Its been nearly 3 months since my last post. Life caught up with me and i had to prioritize other things. The unfortunate thing is injury is what is giving me more time now. I have some serious alignment issues in my lower lumbar region. I thought it was Sciatica but its not. I am seeing an Osteopath but its early stages and i don't know how long i'll be out for.
Anyway every cloud and all that, i can now continue on to talk about Pre-season strength training for field sports. I had spoke about the Deadlift, The Squat & The Bench. I will move onto the Chin Up and the Military Press next, and then to Olympic lifts, the Clean & Jerk and the Snatch.
I am now involved al so with 2 teams, one AFL & one Gaelic Football, in their pre-season. It will good to track their progress along with this blog.
Talk again very soon.
Friday, 16 December 2011
Sunday, 11 September 2011
The "Core" Exercises for L&L System 3 - Bench Press
The Barbell Bench Press is a great builder of upper body push strength as well as a great testing method of same strength. The strength gained from it will help you with your power in breaking tackles and holding off a player or protecting the ball. But as time goes on and we have less time in the gym and more on the pitch we will use it far less. Basically while it does have a function its not important enough for us to keep for the whole season all the time. I also like to work in dumb bells for the added balance and one arm affects training one arm at a time can have, after all you often have the ball in one hand and use the other to protect. Of course we will be maintaining the strength all the time, but more through Dumbbell Presses or Plyo Presses and the like.
Having said all that, the bench is a great exercise for increasing upper body strength and technique and progression are as important with the Bench as any other exercise. Poor technique can lead to lower back issues or any number of shoulder, chest and upper back issues.
We can always go back and test your upper body pushing strength with the barbell Bench to see where you are in relation to when at your strongest when we changed up the exercise. As a loose guide we might get guys to a level where they can bench their own body weight. No big deal if they can't, these are all long term programs that could take 2-3 seasons to see real significant results and progress, but don't worry if that's sounds like a long time, if you rush it you'll get injured anyway and miss playing time. Always have your long term development and health in mind, even if you are 30 or even 40 when starting this, it doesn't matter.
Now, down to the Bench. The first thing i would suggest from day one is to get used to the bench. Lie on it, put the arms up, hold the bar, but don't lift yet. You need to get you body aligned correctly, your core engaged your lower back (part of core of course) safely on the bench. Get used to the position, because it will be tested when you add weight. Check out this link if you really want to get into it, wiki strength.
Have a look at this video;
This is a good explanation of the Bench, and of some of the issues that arise. To be honest the Bench is one of the more technically easier exercises to master. He covers everything here really, again, slow increases get the best results. Probably 2.5-5KG increases when upping weight, no more.
Next up is the Chin Up.
Having said all that, the bench is a great exercise for increasing upper body strength and technique and progression are as important with the Bench as any other exercise. Poor technique can lead to lower back issues or any number of shoulder, chest and upper back issues.
We can always go back and test your upper body pushing strength with the barbell Bench to see where you are in relation to when at your strongest when we changed up the exercise. As a loose guide we might get guys to a level where they can bench their own body weight. No big deal if they can't, these are all long term programs that could take 2-3 seasons to see real significant results and progress, but don't worry if that's sounds like a long time, if you rush it you'll get injured anyway and miss playing time. Always have your long term development and health in mind, even if you are 30 or even 40 when starting this, it doesn't matter.
Now, down to the Bench. The first thing i would suggest from day one is to get used to the bench. Lie on it, put the arms up, hold the bar, but don't lift yet. You need to get you body aligned correctly, your core engaged your lower back (part of core of course) safely on the bench. Get used to the position, because it will be tested when you add weight. Check out this link if you really want to get into it, wiki strength.
Have a look at this video;
This is a good explanation of the Bench, and of some of the issues that arise. To be honest the Bench is one of the more technically easier exercises to master. He covers everything here really, again, slow increases get the best results. Probably 2.5-5KG increases when upping weight, no more.
Next up is the Chin Up.
Friday, 9 September 2011
The "Core" Exercises for L&L System 2 - The Deadlift
The Deadlift was one of the most under utilised exercises in sports for a long time. Rugby Union in this part of the world was well aware of its benefits since the age of professionalism, but Gaelic Games has been very slow to catch on. While this is number 2 on the list (there is no real order) i would consider it the No.1 exercise for field sports, for developing Posterior strength and for speed. Now all the exercises are necessary to max your potential. Posterior Chain Training and Posterior Strength could well be the most important thing in field sport for both performance and preventing injury. I will discuss it more in time, but basically its the back of your body from the your calf muscles to your Traps and everything else in between. The Pittsburgh Steelers (recent NFL Champs) do virtually no frontal body training, they work very hard on their Posterior Chain, and they have impressive results to show for it. We will be using primarily frontal exercises in our system & program of course, but as we develop an overall strength & balance you will notice more Posterior exercises.
While The Deadlift is to regular gym goers a Glute, hamstring, lower back targeted exercise it is really a whole body exercise,and can also be adapted to target different areas a bit more specifically like the hamstrings (e.g.Stiff legged DL). One of the major reasons for ACL, lower back & hamstring injuries in GAA can be traced back to poor strength, mobility and development of the hamstrings and glutes, this is why in my opinion The Deadlift properly learned and executed is the King of Exercises for GAA players, particularly Footballers. It will also help keep your body well balanced and when your strengths are balanced you have a better chance of avoiding injury and you will be able to maximize your speed. I have seen many GAA Programs in the past that ignored specifically strengthening the Glutes & Hamstrings and saw the very same players using these programs getting injured. Then you would hear silly comments like "he did too much weights" or "that's what weights do to you" in an often gleeful stamp of "i told you so". Well lifting weights wasn't the reason, it was lifting weights wrongly with poor technique or indeed the wrong exercises that cause most injuries. Unfortunately the vast majority of programs were given out Gym Instructors or Personal Trainers who very rarely took much notice of the sport you were actually playing, and many programs were aimed at getting a "Beach Body".
Back to the Deadlift, see this video below to get a better understanding of the exercise (ignore the fact he says your posterior chain starts at your lower back!!!)
That is a very good straight forward video and really its that simple. Watch, learn, practice, watch (get instructor/trainer/partner to watch), learn, practice and so on. Only add weight when you are very comfortable with the movement, but through my system we will develop it with other related exercises first before we ever put any weight on it. What i would add to that;
Next up is the Bench Press.
