Today I will explain the third of the biggest problems I saw with the varsity women’s hockey program I recently reviewed.
BIG PROBLEM #3: The program is just TOO DARN COMPLICATED!
You shouldn’t have to be Einstein in order to understand and use your summer training program.
Two critical features of a proper off-season training program are that they should be:
1) Easy to understand
It doesn’t matter how revolutionary the program is if players, parents and coaches can’t figure out how to use it! A properly designed program should clearly explain ‘what’ exercises you are doing, explain ‘why‘ you are doing them and show you exactly ‘how’ to do them safely and effectively. This university program was so complicated that I could barely understand it - and this is what I do everyday!
2) Easy to Use
Young female hockey players should NOT be spending hours and hours cooped up in a training facility this summer. There is a misconception that you have to go to the latest training facility with all the fancy expensive equipment in order to train effectively during the off-season. THIS IS SIMPLY NOT TRUE!
Players can get a safe and effective workout in the comfort of their own home, in the park or at the cottage if they are using a properly designed program. The fundamental aspects of athleticism (speed, strength, coordination, conditioning and flexibility) can all be trained WITHOUT ANY GYM OR EQUIPMENT.
In fact, they are BEST TRAINED WITHOUT ANY EQUIPMENT!
All young players must first establish a solid foundation of athleticism before any fancy training programs and facilities are going to do them any good. For example, when I spoke to the world’s foremost expert on skating treadmills, Dr. Kelly Lockwood, she told me that players will only receive the maximum benefit from using the treadmill training if they have already got a foundation of strength, stability, speed and conditioning in place. Without those elements in place, more sophisticated training methods will be ineffective.
I can almost guarantee you that the extremely complicated off-season training plan I reviewed for this varsity women’s team will cause nothing more than fatigue, frustration and injury to the young female players using the program, instead of increasing their performance and confidence.
That is if they can understand how to do the program in the first place!
In my next few entries, I will walk you through exactly what a proper off-season off-ice training program for young female hockey players SHOULD LOOK LIKE.
Until next time,
Kim
