Recreational Hockey players...this is for you!!

So many people have started their winter pick up leagues over the last few months and I have SO many clients who have been injured because of inflexibility or weaknesses/imbalances in muscles.
I did a segment on York Region Daytime last week on proper warm-up, stretches and strength exercises to improve your game and decrease injuhttp://www.rogerstv.com/page.aspx?lid=237&rid=17&gid=123024ries. Here is the info I shared on the show but for those that didn't watch it (i will post the link when I receive it);

Warm-up (before you play)
* hip swings- leg straight, swing the leg forward and back 10x then across your body (in front of other leg) 10x. Repeat on both legs
* dynamic inner thigh stretch- click here for a demo
* Slow skating (forward/backward/crossovers) then gradually pick up pace

Stretches (after game)- do each for 30sec/leg
* Dynamic inner thigh/hip flexor stretch (same as above)
* glute stretch (Sitting on the bench in dressing room)- click here for demo
* Quad stretch- standing/laying down on side, pull your foot back to your bum and push hips forward till you feel pull down the front of your thigh
 There are MANY more stretches that are great BUT those are the most important and will NOT take you that long after the game before the beer starts flowing :)

Strength Exercises to incorporate into your workouts 2-3x week
What most people don't think about or know is that there are different ways to train when an "athlete" is in-season vs "off season". When/if you play 3+ times a week you need to gear your workouts around sport specific exercises, not on building strength. If you are trying to increase strength, that should be focused on during off-season when you aren't playing as much. If you play only 1-2x week its not as important.
For all hockey players though leg strength, cardiovascular training- specifically intervals with bursts of max speed for 15-30sec to simulate a game & core should be your focus.
The most forgotten sport specific training though is working on agility and acceleration and deceleration. What does that mean you ask...well let me explain:
Agility- "the state or quality of being agile- nimbleness
-training your body and brain to work together faster so that your feet can move quickly and you can react when you need to change directions to get a puck, move around and opponent, or deek someone out; you are fast and controlled.
Acceleration- being able to increase speed quickly
-using tools such as a parachute while you run, agility ladders, or doing exercises that require explosive power like squat jumps/box jumps, ViPR drills
Deceleration- "to slow down"
- This is the most under trained movement of athletes and therefore the cause of MANY injuries! How you train to decelerate properly is using exercises such as this...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RITgKLNij4w

If you have any questions or would like a sport specific workout designed for you, contact me at paula.performancefitness@gmail.com

Paula