While The Deadlift is to regular gym goers a Glute, hamstring, lower back targeted exercise it is really a whole body exercise,and can also be adapted to target different areas a bit more specifically like the hamstrings (e.g.Stiff legged DL). One of the major reasons for ACL, lower back & hamstring injuries in GAA can be traced back to poor strength, mobility and development of the hamstrings and glutes, this is why in my opinion The Deadlift properly learned and executed is the King of Exercises for GAA players, particularly Footballers. It will also help keep your body well balanced and when your strengths are balanced you have a better chance of avoiding injury and you will be able to maximize your speed. I have seen many GAA Programs in the past that ignored specifically strengthening the Glutes & Hamstrings and saw the very same players using these programs getting injured. Then you would hear silly comments like "he did too much weights" or "that's what weights do to you" in an often gleeful stamp of "i told you so". Well lifting weights wasn't the reason, it was lifting weights wrongly with poor technique or indeed the wrong exercises that cause most injuries. Unfortunately the vast majority of programs were given out Gym Instructors or Personal Trainers who very rarely took much notice of the sport you were actually playing, and many programs were aimed at getting a "Beach Body".
Back to the Deadlift, see this video below to get a better understanding of the exercise (ignore the fact he says your posterior chain starts at your lower back!!!)
That is a very good straight forward video and really its that simple. Watch, learn, practice, watch (get instructor/trainer/partner to watch), learn, practice and so on. Only add weight when you are very comfortable with the movement, but through my system we will develop it with other related exercises first before we ever put any weight on it. What i would add to that;
- Tighten the core (tense your gut, glutes & lower back) before you even bend doe to put your hands on the bar.
- Keep the Glutes engaged at all times, remember they are the primary target, all the other muscles used will automatically kick in once the glutes are active
- Always look forward, it helps with alignment
- Do not round your back, at any stage, keep the natural curve
- Don't rock back and forth
Next up is the Bench Press.
Monday, 5 September 2011
The "Core" Exercises for L&L System 1 - The Squat
Well when i say the "Core" exercises for my Lift & Learn System, they really are the staple exercises for any good Strength & Power program especially one designed for a field sports athlete, pretty much of any sort. Now it shows again that we are not coming up with anything revolutionary here, just trying to make things a bit easier to learn and progress.
I'm putting the cart before the horse here a little bit by going through these exercises now, but i think you should have a good idea where you are heading and why you are doing the exercises you are doing in the early stages to prepare your body for the more technical exercises. These posts can always be used as a reference point as well. Lets go through them, some of their benefits to a Hurler or Footballer, adaptations and alternatives;
The Squat
The Squat is part of almost any Strength program given in the world, ever! The reason is of course it is more or less a whole lower body exercises and a great barometer of general lower body strength, but in fact its a full body exercise. But its not the be-all-and-end-all either and can be adapted to fit into programs that may focus more on the Posterior Chain. While the main target of a Squat is to hit the Glutes and is supposed to be a Hip development exercise because of poor form many people end up over developing or compensating on the quads and/or injuring the lower back with curve. This leads to several problems down the road. I know of S&C Coaches & Sports Physiologists who have stopped prescribing the traditional Back Squat (as linked here) altogether for fear of poor form when they are not there to supervise. I myself do not completely agree with this line and believe it is the best "Squat" exercise there is, when done properly. So a gradual learning approach to it is very important.
This along with the fact that many programs were given without real glute and hamstring strengthening exercises meant a series of imbalances. Technique is everything, start light and use a Strength Coach/gym instructor (a Weight lifting qualified one preferably) and go with a partner to watch each others form and technique. Points to note;
Now, what does the squat do for you as a Hurler or a Footballer?
Well it builds strength in the lower body & core, fundamental areas for any footballer or hurler. The strength gained will in turn lead to increased power, foot placement, hip alignment, jump as well as Isometric Strength or "Static Strength" (sturdiness in field sports in plain English). We all know sturdiness is a vital part of any field sport, the ability to take a hit, protect a ball. We will work on Isometric strength more as we go along and is a great foundation strength not only for your sport, but for also advancing through the exercises. When you develop your body to push heavy Squats this will help you develop this strength to very high levels. This is also of benefit in the prevention of Joint injuries, particularly around the knee and avoiding the dreaded ACL injury.
A little scenario that may describe the part of a game where you will see the improvements, other factors come into play here also, but the strength gained from The Squat is very much in evidence. You are playing Midfield in Football, here is where the Science comes in, in brief.
A Kickout Scenario
A quick recap of the benefits of The Squat;
Alternative or progression exercises related to the Squat are, Bulgarian Split Squat, Quasi-Hold Squat, Hack Squat, Split Squat, Front Squat, Pistol Squat are the variations we will most likely use and there are many more variations. We will also use Body Weight Squats for warm up and in the preparation phase. In plyometrics we will use a further variation in the Jump Squat and Split Jump.
I'm putting the cart before the horse here a little bit by going through these exercises now, but i think you should have a good idea where you are heading and why you are doing the exercises you are doing in the early stages to prepare your body for the more technical exercises. These posts can always be used as a reference point as well. Lets go through them, some of their benefits to a Hurler or Footballer, adaptations and alternatives;
The Squat
The Squat is part of almost any Strength program given in the world, ever! The reason is of course it is more or less a whole lower body exercises and a great barometer of general lower body strength, but in fact its a full body exercise. But its not the be-all-and-end-all either and can be adapted to fit into programs that may focus more on the Posterior Chain. While the main target of a Squat is to hit the Glutes and is supposed to be a Hip development exercise because of poor form many people end up over developing or compensating on the quads and/or injuring the lower back with curve. This leads to several problems down the road. I know of S&C Coaches & Sports Physiologists who have stopped prescribing the traditional Back Squat (as linked here) altogether for fear of poor form when they are not there to supervise. I myself do not completely agree with this line and believe it is the best "Squat" exercise there is, when done properly. So a gradual learning approach to it is very important.
This along with the fact that many programs were given without real glute and hamstring strengthening exercises meant a series of imbalances. Technique is everything, start light and use a Strength Coach/gym instructor (a Weight lifting qualified one preferably) and go with a partner to watch each others form and technique. Points to note;
- Don't have your legs too wide in stance
- Brace your core / maintain the natural arch in your low back
- Send your hips back
- Drive your knees out
- Keep your heels down
- Maintain neutral chin / head alignment
- Keep your upper back engaged and neutral
Now, what does the squat do for you as a Hurler or a Footballer?
Well it builds strength in the lower body & core, fundamental areas for any footballer or hurler. The strength gained will in turn lead to increased power, foot placement, hip alignment, jump as well as Isometric Strength or "Static Strength" (sturdiness in field sports in plain English). We all know sturdiness is a vital part of any field sport, the ability to take a hit, protect a ball. We will work on Isometric strength more as we go along and is a great foundation strength not only for your sport, but for also advancing through the exercises. When you develop your body to push heavy Squats this will help you develop this strength to very high levels. This is also of benefit in the prevention of Joint injuries, particularly around the knee and avoiding the dreaded ACL injury.
A little scenario that may describe the part of a game where you will see the improvements, other factors come into play here also, but the strength gained from The Squat is very much in evidence. You are playing Midfield in Football, here is where the Science comes in, in brief.
A Kickout Scenario
- Ball is kicked out high, you jostle for position, Isometric Strength is at work while you gain position.
- You make your jump, foot placement, speed, strength and power all come into focus and your ability to transfer through the systems quickly (speed again!!!).
