For the past couple of months of the winter season, athletes have flocked to the weight room in the Jordan to get stronger and prepare for their spring sport. This year, the athletes opting to participate in weight lifting have been led by a new addition to the coaching staff – Coach Markham. In instructing first-time lifters and encouraging and continuing to instruct experienced athletes, Coach Markham has added significant invaluable knowledge and enthusiasm to every athlete’s afternoon.
The first month of weight training consisted of building a base of knowledge and experience for athletes to build off of to get stronger in the future. According to Coach Markham, “it is important that we cover the basics and create strong movement patterns first. I have found that increasing weight comes gradually with this approach”. Although there is significant emphasis on getting stronger, anyone who visits the weight room in the afternoon will immediately discern the importance of safety. Every athlete is required to complete mobility exercises before beginning the main exercises to avoid injury. Another priority is to build a mindset that will eventually lead to success in the gym and on the field. “Strength comes,” as Coach Markham often says, “with commitment and consistency”.
Over the course of the winter, the athletes participating in winter training have experienced substantial improvements. Because of the building of a foundation of strong habits, athletes have been able to add weight and move on to harder exercises. According to Coach Markham, “student athletes are now able to get into positions that they might have struggled with before and to accomplish these movements safely and effectively”. If the past couple of weeks can be used as any indication, these improvements will continue through the winter and into the spring season, giving many athletes an advantage heading into their spring season.
The availability of weight training hours for athletes has also expanded. Over the course of the winter, before-school hours have become increasingly available. Students are able to come to school early and get an hour of training in to free up their schedules.
Through the fall and winter, winter training has been an engaging and rewarding experience for all Belmont Hill athletes.
