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

My teammate wont pass me the ball!

Are you having an issue with your teammates passing the ball to you. Do they look your direction and give a turn away and pass the ball to someone else? 

This could be because your teammate is either a ball hog or doesn't trust you on the court. Id like to say its a trust issue. Are you involved in practice? Do you call for the ball when you are open? Does your coach realize what is going on? If not then you need to look at a few things before you become upset. 

#1  Communication is key. If you ever feel neglected on the court then you need to speak up. If you feel that you have been practicing on your game and you're confident enough to handle the ball whether its to dribble drive, shoot, or pass to another teammate then  you need to speak with you coach about the chemistry on the team . 

Sometimes athletes whoa re a little more seasoned feel they have the need to have total control over the basketball. But it is fact that you NEED 5 players on the court and as a team everyone should be able to touch the ball at least once. 

If your coach felt confident enough to put you int he game, then you certainly deserve a chance. If you are silent and hang your head low then you are heading in the wrong direction. While in practice you must learn to call for the ball with confidence and let your teammates know that you are ready and available to handle that ball. Dont be afraid to speak up.  You never know, maybe they just think you dont want to be too involved. 

Talk to your teammate who you think might be over looking you. Let them know that you can do it and that you are ready to play in this great game of basketball with them. After time they will see that they can trust you and will knowledge you more often on the court. 

If its a team chemistry issue then your coaching staff most certainly needs to recognize that there is an issue with sharing the ball on the court. Even if you have superstars on your team if you belong on the team, t hen you deserve to be apart of the game. 

I personally have always loved to pass and get my teammates involved and as a coach I am sure to remind my players to pass the ball around so that the defense moves and we can get a good easy shot versus one person throwing up a crazy shot because they feel they are better than their other teammates. Its really difficult to have good team chemistry if the ball is rotated and touched by every player, even the post. 

I cant stress it enough how important it is to communicate with your team and your coaching staff. Speaking up will work wonders for you and your team. So get out there, open your mouth and be ready when its your turn to touch the ball. Stay focused, pay attention in practice, stay active and involved and volunteer yourself when the coach asks for players to step on the court.

Wishing you the best of Luck as always!!

GET YOUR BALL ON GIRL!! 

CAUSE SHECANBALL!! 

My Coach is Picking on Me!

Have you ever had the notion that your coach was picking on you, yelled at you more than your other teammates, had to run extra for no apparent reason or picked you out of the bunch to demonstrate but it makes you feel like they are attacking you? Well I have a secret, they aren't.

If a coach is paying extra attention to you, it is highly likely that they see something in you that you don't. They also want to make you a coachable player, meaning you most likely have a certain type of attitude towards the team, coach or even yourself that reflects that you don't have the time or capacity to listen  to or believe in anyone. Most coaches used to be players and they know what it takes to make it to the next level. They generally want to push you to your maximum limit and train you to be prepared for the best. 

I remember a time when I despised my coach. I felt like she always want to make an example out of me, or make me feel like I was being punished for not being as good as my teammates. After time, alot more ups and downs with not only my coaching staff, teammates but myself as well, I began to understand that my coach was only trying to get me to stop being so negative, clear my head and focus on basketball, especially when I am on the court.

A poor attitude will definitely get you extra attention and often times its not going to be good attention. If you focus that negative attitude into positive and keep your head up after a missed shot, or run the extra suicide because your coach knows you CAN! Never limit yourself, always know that you WILL get better, especially after lots and lots of practice. Here are a few things to remember.

• Your attitude = your attention - a positive attitude will bring positive attention
• Everyone misses shots- Never get down on yourself for that ever!
• Hustle changes your game-  Every coach appreciates a player who hustles. 
• Focus on listening and learning-  Trust me, YOU DO NOT KNOW EVERYTHING. Listen and learn. 

How to Handle a Loss

Throughout my career as a basketball player there was one thing that I totally hated. LOSING. At one point in time I focused more on losing than having fun, playing hard and enjoying the game of basketball. I would cry and scream and be angry with my parents, teachers, coaches, teammates and even my young siblings. I would say it runs in the family, this hating to lose thing, because my mother is one to tell you " Don't lose to night or you wont eat". Sure she was joking, slightly, but that mentality can really make your game pretty sour.
Look, BASKETBALL IS A GAME.
DEFINITION OF GAME:

game/gām/

Noun:

A form of play or sport, esp. a competitive one played according to rules and decided by skill, strength, or luck.

And it should be played as such, especially at high school levels. I do understand that winning maybe spoken about often during practice and in the locker room before a game, but winning or losing is not the most important thing in the world, or even in basketball. Having fun and enjoying yourself is most important. Learning new skills, meeting new people, and of course crossing someone over so clean, because you, YES YOU have been working on your game!

Remember, there will always be a winning team, and a losing team. GUARANTEED. And the most talented teams don't ALWAYS win games, but when you look at those teams that do usually win often, they have a different mind frame as a unit. They all want to reach a certain goal, eg. winning more games than losing, winning the league championship or even TAKING IT ALL HOME! The more you play, the better you will get and the better you get at losing, learning from it, and understanding how and why it happened, of course without ever pointing a finger, you will notice that the winner inside you was already there!

great quotes from quotationbooks.com

"Giving yourself permission to lose guarantees a loss."

Riley, Pat

"You have no choices about how you lose, but you do have a choice about how you come back and prepare to win again."

Riley, Pat

"The minute you start talking about what your going to do if you lose, you have lost."

Shultz, George

Defense

Defense is a critical element in the game of basketball. Without it, your opponent is sure to score easy baskets. The saying goes "Offense wins games, Defense wins championships." If you don't understand this now, this is something you need to add to your repertoire like yesterday!

Defense is a team as well as an individual effort. For individual efforts you want to be vocal, steadily moving, keep your head on a swivel ( moving back and forth) , point your "guns", fingers should be indicating where the ball is and where your player is if your off the ball, and on the ball you want to have a direct contact with the players waist.  This is because no matter how many shot fakes, pass fakes etc, you will be able to indicate where your opponents next move is.

Coming soon : DEFENSIVE VIDEO DRILLS.

Fun Drills to practice alone of with your team to improve your defensive skills.

Open Gym Balling!

Basketball season is over NOW WHAT?? Do you... take a nice long break till next try outs?? NO!! If you want to be a great player you should make basketball a year round thing. There are always highschool and colleges opening their doors to young players to get their ball on. Ask around, do a search online for open gym in your area. 

Programs like 24 hour fitness always have ballers in the gym check it out sometime!! 

Oh btw if there are just guys in the gym, dont be intmidated. I've always found that playing aghainst stronger bigger players gives you an advantage when you return to playing against smaller weaker players. 

Here are a few gyms offering open gym around the country...

1. Bryan College -Dayton, TN 37321
2. New River Knight Community College -1328 S. Collegiate Dr. Wilkesboro, N.C. 28697
3. Wake Tech-2235 Garner Rd. - Raleigh, NC - 27610
4. Virginia Western Community College-
5. Yavapai College - Arizona
6. Cypress College- Cypress California
7. Compton College- Compton CA

Like I said this is just a small list. Visit your local community college, or University and inquire about open gym play. You will also be seen by potential coaches too!! 

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)