Change of direction (COD) is a critical performance quality in most sports, especially in basketball, given the nature and speed of game play as well as the relatively small dimensions of the court.
An athlete's change of direction speed and ability is largely influenced by the orientation of their force application. In other words, the direction they apply force into the ground.
Understanding the effects of various training interventions can help coaches program more effectively.
What are the effects of different COD training interventions?
What did the researchers do?
- A systematic review and meta-analysis was performed on the available evidence examining the effects of change of direction training.
- Only studies performed on high level (collegiate, semi-pro) adult men and women basketball players were included.
- To determine the effect of different COD training interventions, studies were categorized by type (e.g plyometric, strength, or multidirectional repeat sprints) and force orientation (e.g. vertical, horizontal, and mixed).
What were the results?
- The researchers reported that combined vertically and horizontally oriented training was the most effective intervention for improving COD ability in basketball players.
- Horizontally oriented training showed the lowest improvement in COD ability, compared to vertical or mixed interventions.
- This may be because of the limited research in isolated horizontal training and the facts that it is difficult to isolate horizontal demands in training and sport as gravity acts vertically constantly.
What does this mean?
- Mixed vertical and horizontal oriented training appears best to improve change of direction ability.
- A mixed training approach offers a variety of multidirectional stimuli while also addresses different force velocity profile needs.
- It is likely that an individual approach would be optimal, although this specific study did not investigate that and there is limited research comparing individualized COD training methods.
Coach's Takeaway
- Use a mixed training approach to improve change of direction ability for your athletes.
- Vertical and horizontal deceleration should be considered as the ability to rapidly decelerate and redirect momentum are critical elements of any change of direction task.
- In addition to your traditional strength training, plyometrics, speed, and COD technique should be trained.