- You win the ball, you land having secured the ball, foot placement strength & landing technique (something that we'll develop in time from plyometric exercises) come into play.
- You are hit with a shoulder from an opposition player, Isometric Strength is needed to take the hit and protect the ball.
- Now you need to break a tackle to get clear to release the ball, technique (foot placement), strength, speed, power are all needed in quick succession to get you free.
A quick recap of the benefits of The Squat;
- Strength & Power in the Lower Body
- Strength and stability in the Core
- Isometric or Static Strength
- Your foot placement, thus sprint technique
- Acceleration
- Speed
- Vertical Jump
- Balance
Alternative or progression exercises related to the Squat are, Bulgarian Split Squat, Quasi-Hold Squat, Hack Squat, Split Squat, Front Squat, Pistol Squat are the variations we will most likely use and there are many more variations. We will also use Body Weight Squats for warm up and in the preparation phase. In plyometrics we will use a further variation in the Jump Squat and Split Jump.
Tuesday, 30 August 2011
The Lift & Learn Strength Training System
Ok, you are right at the start of my creation of a Strength Training System especially designed for Gaelic Footballers and Hurlers for their Off-Season into the Pre-Season and right through the entire season. My aim is that this system (as opposed to a program) will be adaptable, easy to follow and learn and most importantly progressive and specific.
I also want to develop the program with the Athlete (You) in mind and to make it flexible for some to adjust and manipulate according to the time they have available for gym work at any stage of the year. For instance you will be able to put a 3 day program into 2 or a 2 day into 1. The System will be largely based on a Periodical based system and 2-3 day a week sessions in Off-Season & Pre-Season working towards 1 or 2 day maintenance and advancement throughout the season depending on games etc. The system will also be adjustable around Hurling & Football also. There is very little difference between them really, but there can be adjustments made where you can swap exercises just to be a bit more specific.
Don't get too worried about the term "Periodical Based Training". Its a progressive system for training and will become more obvious over time. The way i use Periodization has evolved and is not quite like the Block Periodical System i would have used in the past with designing programs for players, where there would have been a structure like this "Block Periodization Training". Ironically enough it came from the Eastern Bloc countries of the Soviet Union. This would be considered a linear system. In English you would have 4 x 4 week sections of Preparation Cycle, Max Strength Cycle, Max Power Cycle & on-going Maintainance Cycle. But that meant you would have no power work for 1st 2 months or real strength development for the 3rd month. This obviously leads to drop off in your capabilities in these areas.
Through study and experiment with other programs & systems i have found a Daily Undulating Program to be more efficient for development of strength. As well as this flexibility in Sets & Reps i would also incorporate Strength & Power work right from the word go and the early exercises are more clearly defined preparation exercises for more complex exercises, rather than a general Push-Pull Program (although than concept is still retained) that i would have prescribed for Preparation in the past. I have come to believe that the traditional preparatory cycle isn't of great functional benefit to a Hurler or Footballer. This means it is more or less a Hybrid Periodization method i will use for the Lift & Learn System.
Alot of "Fitness speak" there for someone who doesn't know anything about it, but don't worry, it will be pretty straight forward as we progress. The basic principal is, you start lifting weights/performing exercises real easy level and progress week to week and month to month.
For GAA games, as we spoke about it already, strength, power and speed are massively important to the game. The Core (not the muscles in your mid-section now) exercises that we will be aiming to get proficient at for Strength
and for Power
and the improvements in Speed come from a combination of these and of course improvements in sprint & acceleration techniques and just playing the game. *
It may seem quite daunting to someone who never did Strength Training before, but again, don't worry it will start off easy and progress in a manageable manner. Players who have done Strength Programs before should also take a break after the season and start with this method and system.
It must also be noted that these exercises are NOT THE ONLY WAY to gain strength & speed. And other trainers may have different methods and they will deliver results also. I just believe this is the best, most qualified and functional way to deliver results for an amateur footballer. These exercises when learned correctly can be the basis for Strength, Power & Conditioning for the rest of your adult life even when you have stopped playing sport. As well as there being other ways of gaining strength & power, there are many other exercises that we will use to get us to being proficient with the above exercises, like plyometrics & body-weight exercises.
The benefits of starting in plenty of time is the first 2-4 weeks will act as a form of restoration after the season just gone. You won't be doing all of the 7 exercises listed above, but we will work on your Core, Flexibility and general Strength to prepare you for more strenuous training.
Core Training is key in preparation, as many of the lifts like the Deadlift & Squat engage the Core in a big way. If your Core is weak your technique will suffer, if your technique suffers so will your body and injuries are more likely. Basically no matter how late you start the program, don't just jump in after the first 4 weeks. Your Core is the engine for every activity you perform, running, throwing, swimming, walking etc so you need to realise its importance.
Due to the Hybrid nature of the periodization you may be able to move into a refined Program when the season has started, but only with the 4 week prep done. And even at that your experience, technique and general capabilities will be important. The first 4 weeks are the foundation for the whole year.
In the next post i will go into the exercises i spoke about above and their function and values to a GAA player.
*The links are to a superb site www.exrx.net. This site is a wonderful tool for anyone to refer to while working on technique.
I also want to develop the program with the Athlete (You) in mind and to make it flexible for some to adjust and manipulate according to the time they have available for gym work at any stage of the year. For instance you will be able to put a 3 day program into 2 or a 2 day into 1. The System will be largely based on a Periodical based system and 2-3 day a week sessions in Off-Season & Pre-Season working towards 1 or 2 day maintenance and advancement throughout the season depending on games etc. The system will also be adjustable around Hurling & Football also. There is very little difference between them really, but there can be adjustments made where you can swap exercises just to be a bit more specific.
Don't get too worried about the term "Periodical Based Training". Its a progressive system for training and will become more obvious over time. The way i use Periodization has evolved and is not quite like the Block Periodical System i would have used in the past with designing programs for players, where there would have been a structure like this "Block Periodization Training". Ironically enough it came from the Eastern Bloc countries of the Soviet Union. This would be considered a linear system. In English you would have 4 x 4 week sections of Preparation Cycle, Max Strength Cycle, Max Power Cycle & on-going Maintainance Cycle. But that meant you would have no power work for 1st 2 months or real strength development for the 3rd month. This obviously leads to drop off in your capabilities in these areas.
Through study and experiment with other programs & systems i have found a Daily Undulating Program to be more efficient for development of strength. As well as this flexibility in Sets & Reps i would also incorporate Strength & Power work right from the word go and the early exercises are more clearly defined preparation exercises for more complex exercises, rather than a general Push-Pull Program (although than concept is still retained) that i would have prescribed for Preparation in the past. I have come to believe that the traditional preparatory cycle isn't of great functional benefit to a Hurler or Footballer. This means it is more or less a Hybrid Periodization method i will use for the Lift & Learn System.
