Surprising Health Benefits Of Playing Basketball

Health Benefits Of Playing Basketball

Playing basketball offers a multitude of health benefits beyond just physical fitness, including improvements in cardiovascular health, bone strength, coordination, mental wellness, and overall well-being. Engaging in this sport can lead to a comprehensive wellness experience across physical, emotional, intellectual, social, spiritual, environmental, and occupational dimensions.


Basketball is not just a game that is limited to entertainment and fun; it also has several health benefits. Do you ever wonder why basketball players are so fit and healthy? It is because of the regular exercise and health benefits of playing basketball.

This game includes running, jumping, hand movements, and blocking, which is an excellent form of exercise.

No matter if you are playing on the streets or an NBA court, it is an excellent way of workout to keep you fit.

The health benefits of playing basketball will surprise you. It is not only good for your physical health but mental as well.

For many people, basketball is like a therapy to deal with their emotions and keep their mind calm.

If you want to know more about the health benefits of basketball, we can help you.

10 Surprising Health Benefits of Playing Basketball

Here is a list of 10 surprising health benefits of playing basketball.

Full Body Workout

Basketball is a sport that includes a number of physical exercises. You have to do multiple things at the same time. You have to keep your eyes on the ball, run, jump, avoid obstacles, and need good reflex. All these things lead to a full-body workout.

Burns Calories

The best way to burn calories is by playing basketball. Most of the people who play basketball are lean and healthy. You will hardly find any obese or overweight basketball player. All the combination of exercise and workout helps you to lose calories. You can burn up to 900 calories by playing daily basketball.

Improves Strength

Basketball is a game in which you have to use most of the muscles of your body. Constant neck movements help to get to a lean neck and lean back. Continuous running helps to make your legs and calf muscles strong. Dribbling helps you to improve your arm, forearm, and wrist strength.

Cardiovascular Health

You can keep your heart healthy by playing basketball. With constant running and jumping, your heart rate increases. It makes your heart strong and healthy. Basketball increases your stamina and endurance, which keeps your heart in good condition. It helps to prevent heart diseases like strokes and heart attacks.

Bone Strength

Any exercise which includes tugging and pushing helps to keep your bone healthy. It incorporates lateral movements, which is essential information about new bone tissue. It makes your bone stronger. Most of the basketball players have a healthy bone structure.

Coordination and Motor Skills

Hand-eye coordination is a crucial part of basketball. If you play basketball daily, it will improve your coordination as well as motor skills. Basketball is all about the right judgment and agility. You have to throw the ball at the correct angle to make a shot. All these things improve your motor skills.

Self-Discipline and Concentration

In basketball, you have to keep your focus on the game. One small mistake can lead to foul or violation. Like all other sports, you have to follow the rules in basketball. If you break these rules, there will be a penalty. It teaches you self-Discipline and improves your concentration.

Mental Health

Basketball helps to keep your mental health stable. It helps to relieve your stress level and boost your confidence. Many people play basketball to deal with problems in their life. It works as an excellent outlet to remove all the stress and anxiety.

Immune System

Basketball and all the other sports helps to improve your immune system. As we know, a robust immune system keeps our bodies safe and healthy. With regular exercise, workout, and a balanced diet, your immune system becomes strong.

Stress Relief and Confidence

Basketball keeps your body active. When you play basketball, your stress level naturally decreases. Physical sports help our body to release dopamine, which keeps our mood happy. It helps you to forget about all the stress of day to day life. It also helps to increase your confidence. When you win a game, your confidence builds naturally. It makes you feel confident and competent.

Health Benefits of Playing Basketball: 7 Dimensions of Wellness

Many people only concentrate on physical health when it comes to sports, like basketball. But physical fitness is only a narrow concept. Wellness is a broader concept which includes various aspects of health.

Basketball helps you to achieve the seven dimensions of wellness.

The Seven Dimensions of Wellness are as follows.

  • Physical
  • Emotional
  • Intellectual
  • Social
  • Spiritual
  • Environmental
  • Occupational

Now, we will explain to you how playing Basketball can help you achieve the seven dimensions of wellness.

Physical Wellness

Physical wellness is achieved through regular exercise, proper nutrition, and adequate sleep. When you play basketball, you have to exercise regularly to maintain your stamina. To maintain their health, basketball players focus on a balanced diet to get all the nutrition. They have to follow proper sleep schedules to keep their focus in the game. This way, basketball helps in achieving physical wellness.

Emotional Wellness

As we have discussed above, basketball helps to relieve stress. It helps to keep our minds stable and deal with changes and limitations in our life. Basketball helps to maintain emotional wellness by maintaining proper mental health and coping with stress.

Intellectual Wellness

The learning process in basketball is never over. Players keep on learning new things and techniques with each game. It also increases their curiosity about learning new methods to do better in the game. Basketball players need to have a high IQ. It is one of the most critical parameters of the game. This way, basketball helps to achieve intellectual wellness.

Social Wellness

In basketball, players can’t decide who they want to play with. As it is a team sport, they have to communicate with the team members and build a strong relationship with them. They have to trust each other and understand each other to play as a team. This way, basketball helps to achieve social wellness.

Spiritual Wellness

Basketball players have to undergo various exercises like yoga and meditation to maintain their focus. They have to play by proper ethics and morals of the game. It helps them to achieve spiritual wellness.

Environmental Wellness

No matter how rich or poor a player is, they first learn to play basketball on the streets. Most of the players know the worth of our environment. They are taking constant measures to protect our environment. This is how they achieve environmental wellness.

Occupational Wellness

Basketball players use their skills and talent to reach their goals. They practice and improve their skills to make a living out of it. This way, they achieve occupational wellness.

So, these are all the surprising health benefits of playing basketball. This sport is not only about popularity, fame, or physical health; it’s about complete well-being.

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1 thought on “Surprising Health Benefits Of Playing Basketball”

  1. Thanks for helping me understand that basketball teaches you to focus on your tasks while keeping your stress levels in check. I plan to try a new hobby once this pandemic slows down, but I’m not sure where to start. I’ll think about trying basketball once I find a court for it!

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