By Ken Nowatski, CSCS, Orthopedic and Sports Enhancement Center
After a long day attending school, a two-hour practice, impending homework and potential tests the next day, it is hard to “squeeze in” time for a weight training or sports performance workout. However, for an athlete who has spent their entire off-season training to prepare for their upcoming season, it is vital that they carve out some time to keep and improve their hard-earned strength, speed, and performance gains. The question remains: How do you find time for these workouts?
When an athlete is in-season there are more demands on the body than an off-season program. Many of the current spring sports require a large emphasis on strength and speed. During the off-season, when there is less stress placed on the body due to ample recovery time, athletes should focus on certain physical components such as volume, intensity, and type of exercise. With spring sports in full swing, it becomes the strength and conditioning coaches job to put together a program that can be followed during the season.
Once the season is under way the athlete will not be able to continue the same training philosophy they have been using during the off-season due to insufficient time and the potential for metabolic fatigue. So what should the focus shift to in-season?
The volume, intensity, and type of exercises will play a big role in the setup for a successful in-season program. With the demands of practice and games already being high, we need to bring the volume of the strength training down, while keeping the intensity high. This ensures that both the metabolic load and time spent training are at optimal levels.
“Intensity” refers to the amount of weight being lifted as compared to the “volume” — number of times you lift it. The higher the intensity, the more overload it puts on the body. Research has shown that decreasing the volume (total number of sets) of the workout and increasing the intensity (load/weight lifted) helps promote more positive physiological changes with less stress on the body. Many athletes think that in order to continue resistance-training in-season, one should perform with loads that allow for a lot of repetitions at a lower load/weight to ensure they stay healthy. While this may be a strategy to reduce stress on the body, it is not an environment for continued gains or even maintaining one’s strength and performance. Essentially, this is an environment where the athlete will likely lose strength as the season progresses.
The chart on the next page is an example of a workout an athlete could potentially use in the last phase of his or her off-season plan compared to a workout to transition to in-season. This plan incorporates exercises such as hang cleans, dumbbell rotational lunge, dumbbell core rows, dumbbell “Y” raise, and core/mobility work.
There are many ways to incorporate in-season training. These are some simple guidelines to take into consideration when creating an in-season strength program. Research has shown that following these guidelines will help maintain all of the strength gains the athlete has made during the off-season. Remembering to keep the athletes strong and fresh is key to helping the athlete perform to the best of their abilities.
Ken Nowatski is assistant director of Sports Performance at the Orthopedic & Sports Enhancement Center. For more information on the programs available you may call 309-663-9300 or visit them online at www.sportsenhancement.net. They are located at 2406 East Empire in Bloomington. Personal training for all ages is offered in addition to the sports acceleration programs for athletes of all levels.
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