Alot of "Fitness speak" there for someone who doesn't know anything about it, but don't worry, it will be pretty straight forward as we progress. The basic principal is, you start lifting weights/performing exercises real easy level and progress week to week and month to month.
For GAA games, as we spoke about it already, strength, power and speed are massively important to the game. The Core (not the muscles in your mid-section now) exercises that we will be aiming to get proficient at for Strength
and for Power
and the improvements in Speed come from a combination of these and of course improvements in sprint & acceleration techniques and just playing the game. *
It may seem quite daunting to someone who never did Strength Training before, but again, don't worry it will start off easy and progress in a manageable manner. Players who have done Strength Programs before should also take a break after the season and start with this method and system.
It must also be noted that these exercises are NOT THE ONLY WAY to gain strength & speed. And other trainers may have different methods and they will deliver results also. I just believe this is the best, most qualified and functional way to deliver results for an amateur footballer. These exercises when learned correctly can be the basis for Strength, Power & Conditioning for the rest of your adult life even when you have stopped playing sport. As well as there being other ways of gaining strength & power, there are many other exercises that we will use to get us to being proficient with the above exercises, like plyometrics & body-weight exercises.
The benefits of starting in plenty of time is the first 2-4 weeks will act as a form of restoration after the season just gone. You won't be doing all of the 7 exercises listed above, but we will work on your Core, Flexibility and general Strength to prepare you for more strenuous training.
Core Training is key in preparation, as many of the lifts like the Deadlift & Squat engage the Core in a big way. If your Core is weak your technique will suffer, if your technique suffers so will your body and injuries are more likely. Basically no matter how late you start the program, don't just jump in after the first 4 weeks. Your Core is the engine for every activity you perform, running, throwing, swimming, walking etc so you need to realise its importance.
Due to the Hybrid nature of the periodization you may be able to move into a refined Program when the season has started, but only with the 4 week prep done. And even at that your experience, technique and general capabilities will be important. The first 4 weeks are the foundation for the whole year.
In the next post i will go into the exercises i spoke about above and their function and values to a GAA player.
*The links are to a superb site www.exrx.net. This site is a wonderful tool for anyone to refer to while working on technique.
Sunday, 28 August 2011
Components of Football (The Physical side)
Today we're going to look at the different components of fitness that we use when playing Football and Hurling. For the purposes of this we keep the 2 sports together because they both use all the same systems, but to different degrees. IN other areas you might see slight changes between the 2 sports. I would say this will happen when we get to discuss more specific Strength Programs and Metabolic Conditioning. Some of this may bore some people, but it will all make sense in the end and will bring us back in the end to Strength, you need strength, of some sort or another, for everything when playing our games.
Here are the components of Physical Fitness;
But a GAA player has to have everything, so get used to it!!! Obviously this makes training difficult to plan and organise, but at alot of the training can be done at different times of the year and just maintained and much of it will be done by just playing the game, especially if you have a good coach who uses conditioned games well.
So lets have a look at when you use these components, to help you understand their importance in a real situation.
Aerobic Endurance
Speed Endurance
A explanation of sorts for training for Speed Endurance (ref.brianmac.com); Speed endurance is used to develop the co-ordination of muscle contraction. Repetition methods are used with a high number of sets, low number of repetitions per set and intensity greater than 85% with distances covered from 60% to 120% of racing distance.
Gaelic Football for the purposes of this last 60 minutes (2 halves of 30 minutes) at lets say Senior club level. In that time it has been calculated that Gaelic Footballers spend 43% of their time is spent in "High Intensity Activity" (ref.Alan Henry). For distance covered in a game this "HIA" accounts for 16% of the total distance covered. Compare this to Soccer which is at 8%. Its very rare i see Soccer teams at any level run very long runs at near max capacity, or have i seen programs that include that type of running. They train very hard, but smarter.
That means that Gaelic Footballers need twice the amount of High Intensity training than soccer players (not necessarily twice the training though. Yet many of the teams i have observed or been part of have Gaelic players doing some very High Intensity training, but not enough of the right training. Players come off the pitch after doing 6 x 3-400 meter runs @ full belt (95-100%) and they are absolute screwed. Yes it was intense, no doubt about it, but was it of benefit? Yes possibly it was to a very small degree, mentally i would argue it creates a mental toughness and possibly a team bond from the togetherness of the hard training, but is it worth that? NO is the very definitive answer from me, and many many other Field Sports Conditioners & Sports Scientists. The evidence is there for us, but just think about this, do you ever run full belt around a pitch for 3-400 meters? No i didn't think so. Now we'll get into it later but i'm sure some are thinking to themselves, i might not run around for that long, but i could be moving or involved in the play for that long, lets say 1-2 minutes. That is absolutely true, but its not all going to be running alone, some of it could be sprinting, tackling, jumping, kicking, punching (the ball i hope). Well that's where our metabolic conditioning might come in again down the road, or indeed the use of our small pitch conditioned games.
In summation Speed Endurance is a vital component of Gaelic Fitness, and a detailed and varied program must be implemented throughout both the pre-season and in-season. The volume and intensity may change, but its an all year round component.
Power
Power is the "functional application of both strength and speed and is the key component for most athletic performances" or described another way "the ability to exert maximum muscular contraction instantly in an explosive burst of movements. The two components of power are strength and speed" . High intensity work involved in Gaelic football such as jumping, and accelerating from a stationary position requires players to have adequate power.
Where does power come from? Well it comes from speed and strength (again!!!) as suggested above. Where else do you use power while playing Football & Hurling. Well if you are sprinting hard and go to change direction, we'll say to turn left in this case, you will generally (if technically proficient) plant your right foot into the ground and drop your left shoulder to turn. The push of the ground from your right foot needs power to send you in the change of direction. You use Power every time you sprint, or indeed in an attempt to break a tackle. Power is huge is Gaelic Football and Hurling.
Speed
Speed is the quickness of movement of a limb, whether this is the legs of a runner or the arm of the shot putter. Speed is an integral part of every sport and can be expressed as any one of, or combination of, the following: maximum speed, elastic strength (power) and speed endurance. Because Speed is so important we'll learn a little bit more about it (for the nerds here);
That last bit is important coaches. Its telling you, don't have sprint conditioning at the end of training!!!
Also important is this point, speed comes into play at lets say 30 M, whats happening before that? Well thats acceleration, and to have really good acceleration you need good technique. How many coaches have you had teach acceleration & technique? Not many i'd imagine, yet i have heard many of them say "its all about the first few yards lads". You won't find much argument here with that, but train for it!
"The need for speed" hey! There is no doubting speed is a hugely important component of Hurling and Football. You could argue its the most important and often the clear difference between levels of the game (from Inter-County down to Senior to Junior etc) is the speed of the game. The higher the level the faster you have to do things, generally at least. There are anomalies though when some teams are successful because of a couple of unusually gifted individuals or indeed a particularly physical team. But this will often be the case at an amateur level of any sport, this would be less prevalent in professional sport where in most cases speed is a given.
