How to adapt your gym program for “In-season” - Top 3 Tips
There is a common misconception that an athlete’s gym program should completely halt as games start. Athletes usually worry about pulling up sore for games and hence think stopping the gym is the answer to staying “fresh”. But what if we told you there was a way to alter your gym program so you can keep training AND playing at your best?
To maintain the athletic qualities you have built over the preseason, it’s important to maintain a consistent load in the gym and on the ground throughout the season. There is a common misconception that having a day or week off gym or sport training for “recovery” purposes is advantageous to your training, however the drop in load could actually result in a higher risk of soreness and injury when you happen to resume training. Now that we have cleared that up, let us tell you how we can change up that gym program ready for in-season so you can keep grinding all year long!
Read our TOP 3 TIPS below:
Tip 1: Reduce Range of Motion
Range of motion or ROM for short is the total distance you move during an exercise from the start to the end of the rep. The greater the ROM (the “deeper”) you get in a movement, the more your muscles lengthen. The lengthening of muscle is called the eccentric phase. Movement that has a longer and/or larger eccentric phase increases the potential of muscle damage and leads to greater residual fatigue, hence causing players to potentially come into games sore.
The resolution? Reduce ROM. So how can you practically change this in your training? With a squat for example, the adjustment would be to change this to a box squat. This will reduce the length of the eccentric portion, essentially reducing the potential for muscle damage and residual fatigue, making you less sore the days following training. Additionally, the shorter range also gives you the ability to increase load on the bar!
Tip 2: Reduce the Volume of Your Training
The total volume load - accumulation of reps, sets and load lifted from the session will also play a factor in muscle damage and soreness. Somewhat reducing these factors will result in less residual fatigue. We find greater benefit in reducing the reps within each set before resorting to reducing the sets. During pre-season, a squat may be prescribed for 4 sets of 6 reps. In-season, this might move to 3 sets of 3 reps for example.
Tip 3: Schedule Your Gym Sessions Further Away from Game Day
Consider when you are currently scheduling your gym sessions - do they fall close to game day?
The scheduling of your gym sessions is the most important factor to consider when planning your in-season program. It is crucial to leave a reasonable rest period both before and after games. In the lead up to game day, it is important to come in with as little soreness as possible and post-game, allowing your body sufficient time to recover is vital. As a general rule, you should allow at least 48 hours before any heavy lifting. Our advice is to try and cover off gym sessions as early as possible in the week.
Want to unlock your athletic potential? Learn about our Athlete Performance Program here.
