How Body Type Influences Training

Understanding the subtleties of athlete body types offers an invaluable lens for optimizing training protocols. By recognizing the spectrum between funnel-shaped athletes, like Dwight Howard, with broader shoulders and narrower hips, and cone-shaped athletes, such as Nikola Jokić of the Denver Nuggets, with wider hips and narrower shoulders, we can tailor training to leverage their inherent strengths while addressing their specific needs. 

In the realm of sports, coaches instinctively or deliberately assign athletes to positions that align with their physical attributes. For example, a funnel-shaped athlete with a naturally broad shoulder width relative to their hip width is often found in positions that benefit from their ability to leave the ground quickly and explosively. These athletes can struggle to absorb energy, or coordinate slower based movements. On the other hand, cone-shaped athletes, with their lower center of gravity and wider base, find their strengths in brute force production, and usually have a better ability to spin/ rotate. These athletes will struggle to produce force quickly. 

Translating this understanding to the weight room, the training focus for a funnel-shaped athlete would lean towards improving their ability to eccentrically/ yield under load via tempo strength exercises. Exercises for these athletes might include yielding jumps, eccentric biased squats, and split squat variations. I also like to include yielding isometrics in deeper positions that will improve muscle belly health and strength. These are alongside their plyometric drills that exploit their ability to generate force rapidly.

Conversely, cone-shaped athletes would benefit from a regimen that targets their ability to produce in a short amount of time. Band assisted jumps,T-Bar Split Jerk, and sprints would all be on the table. The tempos of these movements would be much faster, improving their ability to translate from down to up. This would be paired with exercises that optimize what they are already good at, under heavier loads like squats, deadlifts, and lateral movement drills can help in fortifying their foundation, improving their power.

The strategic adaptation of training based on body type ensures that athletes not only mitigate their weaknesses but also, and more crucially, accentuate their strengths. For funnel-shaped athletes, the emphasis on yielding exercises and explosive training maximizes their natural predisposition for power generation. Meanwhile, cone-shaped athletes receive training that enhances their ability to produce force rapidly, while improving their strength is crucial for their success. 

By embracing the diversity of athlete body types, coaches and trainers can unlock the full potential of their athletes, crafting training programs that are as individualized as the athletes themselves. This leads to optimized performance, where athletes not only excel in their given sports but do so by leveraging the natural advantages their unique body types afford them. Through this understanding and application of specific training modalities, the athlete's path to excellence becomes clearer, and their training more effective, paving the way for higher levels of achievement in their chosen sports.