The thing about speed is this, everyone can get faster, everyone, with correct training. It was a commonly held perception that you either had "God given" speed or you didn't. Now some people have natural abilities to run and perform physical activities faster than others, of that there is no doubt. But Speed development is such a misunderstood training component by so many GAA coaches. You don't get faster by just doing sprints. Sprints are obviously a part of speed training, but i would suggest they are really the final part of the puzzle and as well as part of conditioning you for Football and Hurling, Sprints are a way of testing you . If you put in some good basic strength & technical work for sprinting the best way to see if you are getting faster is to test your speed in a sprinting situation with maybe 30M sprints, flying sprints and 60M sprints, depending on the goal.
Of course this only tests or trains you in the act of running. your ability to transfer the ball quickly to a team mate is another obvious "act of speed", this is skill based as well as an upper body movement. This could be trained possibly with a combination of Skills drills, conditioned games as well as Power Cleans and Russian Twists in the gym just as examples.
Training for changes in direction are paramount in Hurling & Football, as you very rarely run in straight lines, but for development and technical improvement off season i would suggest work just in straight lines off-season.
Here's an interesting point from Alan Heary to add to all this;
Agility
Agility really is changing the direction of your body through a collection of different physical attributes, which are;
Well the conclusion is that there are a lot of variables in Gaelic Football & Hurling, and these days to be successful you have to cover all the bases. We will in time break all of these down and go through different ways of approaching these components. There looks to be more to it though than actually is, but the ideal scenario for any team is to have a Football or Hurling Coach working with a Strength & Conditioning Coach to get the best out of the team. Many GAA coaches double up of course, and this can be successful, but its an awful lot of work for one man. Remember we haven't even touched on "Football" or "Hurling" coaching or training yet or have we gone year tactics. Of course that can be somewhat difficult for small clubs. I am acutely aware of the financial and logistical strains that small clubs acn have. But with some good planning and mutual appreciation all of the goals can be met. A Coach can get consultancy help from a S&C Coach, or there might be the possibility of help from students looking for work experience. Often you will find people within the club that nobody really knew about it. Widen the net and don't take on too much.
Over the next few months i will hopefully help you through designing a training plan and getting to work for next year. The big thing is, don't let starting your off-season work too long. You should really be starting in the gym by Oct 1st-14th. But if you are out of championship now i'd be looking at starting soon or maybe by middle of september.
A teams pre-season of preparatory Football & Conditioning should take 10 weeks at the very least in my opinion, probably starting January. By this time though you should be at least 2 months into your Strength Program. Its getting more and more important in Hurling & Football and teams shouldn't be left behind. That's why a combination of Football coach and Conditioning coach will make such a difference. Also i like to work on a Hard day/Easy or Off Day basis. If you leave the gym work till Dec/Jan/Feb you are going to have possibly 5-6 high volume sessions a week. That is too much, and will lead to injury due to lack of recovery time. Recovery is key, planning is key. Train Hard - Rest Hard. That is the motto. Believe me i know this is very important.
The days of taking 3-4 months off completely are gone, you are only asking for injuries and a real struggle in getting back fit. Remember this, aerobic capacity starts dwindling very fast after 14-21 days, strength dissipates after 8-10 days. And while we're on the strength subject, and this is especially for the Managers/Coaches/Trainers, don't organise Circuit training for 4-6 weeks and not touch it again for the year. You are actually doing more bad than good. Most of the circuits involve huge amounts of plyometrics - INJURY. Plyometrics have a massive part to play in Hurling & Football and strength & Speed development, but in blocks and high reps they are dangerous and counter-productive. You are better off forgetting about strength training altogether and doing extra football and skill work than those circuits.
One final thing for today, on the theme of taking massive amounts of time off in the off season, playing another sport at a high intensity level (lets say soccer with 2 trainings a week and a game) will do nothing for your Football or Hurling. You need off season to recover from knocks etc, build yourself up again. Get specific and be really good at one sport as opposed to average and tired at a few. This does not include 5-a-sides, basketball pick ups, squash or the like, which i would encourage as they are fun and once a week will help keep you sharpish and help with your short distance speed intervals. But expect yourself to do 4-5 sessions a week, they won't knock the crap out of you, but its exercise, its healthy and good for you and should be part of your life anyway. Don't be intimidated either by 4-5 sessions, some of these can be doubled up. Playing any decent level of Football & Hurling nowadays is a lifestyle choice, and a dam good one at that.
Soon we'll look at programs, strength training, speed development, club development etc. For now, if your still in championship, best of luck, if not rest up for another little while.
Here are the components of Physical Fitness;
Health Related Fitness
- Cardiovascular Endurance
- Muscular Endurance
- Muscular Strength
- Body Composition
- Flexibility
- Agility
- Balance
- Coordination
- Speed
- Power
- Reaction Time
But a GAA player has to have everything, so get used to it!!! Obviously this makes training difficult to plan and organise, but at alot of the training can be done at different times of the year and just maintained and much of it will be done by just playing the game, especially if you have a good coach who uses conditioned games well.
So lets have a look at when you use these components, to help you understand their importance in a real situation.
Aerobic Endurance
During aerobic (with oxygen) work, the body is working at a level that the demands for oxygen and fuel can be meet by the body's intake. A definition is "the heart's ability to deliver blood to working muscles and their ability to use it (e.g. running long distances)"
Basically from a GAA point of view Aerobic capacity is the ability to keep running/moving for 60 minutes, but the caveat for this is true aerobic running which would be more like below;
The reason its not entirely true is that we don't keep running for that long continuous at a steady pace and Football is interspersed with bursts of speed, strength, agility, power and any number of skill based components depending on the situation. Having said that you still need a high Aerobic capacity to help you perform all of these functions throughout the entire game. One simple reason (and there are many) is a high aerobic capacity helps keep your brain "fit", your brain is what tells you what to do when you are playing. If the brain is tired then your technique will suffer. This can lead to poor completion of simple passes, poor shooting and more importantly and worse for your team, poor decision making. I would rate these neurological reasons as important as any other physiological loses from poor Aerobic Endurance.Aerobic endurance can be sub-divided as follows:
- Short aerobic - 2 minutes to 8 minutes (lactic/aerobic)
- Medium aerobic - 8 minutes to 30 minutes (mainly aerobic)
- Long aerobic - 30 minutes + (aerobic)
A explanation of sorts for training for Speed Endurance (ref.brianmac.com); Speed endurance is used to develop the co-ordination of muscle contraction. Repetition methods are used with a high number of sets, low number of repetitions per set and intensity greater than 85% with distances covered from 60% to 120% of racing distance.
Gaelic Football for the purposes of this last 60 minutes (2 halves of 30 minutes) at lets say Senior club level. In that time it has been calculated that Gaelic Footballers spend 43% of their time is spent in "High Intensity Activity" (ref.Alan Henry). For distance covered in a game this "HIA" accounts for 16% of the total distance covered. Compare this to Soccer which is at 8%. Its very rare i see Soccer teams at any level run very long runs at near max capacity, or have i seen programs that include that type of running. They train very hard, but smarter.
