Watching the Penguins Game and Thinking About Speed in Hockey
As a huge Pittsburgh Penguins fan I was watching game 2 of their series against the Montreal Canadiens tonight. First of all, I forgot how stressful these games can be. My heart was racing basically the entire third period! Thankfully they pulled out the win 3–1 to tie the series at 1 game a piece of the best of 5 series.
Anyway, watching hockey again got me thinking about the relevance of speed in the game. Obviously running speed isn’t a factor for them during games or practices but speed training should be an integral part of their strength and conditioning program. Especially in regards to building strength. The program should focus on effective strength building in the muscles that are required for effective skating. The enhanced strength in these muscles will increase explosiveness in the skating abilities of hockey players.
I haven’t had the opportunity to work with a hockey player yet but I put myself in a situation where I had to come up with a plan for one. It was an interesting exercise and got me thinking. Hockey is a unique sport in which you can do both on and off ice training to increase speed. Off-ice training can focus on strength building and plyometric work, while on-ice can focus on increasing the skating capabilities and muscle endurance specific to hockey.
The plan can be adjusted for an off-season program but can also easily apply to an in season one as well. As players will want to keep up their strength throughout the season they will need to complement their on ice practice and games with off-ice workouts to keep their strength throughout the season. With the regular season being 82 games long and a potential post season as well it is vital to be able to perform off ice work throughout the season or they will lose their edge.
Speed is trained through explosive movements and therefore take a toll on the body and should only be performed when FULLY recovered. Here are 5 tips when training for speed:
- Perform speed training at the beginning of workouts
- Use a 1:4 work to rest ratio throughout the workout
- Perform all exercises at 90% or more velocity
- When using resistance, don’t allow more than a 10% decrease in velocity
- Incorporate both linear and lateral movements
Incorporating these tips into a workout regimen for hockey players can give them the competitive advantage when taking the ice. Increased speed in hockey forces pressure on the defense, can cause errors in judgement leading to turnovers and penalties. Therefore, it is imperative to work on your speed development and have it incorporated into a strength and conditioning program.
A good start would be grabbing a free copy of my 13-week bodyweight speed development system here. I put it together for athletes of all sports to increase their speed and game day performance. It will also make you stronger and more mechanically sound. It can be a great complement to an on-ice training program either before the season starts or in season as well.
Until tomorrow,
David Banko
david@elitemilehighfitness.com
