Lethbridge Hockey Magazine

by Trevor Hardy
HARD (High-Intensity All Round Development)

It’s the end of the season and you’re in the playoffs.
You worked hard in the off-season and you showed up for camp in the best shape of your life (If you didn’t, - you should have.  If you don’t think you should have, - you’re probably not in the playoffs).

You practiced hard all year and you played through adversity, injuries, bad refs, homework and life.  You’re taking all the great things you learned during the regular season and you’re bringing the best of them with you into the playoffs.  And you’re out of shape.

Here’s what you can do right now:

1.  Eliminate nutritional toxins.  Apologies to the friendly arena concession staff members and the hard-working local fast-food providers, but that means you’re not going to be eating almost anything that they serve.  Ever.

2.  Lift weights.  That’s right.  When you have more than a day between games, an intelligent high-intensity strength session will healthfully boost your testosterone levels and assuming your not deathly-ill already, super-charge your immune system for days at a time.

3.  Get some good quality sleep. Maybe, but it is one of the most anabolic-enhancing things you can do for your body and it is one of the most important factors in your physical recovery. Shoot for 9 hours a night and try to get two hours in before midnight (meaning you should go to bed before 10 pm!).

4.  Don’t do it again.  Be in the best shape of your life before next year’s playoffs and get in even better shape before the next, next year’s playoffs.  And so on.

5.   Never listen to anyone who says you can’t build muscle during the hockey season.  I’ve heard people say that a lot.

I’ve also worked with an NHL-drafted WHL player who built 15 pounds of solid muscle during a season that included a long playoff run.

Next hockey season, begin training smart and training hard through the whole season.  Your season will probably be longer because of it. It will definitely be better because of it.  Your hockey career will be longer and much better.

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