That means that Gaelic Footballers need twice the amount of High Intensity training than soccer players (not necessarily twice the training though. Yet many of the teams i have observed or been part of have Gaelic players doing some very High Intensity training, but not enough of the right training. Players come off the pitch after doing 6 x 3-400 meter runs @ full belt (95-100%) and they are absolute screwed. Yes it was intense, no doubt about it, but was it of benefit? Yes possibly it was to a very small degree, mentally i would argue it creates a mental toughness and possibly a team bond from the togetherness of the hard training, but is it worth that? NO is the very definitive answer from me, and many many other Field Sports Conditioners & Sports Scientists. The evidence is there for us, but just think about this, do you ever run full belt around a pitch for 3-400 meters? No i didn't think so. Now we'll get into it later but i'm sure some are thinking to themselves, i might not run around for that long, but i could be moving or involved in the play for that long, lets say 1-2 minutes. That is absolutely true, but its not all going to be running alone, some of it could be sprinting, tackling, jumping, kicking, punching (the ball i hope). Well that's where our metabolic conditioning might come in again down the road, or indeed the use of our small pitch conditioned games.
In summation Speed Endurance is a vital component of Gaelic Fitness, and a detailed and varied program must be implemented throughout both the pre-season and in-season. The volume and intensity may change, but its an all year round component.
Power
Power is the "functional application of both strength and speed and is the key component for most athletic performances" or described another way "the ability to exert maximum muscular contraction instantly in an explosive burst of movements. The two components of power are strength and speed" . High intensity work involved in Gaelic football such as jumping, and accelerating from a stationary position requires players to have adequate power.
Where does power come from? Well it comes from speed and strength (again!!!) as suggested above. Where else do you use power while playing Football & Hurling. Well if you are sprinting hard and go to change direction, we'll say to turn left in this case, you will generally (if technically proficient) plant your right foot into the ground and drop your left shoulder to turn. The push of the ground from your right foot needs power to send you in the change of direction. You use Power every time you sprint, or indeed in an attempt to break a tackle. Power is huge is Gaelic Football and Hurling.
Speed
Speed is the quickness of movement of a limb, whether this is the legs of a runner or the arm of the shot putter. Speed is an integral part of every sport and can be expressed as any one of, or combination of, the following: maximum speed, elastic strength (power) and speed endurance. Because Speed is so important we'll learn a little bit more about it (for the nerds here);
"Energy for absolute speed is supplied by the anaerobic alactic pathway. The anaerobic (without oxygen) alactic (without lactate) energy system is best challenged as an athlete approaches top speed between 30 and 60 metres while running at 95% to 100% of maximum. This speed component of anaerobic metabolism lasts for approximately eight seconds and should be trained when no muscle fatigue is present (usually after 24 to 36 hours of rest)".
That last bit is important coaches. Its telling you, don't have sprint conditioning at the end of training!!!
Also important is this point, speed comes into play at lets say 30 M, whats happening before that? Well thats acceleration, and to have really good acceleration you need good technique. How many coaches have you had teach acceleration & technique? Not many i'd imagine, yet i have heard many of them say "its all about the first few yards lads". You won't find much argument here with that, but train for it!
"The need for speed" hey! There is no doubting speed is a hugely important component of Hurling and Football. You could argue its the most important and often the clear difference between levels of the game (from Inter-County down to Senior to Junior etc) is the speed of the game. The higher the level the faster you have to do things, generally at least. There are anomalies though when some teams are successful because of a couple of unusually gifted individuals or indeed a particularly physical team. But this will often be the case at an amateur level of any sport, this would be less prevalent in professional sport where in most cases speed is a given.
The thing about speed is this, everyone can get faster, everyone, with correct training. It was a commonly held perception that you either had "God given" speed or you didn't. Now some people have natural abilities to run and perform physical activities faster than others, of that there is no doubt. But Speed development is such a misunderstood training component by so many GAA coaches. You don't get faster by just doing sprints. Sprints are obviously a part of speed training, but i would suggest they are really the final part of the puzzle and as well as part of conditioning you for Football and Hurling, Sprints are a way of testing you . If you put in some good basic strength & technical work for sprinting the best way to see if you are getting faster is to test your speed in a sprinting situation with maybe 30M sprints, flying sprints and 60M sprints, depending on the goal.
Of course this only tests or trains you in the act of running. your ability to transfer the ball quickly to a team mate is another obvious "act of speed", this is skill based as well as an upper body movement. This could be trained possibly with a combination of Skills drills, conditioned games as well as Power Cleans and Russian Twists in the gym just as examples.
Training for changes in direction are paramount in Hurling & Football, as you very rarely run in straight lines, but for development and technical improvement off season i would suggest work just in straight lines off-season.
Here's an interesting point from Alan Heary to add to all this;
Another aspect of speed in Gaelic games is the requirement of moving at speed while in possession of the ball. This is referred to as possession speed. A study involving Australian Rules players found that the time required to complete a specific distance increased 4-5% when the player had possession of the ball (37). Interestingly, those players who recorded the fastest time without possession were not always the fastest when they were in possession of the ball.What does this tell us? It tells us we'll get more out of conditioned running training if there is a ball involved. Simple Stupid.
Agility
Agility really is changing the direction of your body through a collection of different physical attributes, which are;
- Balance
- The ability to maintain equilibrium when stationary or moving (i.e. not to fall over) through the coordinated actions of our sensory functions (eyes, ears and the proprioceptive organs in our joints)
- Static Balance - ability to retain the centre of mass above the base of support in a stationary position
- Dynamic Balance - ability to maintain balance with body movement
- Speed
- the ability to move all or part of the body quickly
- Strength
- the ability of a muscle or muscle group to overcome a resistance
- Co-ordination
- the ability to control the movement of the body in co-operation with the body's sensory functions e.g. catching a ball (ball, hand and eye co-ordination)
Well the conclusion is that there are a lot of variables in Gaelic Football & Hurling, and these days to be successful you have to cover all the bases. We will in time break all of these down and go through different ways of approaching these components. There looks to be more to it though than actually is, but the ideal scenario for any team is to have a Football or Hurling Coach working with a Strength & Conditioning Coach to get the best out of the team. Many GAA coaches double up of course, and this can be successful, but its an awful lot of work for one man. Remember we haven't even touched on "Football" or "Hurling" coaching or training yet or have we gone year tactics. Of course that can be somewhat difficult for small clubs. I am acutely aware of the financial and logistical strains that small clubs acn have. But with some good planning and mutual appreciation all of the goals can be met. A Coach can get consultancy help from a S&C Coach, or there might be the possibility of help from students looking for work experience. Often you will find people within the club that nobody really knew about it. Widen the net and don't take on too much.
