Definitely did not get a room with a view 🙂
I wrote this post on the plane, but there was no wifi connection, so I am sending it out this morning (the dark picture is a view out our hotel window this morning)…
I am writing this from the plane on our way to Vegas for the National Strength and Conditioning Association conference. There is no wifi on this plane, so I will have to post your off-ice hockey training exercise of the week it a little later. This week I have really nice agility drill that is primarily for skaters, but you can still do it if you are goalie (we won’t tell, will we?). More about that in a second.
Heading to a conference for me is like heading to a hockey camp for you. Even if you have been do dozens of hockey camps before, you always pick up one or two new ideas or different ways of doing things that can make a big difference.
It is also great to meet up with other strength and conditioning coaches who are passionate about their craft, passionate about their profession. You probably know this already that there are a lot of ‘paint by numbers’ fitness trainers out there, but there are also many true artists, there will be a lot of them at this conference.
I will let you know what I learn along the way, follow me on on Twitter @goalietraining or on Facebook (www.facebook.com/GoalieTrainingPro) for up to the minute posts. I am not a big ‘tweeter’ so I don’t think you will be glued to your phone 🙂
Exercise of the Week: D-Man Agility Drill For Hockey Players
Just in case you are not seeing the video, here is the link – http://youtu.be/kBorNJlN_pc
Key points for this off-ice agility drill:
- Stay low in your legs and keep your chest up. This gives you more power from your legs and reinforces the habit of keeping your head up when you are on the ice
- Remember what you are trying to train – stamina or speed? If you are trying to train speed set the cones closer together (3 meters), keep your rep to 6-8 seconds with 30-60 seconds of rest. Do 3-4 sets of 2 reps in each direction.
- If you are targeting stamina then make the cones a little farther apart (5 meters or so), which is how I typically use this drill, then go for 15-30 seconds with 30-60 seconds of rest between each rep. Do 3-4 sets of 2-3 reps in each direction.
- Make sure you have good footing where ever you use this drill – if it is in the grass, then wearing a pair of cleats can keep your feet from slipping out under you (and they will if you are just in your running shoes, so be careful).
- Start slowly until you have the pattern down and then you can pick up the speed.
- Keep your feet moving, try not to hesitate or take extra, wasted steps when changing direction.
