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Fall Ball is HERE- Don't Stop Training
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Hey Reader! August is wrapping up. School is slowly approaching. Open gyms. Fall ball leagues. Schedules get messy. Priorities shift. And most hoopers? They stop training or take time off. But here’s what separates the ones who plateau… from the ones who keep rising: The best athletes don’t quit their routine when life gets busy. They adapt it. So if you want to maintain your strength, power, and movement quality heading into fall ball, here’s how you do it. ✅ Shift from Volume to Efficiency You don’t need 4 lifts a week anymore. You just need 2–3 high-quality sessions that check the right boxes:
✅ Sample 2-Day Schedule Day 1 (Mon or Tues)
Day 2 (Wednesday or Thursday)
Remember: This is still the off-season, the goal can and should be to still make progress and improve as we get closer to tryouts. Fit this around your open gyms, team practices, or school schedule. Consistency beats perfection. Especially now. ✅ Keep The Main Thing, The Main Thing...Then Get Out Keep your sessions short and intentional. Aim for 45-minute sessions. Hit the focus for the day, keep the volume low and the intensity high, and then get out. No wasted reps. When school and practices pick up, you won’t have time to waste. Make every session count, and build habits that yield success into the season. Train with a purpose. Recover with discipline. Stack wins week by week. ✅ Don’t Skip Recovery Training is only half the equation. When classes and practices pick up, your sleep, nutrition, and recovery need to be dialed in even more. Make sure these minimums are met:
Great athletes aren’t just strong. They’re resilient. Build the habits now. Let this fall be different. Don’t just survive the season. Build into it. Let’s keep building, — Coach Julian
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The Hooper’s Edge
Get no-fluff basketball training tups from strength coach Julian Lo Casto. Speed, power, strength, conditioning, recovery, and mindset strategies delivered straight to your inbox. Built for hoopers. Backed by science and experience.
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Hey Reader, Tryouts are here (or right around the corner). You’ve been putting in work all fall — lifting, hooping, open gyms, fall leagues. But this is where most players blow it. They panic. They overtrain. They stay up late. They gas themselves the day before tryouts thinking one more workout will “get them ready.” Here’s the truth: you don’t get better the week of tryouts — you show what you’ve already built. Your only job now is to stay sharp, fresh, and confident. Here’s a simple 5-day...