Over the next few months i will hopefully help you through designing a training plan and getting to work for next year. The big thing is, don't let starting your off-season work too long. You should really be starting in the gym by Oct 1st-14th. But if you are out of championship now i'd be looking at starting soon or maybe by middle of september.
A teams pre-season of preparatory Football & Conditioning should take 10 weeks at the very least in my opinion, probably starting January. By this time though you should be at least 2 months into your Strength Program. Its getting more and more important in Hurling & Football and teams shouldn't be left behind. That's why a combination of Football coach and Conditioning coach will make such a difference. Also i like to work on a Hard day/Easy or Off Day basis. If you leave the gym work till Dec/Jan/Feb you are going to have possibly 5-6 high volume sessions a week. That is too much, and will lead to injury due to lack of recovery time. Recovery is key, planning is key. Train Hard - Rest Hard. That is the motto. Believe me i know this is very important.
The days of taking 3-4 months off completely are gone, you are only asking for injuries and a real struggle in getting back fit. Remember this, aerobic capacity starts dwindling very fast after 14-21 days, strength dissipates after 8-10 days. And while we're on the strength subject, and this is especially for the Managers/Coaches/Trainers, don't organise Circuit training for 4-6 weeks and not touch it again for the year. You are actually doing more bad than good. Most of the circuits involve huge amounts of plyometrics - INJURY. Plyometrics have a massive part to play in Hurling & Football and strength & Speed development, but in blocks and high reps they are dangerous and counter-productive. You are better off forgetting about strength training altogether and doing extra football and skill work than those circuits.
One final thing for today, on the theme of taking massive amounts of time off in the off season, playing another sport at a high intensity level (lets say soccer with 2 trainings a week and a game) will do nothing for your Football or Hurling. You need off season to recover from knocks etc, build yourself up again. Get specific and be really good at one sport as opposed to average and tired at a few. This does not include 5-a-sides, basketball pick ups, squash or the like, which i would encourage as they are fun and once a week will help keep you sharpish and help with your short distance speed intervals. But expect yourself to do 4-5 sessions a week, they won't knock the crap out of you, but its exercise, its healthy and good for you and should be part of your life anyway. Don't be intimidated either by 4-5 sessions, some of these can be doubled up. Playing any decent level of Football & Hurling nowadays is a lifestyle choice, and a dam good one at that.
Soon we'll look at programs, strength training, speed development, club development etc. For now, if your still in championship, best of luck, if not rest up for another little while.
Saturday, 27 August 2011
A Couple of Basic Myths debunked & Ideas to Ponder
Lets start slowly, we are not trying to re-invent the wheel or anything, but we may have to convince a few people first. Over the next few posts i will talk about Strength Training and its role in Gaelic Sports and why i believe its very important, not just to improve your performance but also in helping avoid injury.
But first, lets dump a few of the old myths that have held back GAA players and coaches for a long time.
Myth #1:Weight Lifting is Bad For Your Joints. Weight lifting is less stressful on your joints than running: it involves controlled, non-impact movements. Weight lifting - and especially strength training - will increase the health of your joints by strengthening the muscles & ligaments that hold them together
Weight Training Exercises like the Squat when done properly can actually prevent ACL damage in a lot of young GAA players. A young star player going up against Senior players can be a disaster if the player is not physically ready. Research shows that the majority of ACL injuries happen before 23. This is even more important for young women (particularly Soccer players) who are far more likely to suffer this awful injury. Start Strength training early to help prevent this injury.
Myth #2: Weight Lifting Stunts Growth. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Lou Ferrigno, Dave Draper, Shaquille O’Neal, David Robinson, Karl Malone, Michael Vick, etc. They all started lifting weights in their early teens and are +6′ /1m82 tall. The only way weight lifting can stunt your growth is if you damage your growth plate by letting the bar fall on you. But if you use proper technique, you'll be safer than with Rugby or Soccer where collisions are common.
Supervise youth lifting weights. Enforce proper technique and discourage ego. Note that some believe weight lifting can actually stimulate growth because it increases bone mineralization.
Myth #3: Weight Lifting Decreases Flexibility. One of the realizations people who get into weight lifting have is how inflexible they are. Years of sedentary lifestyle may have tighten your hips, preventing you to Squat correctly.
Weight lifting will make you regain your flexibility and maintain it. Especially the Squat will give your hip muscles a full stretch. But increasing your muscle mass or strength won't reduce your flexibility at all.
and the big one.....
Myth #4: Weight Lifting Makes You Slow. Strong muscles contract faster and generate more power. That's why professional athletes like Shaquille O'Neil or Tiger Woods do weight lifting: strength training makes you faster.
Speed is all about generating power, the stronger your muscles are the faster they will recruit the power to make you run or perform any movement. We'll get into it more in the future, but its all about firing up the Nervous system.
Check out this from the American National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM)
Some of those Myths came from www.stronglifts.com and i also added some of my own points. There are many other myths, but for now i think they are the most pertinent to Gaelic Sports. Over the next few weeks we will discuss programs, volume of training (how many days a week you train) etc. But first i want to make guys comfortable about the thoughts of off season training, which may include strength training.
Now a few things to ponder or questions to answer;
Why are Donegal such a better football team this year?
Why did Cork not build on last years win and play so poorly overall?
And finally, how committed are you to becoming a better player/athlete?
Its coming to end of season for many players, its might be time to look back and honestly evaluate how you did. And what you might be able to do in the off-season to improve for next year?
Are you going to just sit on your ass? Are you going to half ass play another sport? Or are you going to take a short break, recharge, evaluate, be honest, build hunger and come back stronger? Are you going to let age or maybe a not so successful season put you down or tempt you to pack it in? Think long and hard about everything, don't be afraid to look at what the winners are doing, are you far away? If not drive on and add 10%. If you are miles away drive on and give even more. You'll be retired long enough.
Don't give up for spurious reasons, give yourself a chance and you'd be amazed what you can achieve with a few small adjustments. Maybe something new will help you to be better, like spending one night a week on the track learning better running technique, or maybe yoga will help you gain that flexibility to allow you to train harder and longer or heading to the gym for the first time even at 35 and getting stronger. There are ways around or over all those hurdles that maybe putting doubts in your mind.
Keep going, you'll get endless hours of happiness out of it. I'll be back about the questions posed earlier in a few posts.
But first, lets dump a few of the old myths that have held back GAA players and coaches for a long time.
Myth #1:Weight Lifting is Bad For Your Joints. Weight lifting is less stressful on your joints than running: it involves controlled, non-impact movements. Weight lifting - and especially strength training - will increase the health of your joints by strengthening the muscles & ligaments that hold them together
Weight Training Exercises like the Squat when done properly can actually prevent ACL damage in a lot of young GAA players. A young star player going up against Senior players can be a disaster if the player is not physically ready. Research shows that the majority of ACL injuries happen before 23. This is even more important for young women (particularly Soccer players) who are far more likely to suffer this awful injury. Start Strength training early to help prevent this injury.
