Training advice from an 11-time NBA Champion

Let’s talk about the tournament. Last week, my Canes took down the number 2 seed, Auburn. Part of that is thanks to standout guard Isaiah Wong. (Maybe you recognize him from this play, when he posterized Jabari Smith.) For those who don’t follow Miami, Wong’s had a tough road. When he stepped on the court in 2019, he struggled. And it wasn’t until this year that we’ve finally seen his labor begin to bear fruit. According to his coach, Wong has a standout work ethic: “If you look at Isaiah's passion for basketball, his work ethic, his willingness to do whatever it takes to get better, he has the ultimate goal of playing professional basketball and I think he's well on the path to accomplishing that. But it has to do with his tremendous work ethic.” And this brings up an important point. Because part of extraordinary success in athletics, or anything, is being able to do the boring stuff, the stuff that’s simple, over and over again. Last season, Isaiah Wong committed to developing a 3-point shot to become more of a threat. Do you think shooting hundreds of 3’s a day got boring? Of course it did. What about Tom Brady, throwing the ball 60 times per day? Or Cooper Kupp running routes every day? Or Steph Curry committing to making 500 3-balls per day? Do you think that gets boring? Of course. But fruits of greatness are rooted in the boring stuff. All you have to do is commit to it. Not when you feel like it. But every day. Chop wood, carry water, as 11-time NBA Championship coach, Phil Jackson says. Eat. Train. Practice. Stretch. Sleep. Wake up. Do it again. The road to greatness isn’t paved with glitz and glam. It’s paved with hard work, careful planning, and consistent effort. And this brings me to bodyweight training. Because it’s a key component on the road to greatness. But often one that makes athletes moan n’ groan. It’s not sexy. It’s not super exciting. But it’s effective. And KEY if you want success in your sport. Because relative strength is the precursor to every performance-enhancing skill - power, speed, agility - I could go on and on. Want to see how I develop relative strength? Dig into Athletic Calisthenics.