As an athlete you may “know” the importance of putting in that extra work in the off-season, but you may still not be doing enough to make an impact on your sporting performance for the next team trials or upcoming season. So here are three reasons that might help get you motivated to put in the work NOW!!
1. During the off-season we have less team practice and game days
As an athlete YOUR sport performance is YOUR #1 priority. Therefore we are putting in extra hours in the gym/on the field, more hours into our individual skills and maximal effort into our games. This takes a huge toll on our bodies and therefore our strength training takes a bit of a “back seat”. Strength training still needs to be there for ALL athletes, however during the in-season it becomes VERY HARD to increase strength, power and speed. So then comes along the ‘Off-season’. A time where we can shift a little more of our focus towards time in the gym to increase muscle, improve strength/power, improve speed and reduce our risk of injury leading into the next season. The hours that you were on the field for practice and game days can now be put towards a bit more time in the gym for future rewards
- More control over recovery methods to really improve our results
If you didn’t already know….recovery is your biggest tool for increasing performance. Our hydration, eating, mental de-loading, yoga/mobility sessions and especially sleep are all things that we can better implement and refine during the off-season. Especially when it comes to our younger generation of athletes during the holidays, where they can get better quality and longer duration sleep. On top of this they will be able to focus more on their nutrition and hydration as they don’t have rigorous time commitments with school. So with the added ability to recover more efficiently, this means we are able to throw more time into our training, especially our strength work.
“Your recovery will determine how well your body adapts to stress and ultimately determine your results.”
- This will be the ONLY phase of the year that time in the gym can be a #1 priority
Coaches don’t care about how much you “Back Squat” or how much you “Bench Press”! Coaches care about a result. The aim is to win. They need to get the best performance out of their athletes. This is an obvious part of sport, BUT what we must understand is that if you want to improve your PHYSICAL capabilities on the field to give yourself a better chance to perform, get more game time, win more plays and better showcase your talents, then the off-season time in the gym needs to be #1 priority.
Author Coach Cal – Head S&C Coach for Athlete Development Program