Having a great performance over the entire season is good for every hockey athlete, as it all comes to the fact of them having the right amount of training and resting time after the season has already ended.
In order to assure hockey players a proper level of performance within the team, it’s crucial to follow some of these tips we’ll share.
Fix Posture and Balance
Hockey players tend to end the season with several postural imbalances and muscular problems, as the sport is extremely demanding for the body in all its competitive levels. Tight hip flexors and weak muscles on glutes and legs are the main reason for these problems.
In order to fix them, it’s important to reinforce mobility throughout the entire body by performing unilateral training to gain strength and balance at the same time.
Do Strength Training
Gaining strength while focusing on technique, instead of just maxing out in every set, is vital for hockey players. Train strength by doing circuits and include exercises such as squats (both one-legged and regular), deadlifts, chin-ups, push-ups, and lunges with high resistance and lower reps per set to gain strength and build more muscle during summer.
Learning to lift heavy weights the correct way is mandatory to boost both training and results to new heights.
Get Explosive
Playing hockey demands to be able to be fast and explosive on the ice pitch. Practicing and developing acceleration and deceleration moves like jumping, weightlifting, and sprinting, will only make athletes’ performance improve if done with high-intensity low-rep training circuits.
Forget the Ice
When the season is over, athletes need to stay off the ice to regain mental and physical health after spending countless hours in an uncomfortable hunched and half-squat-like position on the pitch.
In order to relax, most professional hockey players spend their time doing other activities such as golfing, fishing, swimming or playing tennis.
Getting enough time to be able to relax, regain some strength, and build some muscle while fixing minor injuries will help hockey players start the new season clear-headed, faster, and motivated to make their performance on the ice pitch their number one priority.