Myth #2: Weight Lifting Stunts Growth. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Lou Ferrigno, Dave Draper, Shaquille O’Neal, David Robinson, Karl Malone, Michael Vick, etc. They all started lifting weights in their early teens and are +6′ /1m82 tall. The only way weight lifting can stunt your growth is if you damage your growth plate by letting the bar fall on you. But if you use proper technique, you'll be safer than with Rugby or Soccer where collisions are common.
Supervise youth lifting weights. Enforce proper technique and discourage ego. Note that some believe weight lifting can actually stimulate growth because it increases bone mineralization.
Myth #3: Weight Lifting Decreases Flexibility. One of the realizations people who get into weight lifting have is how inflexible they are. Years of sedentary lifestyle may have tighten your hips, preventing you to Squat correctly.
Weight lifting will make you regain your flexibility and maintain it. Especially the Squat will give your hip muscles a full stretch. But increasing your muscle mass or strength won't reduce your flexibility at all.
and the big one.....
Myth #4: Weight Lifting Makes You Slow. Strong muscles contract faster and generate more power. That's why professional athletes like Shaquille O'Neil or Tiger Woods do weight lifting: strength training makes you faster.
Speed is all about generating power, the stronger your muscles are the faster they will recruit the power to make you run or perform any movement. We'll get into it more in the future, but its all about firing up the Nervous system.
Check out this from the American National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM)
Some of those Myths came from www.stronglifts.com and i also added some of my own points. There are many other myths, but for now i think they are the most pertinent to Gaelic Sports. Over the next few weeks we will discuss programs, volume of training (how many days a week you train) etc. But first i want to make guys comfortable about the thoughts of off season training, which may include strength training.
Now a few things to ponder or questions to answer;
Why are Donegal such a better football team this year?
Why did Cork not build on last years win and play so poorly overall?
And finally, how committed are you to becoming a better player/athlete?
Its coming to end of season for many players, its might be time to look back and honestly evaluate how you did. And what you might be able to do in the off-season to improve for next year?
Are you going to just sit on your ass? Are you going to half ass play another sport? Or are you going to take a short break, recharge, evaluate, be honest, build hunger and come back stronger? Are you going to let age or maybe a not so successful season put you down or tempt you to pack it in? Think long and hard about everything, don't be afraid to look at what the winners are doing, are you far away? If not drive on and add 10%. If you are miles away drive on and give even more. You'll be retired long enough.
Don't give up for spurious reasons, give yourself a chance and you'd be amazed what you can achieve with a few small adjustments. Maybe something new will help you to be better, like spending one night a week on the track learning better running technique, or maybe yoga will help you gain that flexibility to allow you to train harder and longer or heading to the gym for the first time even at 35 and getting stronger. There are ways around or over all those hurdles that maybe putting doubts in your mind.
Keep going, you'll get endless hours of happiness out of it. I'll be back about the questions posed earlier in a few posts.
An Introduction
Hi there to everyone, those who know me and those who don’t. This is my first blog post of what I would hope will be many. The purpose of the blog is to try and help ordinary Gaelic Footballers and Hurlers (and others) to learn more about physical conditioning. I will be particularly focusing on practical ways of getting strong, flexible and faster without spending a fortune and without spending hours traipsing through the Internet looking for advice and/or programs and even longer time in the gym or out on the roads. Many of the websites out there, while impressive and full of info, are actually too full and intimidating for an ordinary bloke or lady to read through and understand. What happens is many dip in and out of programs without actually knowing what they are doing, what their goal was or is and just jumping from one to another risking poor performance or worse injury. There are certain things a Footballer can take from MMA or Powerlifting Weight Training or from a Sprinters Track Program, but seeing as Gaelic Football is such a diversely challenging sport physically we probably need to take bits and pieces from them all, while keeping our own basic fundamentals very much to the fore front of our minds.
As I say in my bio I don’t espouse myself to be an expert, I am someone with certain qualifications, massive passion and tremendous drive to be a better coach, a better physical trainer and to be a healthier and fitter person myself. I don’t work with elite athletes day in day out, and to be honest I may not be as much use to you guys if i did as most of the people I am hoping to reach are amateur Gaelic Footballers, Hurlers, Boxers, Soccer & Rugby Players. But i have seen up close how pro's train and how some of it is so easily transfer without a lot of bother. Maybe some day I will work with elite athletes, but for now I’m just trying to learn from them and their coaches and transfer that knowledge as best I can to you guys while using my own extensive experience with working with Amateur sportspeople in Ireland, but also in USA & Australia. I want to help with programs and program design that will fit into peoples lives, not the other way around. Some of the training promoted on some sites would have guys doing absolutely ridiculous training far too often. You have to train hard, but also train smart and specifically.
I really want to encourage discussion and questioning. I may not have all the answers, but I’ll try and get to the bottom of any issues we may struggle with.
It must be realized that any Strength & Conditioning Coach needs to spend time with the Athletes and I won’t be giving out any programs to people individually without meeting them and going through the normal testing procedures. I live in Australia right now so for the guys in Ireland ye’ll have to wait. But that doesn’t mean you can’t learn from this site, and challenge people who tell you silly things like “weights slow you down”, “all you need is a football for football training” or make statements like “he’d be better off out kicking the ball around than be in a gym”. There is so much crap associated with the attitude to S&C in GAA its hard to believe it still exists, but it does against all published Sports Science. I would hope this site could also help coaches or prospective coaches and help them learn a bit more, but also help plan their seasons and sessions. I will also be looking in time at technical Football work as well as the psychological side to the game.
One final thing, I am constantly testing Sports Science and Exercise myself, there isn’t an exercise or a program you’ll see go up here that I haven’t done and evaluated myself and/or with any athletes I work with. As I say I have studied my chosen subjects and I continue to study, I also read extensively both through book and online and try to keep the good stuff and dump the bull shit!
I really want to encourage discussion and provide information. For too long I kept my mouth shut in relation to training and everything that goes with it. Ask the simple obvious questions, they need to be asked. I remember asking an old coach (debatable name for him) “Why are we running 6 sets of full belt (lets say 85-90% MHR) 6 Min runs around in a circle when the average passage of play in football is less than one minute and Football is a multi sprint sport?”. The answer “Because we have to be fitter than everyone else” (we clearly didn’t have enough skill was the view I suppose). No science there, no football there either. It wasn’t that the reason wasn’t good enough, it was a decent reason to train hard, but there was a better way, and I knew it. Now I would still have people run medium-long distance to improve aerobic conditioning and some of these runs would be longer than 6 minutes, but they would be at a lower pace and probably only 2-3 sessions a month. These were runs we did almost every night we trained!!! You can see where I’m going with it.
I wasn’t impressed with the answer, but got on with it, and sure enough got injured. I had put my head down and worked hard and it backfired, i want others to avoid this situation. Ask questions, and ask for reasons. I don’t mind changing my mind if someone can give me a good enough reason to do so.
Talk again soon.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)