Training NFL players in the off-season happens in a very small window of time usually shared allotted time for rest and recovery. Before transitioning into OTAs, there are a great deal of individual issues that coaches must take into account.
Pat Beith, co-founder of Athletes Acceleration has been on the forefront of speed development for over a decade. In this article, Beith's colleague, Andy McCloy does a marvelous job breaking down which five factors he felt were important for training athletes (not just NFL) in the off-season. Here's an excerpt:
Off-Season Training: Top 5 Most Impactful Strategies
by Andy McCloy
This was the 5th off-season in a row I have had the fortune of getting to work with a group of NFL athletes. In this article you will learn the top 5 things I feel had the most impact this off -season. If you have worked with NFL athletes in the off-season you know it is rare to get them for a significant period of time.
The NFL Off -Season is the time for athletes to rest up, get healthy, and then start preparing for the upcoming season. I think it’s always important to keep in mind the physical and psychological demands of the previous season. Many times guys show up still dealing with nagging injuries, or wanting to improve some quality their team wants them to address. If you have 3 months to accomplish this the job is a lot easier. So with all that being said below is the top 5 things I feel made the most difference this off season!
#1 Anatomical Adaption
Tudor Bompa was the first person I heard use the term “Anatomical Adaption” (AA). In his book Periodization Training for Sports he recommended an AA phase that would adapt the muscles and muscle attachments to training stress and prepare them for heavier and more intense training phases to come. Circuit Training is the method of choice we decided to roll with and we used 10 exercise circuits that incorporated all major muscles.
For more explanation, click here.
#2 Aerobic System Development
Unless you have been living under a rock you know the Aerobic System has been getting a lot of love these days…and rightfully so. Given Football is primarily an Aerobic/Alactic Sport it certainly warrants devoting heavy attention to its development. Despite the popularity of running 110s with incomplete recoveries and 300yds shuttles for conditioning we went against the grain and started developing the Aerobic System
For more explanation and a video, click here.
#3 PRI Resets
Postural Restoration Institute has been around for a long time but it seems over the last few years they have been getting a ton of pub. My go to guys on this subject are Mike Robertson, Bill Hartman, Mike Boyle and Eric Cressey. I credit all of them for opening my eyes to something I was dismissive of when I was first exposed to their methods going on 5 or 6 years ago.
For more explanation and videos, click here.
#4 Hill Sprints
Hill Sprints certainly aren’t a brand new concept but in years past I only used them to prepare guys for more intense speed work to come. The hill is great at reinforcing acceleration mechanics and minimizing ground contact forces.
For more explanation and a video, click here.
#5 Submaximal Strength
I may catch some flack on this but we never went above 85% and spent most of our time around 75-80%. I’m all for heavy loads and chasing strength but my first priority is to hand these guys off to their respective S&C staff healthy and in shape.
Read the Entire Article Here
Source: http://www.athletesacceleration.com
