Create A Better Off-Skates Training Plan
Every good book and every good movie has a character that is moved by some driving force. The thing that they fall back on in times of uncertainty and doubt. It might be an innate characteristic they have or something that they desire.
- Gollum is driven by his desire for the ring.
- Dr. Samuel Beckett is driven by his desire to get home (and put right what once went wrong).
- That moaning, wet child from ‘The Ring’ is driven to murder everyone that sees her by scaring the bejesus out of them. And other deeper things. Maybe.
To be honest, a lot of terrible books and movies have the same thing.
And while driving forces are frequently hidden and only to be revealed at climatic moments when it moves the plot forward, such is not the case with your training.
The driving force for any athlete during their season is THE SPORT.
Simple, right?
That really means that when you’re in the middle of your competitive season, the primary focus of your training should be on building improvement on the field of battle. In regards to roller derby, this is most easily done through practice: footwork, individual and team drills, game scenarios, scrimmages, and playing.
But your body also takes a beating during all this sport-specific work and you need to maintain strength, mobility, flexibility, and stamina in order to keep getting better.
THAT’S WHERE YOUR TRAINING FITS IN DURING THE SEASON.
Your training should enhance your athletic performance on the track, not be the sole source of creating it.
Your off-skates work should be short and snappy, not long and grinding. Follow these four steps to build a program that will allow you to kill it on the track without being killed during your training.
PRONG ONE: Schedule prehab and recovery.
This is a legitimate part of your training; it is one of the biggest — nay, THE BIGGEST — thing that gets pushed to the side when time runs out. But you need to do it. Treat it like any other part of your training and set aside time for it.
There should literally be days on your schedule where the word REST is written in big red letters. If you need to work on mobility or flexibility, write down specifically HOW you’ll work on it. Yoga? Foam rolling? MWOD? What?
Prehab is a catch-all term for things the keep your joints and muscles functioning properly. With prehab, your goal is to run your body through ranges of motion and GENTLY work on any sticking points or pain. This is a great time to get in touch with the weird quirks your body has and teach yourself to notice problems before they become to big.
Rest is rest. Just rest. It’s part of the program.
PRONG TWO: Prioritize big, compound movements.
The goal with your gym training during the season is to make it quick but effective. Exercises and lifts where you’re moving more joints (and recruiting more muscle) are going to get you more bang for your buck.
Think squats, deadlifts, presses, and rows. You can even check out a few specific — and effective — exercises for derby RIGHT HERE.
Or my personal favorite: THE HIP THRUST. Make lots of eye contact with everyone. Make it extra sexy by doing it on one leg.
*hubba hubba*
PRONG THREE: Glamor* muscles. If you must.
If you’re hitting the big, compound movements then you don’t need to waste time on your biceps, triceps, or calves.
BUT…if you’re desperate to sell tickets to the gun show, then do those after the big stuff. You can cut them out when you run out of time and still know that you got a kickass training day in.
*Glamour for my fancy, non-US friends.
PRONG FOUR: Cardio.
Full disclosure for this prong, I’m a notorious cardio hater.
Roller derby athletes, by and large, are drawn to a specific type of cardio: the high-intensity kind. Which makes sense. Training your cardio in short burst intervals mimics the cardiovascular demands of the sport.
The thing skaters often miss is that too much high-intensity training impacts athletic performance. Poorly.
Depending on the type and level of your practices, you’re are already getting in a fair amount of high-intensity, interval cardio training. IF you want to add to that, do it at the end of your full training session. And only 1 or 2 times per week. And only if you specifically struggle with that area OR have a high demand position.
Err on the side of caution with all things training.
Here’s the real key to training in-season: Avoid long, grinding training sessions. Your time in the gym needs to be short and snappy so you can still perform your best on the track.
When in doubt, start with fewer sessions, shorter times, less weight, then build up if your body responds well.
And, like all good heroes (and villains), keep your driving force in mind when you start to falter.
NEED A LITTLE HELP?
Join the Iron Octopus Fitness roster.
A customized training program. Nutritional support. A nearly nagging level of accountability. And the knowledge that you’re doing exactly what you need to be doing to get where you want to go.
Do you secretly yearn to be in the main jammer rotation next season? Let’s do it. Are crossovers the bane of your existence? No problem. Want to free up some brain space from worrying about your training? That’s what my brain is for.
Wherever you need to go, I can take you there. (And you can take me ANYWHERE because I’m online.)
If you’re ready to level up your game, then let’s chat.
