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.
Thanks for sharing this article about football strength training programs. One of the most important aspects of a football player’s overall training is strength and conditioning training for football.
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