breakdown

1. Step up to the free throw line.
2. Pay attention where you put your shooting hand leg. That means, if you are right-handed, line up your right foot exactly even with the basket right on the line. Vice-versa for left handers. This will improve your free throw dramatically.
3. Set your feet shoulder width apart.
4. Point both feet forward, squared to the basket. Your toes should point in the direction of the basket.
5. Bend your knees slightly.
6. Place ball in your shooting hand.
7. Don't use your Non-dominant hand to help shoot. Keep it straight! That hand is to guide and hold the ball in place.
8. Place the opposite hand on the side of ball for balance.
9. Aim for the back of the rim.
10. In one fluid motion, extend and bend legs and shoot with your finger pads. Snap your wrist to put movement on the ball.
11. Follow through the shot. Your dominant hand should stay up once the ball leaves your hand. Your non dominant hand should be down by your side

Here is an awesome video on proper free throw shooting. 

Expert: DW Walker
Contact: www.trainingwithdw.com
Bio: DW Walker, an alumna of Manhattanville College, spent her collegiate career as a varsity basketball and softball player while student training in both the sports medicine and strength and conditioning
Filmmaker: David Pakman

That girl CAN dunk

Hey Ladies I ran across a youtube video the other day and wanted to share it with you. In my previous posts I've discussed giving your all, playing big and so forth. I also talked about my attempt at a dunk. Now mind you in "short" when it comes to college and pro basketball, but this young lady Britney Griner has shown that she is not holding anything back. AND SHE IS IN HIGH SCHOOL!! 

She dunks like no bodies business! I've yet to see a 6'8 female basketball player have such control over their body. Most girls that we're that tall I've played against couldnt not elevate the way she did. Its possible and its okay. So what if people compare you to a guy because of it. It started as a man's game but now women are putting themselves in position to change the game of women's basketball. 

He're the video. I hope it inspires you to go all out, and do your thing on the court! Never be afraid! 

Im excited and cant wait till the next time... keep ballin girl, the games not over yet!
Mone't ( but you can call me Moe)

Parents Just Dont Under Stand

Okay ladies, I know some of you will feel me on this one.  I was going to write this directly to the parent's but this is all about guiding you. Of course if they are into reading this blog then they will get the right information that they need to be able to understand what I'm talking about. 

Okay so, you've made it on the team! Congratulations! You're all excited, your family is excited, its all good right? Well not for some of you out there . And trust me I know what your going through. (OFF COURT) Parental Coaching! Oh my goodness if they only really knew what it does to us, they would tone it down a whole lot! If you don't have a parent like this, then you definitely have seen or HEARD one in the crowd. 

You know what I'm talking about, the parent in the crowd yelling, "Awww, you missed a layup! ", or "Step it up, get into the game". Yea I know they want you to be the best, but that is the coaches job, not theirs. I'm not trying to put any excited parents down, but it gets really tough when your just learning the game, or your already trying to prove yourself and you get singled out by YOUR OWN PARENT! Its already bad enough when you get singled out in practice every day, but to have your own family upset because you missed a lay up, or double dribbled, is not a great motivator (for the majority). 

My mother used to tell me I wouldn't eat if we lost a game. I'm grateful that we had a great team and sometimes that wasn't an issue, but we did lose and I was literally afraid to tell my mother that. I mean I wasn't scared of my mother, but I just didn't want to disappoint her.

I've been in games where my focus was more in the crowd rather than on the court. I've seen the times my mother walked out if we were losing, and I've also seen the other faces in the crowd too. Don't get me wrong, I was very happy when my mother came to my games, it was a rare event and I wanted to show her what I've got. But to get in the car afterwards and be critiqued by my performance, knowing she's never played a day in her life, It kinda wore me down. This might apply mostly to the younger players. 

Let me give you another scenario just so I can be sure I have every one's attention.

You're in the game, the coach just created a new play, so you're already confused, the play is to basically pass the ball around 5 times and then you get the ball and go for the lay up, you're only down by one. You're excited and confused because you're the one to win the game. So now the time out is over and your ready to first remember the brand new play and make this lay up. The ball is passed once, twice, three times, four, then its in your hands and your father jumps out of his seat and says SHOOT IT!! Everything you just learned was erased and you throw up a ugly, scared, and confused 3 point shot.

