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Q
&
A
W I T H
DA V I D J ACKSON
DIRECTOR OF STRENGTH & CONDI T IONING FOR BASKETBALL PROGRAMS
Q: What benefits are being seen following the
upgrade of the weight room this summer?
The whole room just flows better. We have much
more room with the (6) 1/2 racks verse the four full
racks and the platforms we had before. We have
more racks and more room now to train the whole
team or small groups. The room is more efficient now
and we can get a lot more done in that hour when the
guys train.
Some of the new upgrades were new flooring, the 6
new ½ racks from Williams Strength, The Woodway
treadmills, new bumper plates for our Olympic lifts
and some new cable machines, which makes my job
a lot easier.
Q: What are some of the areas that this team is
focused upon this season?
Each player is different and has different needs.
Some players lacked mobility, which needs to be
addressed. I would say 90% of all basketball players
have ankle mobility issues and very tight hip flexors
and hamstrings. It’s a ground and pound sport on a
very hard surface.
Some players needed to lose body fat where other
players needed to gain weight/muscle. Every player
needs and should get stronger and that’s always a
gold standard when training our players. When you
get stronger, there are a lot of other by-products like
becoming quicker and more explosive that follow.
We address all aspects of training that we believe will
improve every players ability to perform on the court.
Q: How do you address working with the
individual, as opposed to making everyone
work on the same thing?
Each player has different needs and things he needs
to work on or address. We come up with a plan for
that individual that will help or improve what he’s
lacking.
The body moves in three planes of motion and
we address all three of those planes of motion.
Compound movements are still the gold standard for
getting players stronger and moving better. Some
players are better suited for certain lifts and moments.
Basketball players are a lot like giraffes meaning long
levered and most positions they are put in are difficult
to obtain. Some of our seven footers do better with
the single leg exercises than the bilateral movements
because of leverage and the distance the bar has to
travel. Each player is assessed and a plan is designed
for that individual that best suits his needs.
Most of these players are weak at first and have
terrible mobility in their ankles and are very inflexible.
These athletes also struggle with stability and how to
create tension in the body. Techniques for bracing
and becoming stable are addressed immediately.
All of these things will be addressed and we will
continue to move forward and get better each day/
week/month/ year. This is a process and success
doesn’t always happen over night, but over the course
of there career there bodies, minds and spirit will
change and it’s really fun to be apart of that change.
Q: What is your favorite part about working
with the basketball team?
Being a mentor to these young kids and watching
them grow into young men. Instilling confidence in
them through training and adding muscle to there
bodies. I’ve been in there shoes and I have a great
idea of what they are going through because I’ve
already lived it.
Also helping them to understand and grow is a way for
me to give back and I enjoy that more than anything.
It’s a very rewarding job to meet these athletes and
to help guide them along the way to becoming the
best version of themselves they can become. I’m
thankful everyday that I get to be a positive influence
on our youth.
@VT_MBBall
@vthokiembb
VTMBBALL
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