Introduction
Netball demands a lot from the body, both physically and mentally, so it is therefore important to prepare your body and mind. If you do this you will enable yourself to perform the skills and tasks demanded on the Netball court.
Netball demands short duration but high intensity efforts, involving running, constant change of direction, jumping, passing, dodging, rebounding and many other skills. Physical fitness is a starting block which is necessary to develop and extend your abilities and use them effectively during game play.
Before you start
Remember – you need to have a programme designed for your needs and everyone is different.
So before you start, ask yourself the following:
• What are the fitness components I know I need to work on? I.e. Strength? Agility?
• What movements do I make on the Netball court and what are the major muscles involved?
• How does my position affect the different muscle groups I need to work on?
• Do I have any injuries and how do I look after them during the pre-season?
• What has held me back in the past when it comes to my fitness? How can I make sure this doesn’t happen this year?
• What equipment do I have available to me? Do I belong to a gym? Do I need to find other places to exercise?
• What other commitments do I have and how am I going to create a week on week fitness routine that works for me?
• How can I have a well balanced programme that gives me enough recovery?
The different areas of fitness
The pre-season fitness build up
6 months before season
We know we know, you have pretty much just finished the Netball season BUT that doesn’t mean you should let all your hard work go to waste.
Below is a graph that demonstrates a good recommendation of what you should be doing. These sessions do not have to be Netball focused, mix it up by giving yourself a variety of activities to choose from i.e. Swimming, cycling, tennis, touch rugby or aerobics): Senior Under 21 Secondary Umpire
Sessions/week 3-4 3-4 2-3 3-4
Duration 30-40 30-40 20-30 30-40
Intensity (% HR Max) 70-80% 70-80% 70-80% 70-80%

4 months before session
Now it’s time to really push yourself when it comes to your aerobic fitness.
It is important to build up your fitness so that when you come to developing your other skills you have a strong base to work from.
There are three different types of fitness techniques that will help your “Netball fitness”. They are mainly used in running but can also apply to those who like to interchange cycling and swimming into their routine.
The 3 techniques are:
• Continuous (aerobic): A slow and steady jog/swim/cycle all done at a constant pace – usually for 30 – 60 mins
• Fartlek (aerobic / anaerobic): Fartlek allows you to run/swim/cycle at varying intensity levels / speed over distances of your choice. – usually for 30-60 mins
• Interval (naerobic): A training that involves bursts of high intensity work alternated with periods of rest or low activity. – usually for 25 – 45 mins
Continuous workouts should be used predominately at this stage of your training.
2 months before sessions- right up to competition day
Leading up to the beginning of the season you now need to place an emphasis on anaerobic endurance in order to develop your ability to perform sustained high intensity Netball.

Interval training and fartlek training, performed at your maximum effort are the most appropriate training methods for this. BUT that doesn’t mean you should stop going for your normal “continuous” run.
This chart may help you to understand:
Player Senior U21 Secondary Umpire
Frequency (no. of sessions/wk) 4-5 3-4 2-3 3-4
Duration (mins) 30-45 25-40 20-35 30-45
Sessions:
Aerobic
Anaerobic 2-3
1-2 2-3
1-2 1-2
1-2 2-3
1-2
Strength, speed, muscle endurance and power
In your training programme you can’t forget these for important aspects of Netball fitness; strength, speed, muscle endurance and power. For all of these areas talk to your Gym Staff or a trainer to give you more ideas.

Strength
Strength is the foundation that enables you to successfully develop your other three areas. Your strength levels will determine your ability to cope with training during the preparation and competition phase. As a Netballer you need strength in your arms, back, core and legs and there are many different exercises to help with this. Here is an example for each:
• ARMS: bicep curl, tricep dips
• BACK: back extension, cable row
• CORE: russian twists, swiss ball crunch
• LEGS: squat, leg curl, leg extension, leg press
Talk to your gym about showing you more strength exercises

Speed
You can benefit greatly from adding speed training to your workout.
Most players spend the bulk of their time focused on endurance, but speed training is a good way to kick your performance up a notch. Here are some speed drills that you may like to incorporate into your workout:
• High knees jogging over 20 Metres
• Heel kicks jogging over 20 Metres
• Skipping
• Stand on the Netball transverse line and practice pushing off the line and sprinting till the next transverse line, repeat all the way down the court.
Muscle endurance

Muscle endurance refers to the ability of muscles to perform repetitive movements over a period of time without getting tired, i.e. passing a ball in Netball. To build up your muscle endurance in Netball it simply involves repeating the movements you do most often. For example:
• Stand approximately 1 metre away from a sturdy wall and pass the ball back to yourself repetitively. Once you feel fatigued have a rest, take a step back and go again.
• Dumbbell lunges
• Row machine
Power

Power is the ability to generate force quickly. It should be an essential part of your training programme as most Netball activities depend on power. Often called “plyometrics”, power exercises involve a lot of jumping or quick and steady body movements. For example:
• Jumping forward over cones
• Squat jumps
• Zig zag jumps (jump forward in a zig zag pattern)
• Tuck jumps
• One leg lateral jumping (jump sideways on one leg and then back on the other)
• Double vertical jumps (jump off a step or bench, landing in a squat, and then immediately push back up into a vertical jump)
• Medicine ball throws
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