Now it doesn't matter at this point if you've made the shot or not. If you did, great shot! Luck was definitely on your side, if you didn't, ohhh your in a world of hurt. Now the coach on either side of that final outcome would probably be upset, especially if your in junior high or high school. The coach would be upset because he designed something for you, that you have probably been killing on all night long! But your saying, but my dad, yes I know your dad's voice really rang through that crowd, but sometimes you have to ignore, even your dad. 

This isn't easy at all, but it will become very natural the more you play. You have to learn to not be distracted by ANYTHING outside the court. This is your time to play, your time to shine and if you mess up, its okay~! YOU'RE LEARNING!! Everyone misses a shot, every one misses a lay up from elementary to the NBA. It takes practice to be the best, and that even means mental practice ( hence the mental toughness post). 

I learned to clock out everyone except my teammates and my coaches. I could hear then in a roaring crowd of taunts, and boos and horns. I know it came from focus, and mental toughness, and being yelled at  a few times by many coaches to keep my eyes and ears out the crowd. It pays off too. Once you get this technique down you will notice a lot more shots going in the basket, and a lot more teammates calling your name for the ball. It helps greatly with free throws too. Anyone can say anything and all you can hear is, yourself concentrating on perfect form. 

So to all my young players out there, this is the one time that you can ignore the "voices" outside the court. Understand the game is on, and practice is over! Play your game, improve your self, and focus on whats going on. You will have a significant change in your game! 

Feel free to ask me any questions , leave comments, and definitely subscribe to this blog. 

As I said before I'm here to give you my story, my advice and my love for basketball as you girls have. 

I'm excited and cant wait till the next time... keep ballin' girl, the games not over yet! 

Mone't ( but you can call me Moe)

It's a Mental Game

The saying Goes "The game of basketball is 90% mental and 10% physical." 

You ask " well Moe, what does that mean?".  Basketball has little to do with height, strength, moves and so forth. Its about how quickly you can think, what your thinking about and how you're thinking. Your brain is the strongest muscle in your body. It controls everything that you do. It controls how you feel when you wake up in the morning and it controls your knowledge base and the rest of your body. With out a good mental attitude your game just wont be where you really want it to be.

 For example If someone is guarding you and they are really tough, and intimidating they will usually  " get in your head" telling you your not good enough, taunting you, or just straight igging you out. The moment you think, they are right, you give up mentally and that's when they steal the ball from you and go full court to score. This happens because you allowed someone to tap into your strongest muscle and you there fore lost the battle of mental toughness, no matter if your the fastest , strongest, and " greatest " player on the team. Once you let someone get into your head and negatively affect your game, you have lost. 

You are  your biggest competition and you are the one that determines if you are good enough or not. Of course skills are important, like I said Its a 90-10 difference. But even if you have all those skills, if your not mentally tough,k it just wont matter. 

How do you overcome and be mentally tough at all times? Actually it takes practice. Its not that easy staying positive and thinking powerful good thoughts, but once you get used to it, it will be come a daily habit. You literally have to work on your mental toughness every day if you want to be a great player. I'm not saying just stand in front of a mirror and say i am a great basketball player and no one can beat me, i mean that is a great start but it also comes from educating your self in the game, constantly practicing by your self to improve your confidence and playing with others as well.

 

 I was also told by my coaches that my attitude equals my altitude. I never understood what that meant until I actually put that into affect. I used to play with a very negative attitude. Every basket that I missed i dropped nmy shoulders and was basically angry, not with anyone else but myself. That took me so far out the game that it started to become a big problem in my playing. My coaches would yell Moe! Get your head back in the game. They also told me not to be upset when I missed a basket, but to go get the ball back. Once I started doing those simple things like hustling back on D after a brick , I began to understand that my thoughts therefore created my actions. When I dropped my head and pouted about a missed basket, EVERYONE COULD SEE THIS ACTION!! So of course the opponent grabbed the rebound, went down the court and made a basket at my expense. 

I will never forget the day I decided to have a great attitude and an abundance of mental toughness. This day I let my attitude equal my altitude and I attempted my first in game Dunk. It was anything pretty but I felt so good and so strong and so quick that It took me to a whole another level.

Feel free to ask me any questions , leave comments, and definitelysubscribe to this blog. 

As I said before I'm here to give you my story, my advice and my love for basketball as you girls have. 

I'm excited and cant wait till the next time... keep ballin' girl, the games not over yet! 

Mone't ( but you can call me Moe)