As the summer break draws to a close and we climb out of our post-holiday depression, for many, our minds turn toward the impending pre-season training for our respective winter sports.
Whether you’re a professional amateur or an amateur professional, the approaching pre-season often brings with it a panicked realisation of under preparation, and many punters find themselves having to rush their training progressions or start their training program at a much higher volume or intensity than what they are prepared for. Naturally this kind of pre-season behavior brings with it, a high risk of injury!
As Sports Physiotherapists, we often see a run of preventable injuries that occur early in the pre-season phase each year. Sometimes, these injuries devastatingly rule a player out for some, if not all, of the coming season.
Take note of our simple tips for surviving pre-season injury free this year:
1) Measure…
Your current level of sport specific fitness/strength/power/flexibility with a baseline assessment. Our Exercise Physiologists are experts in sport specific fitness and functional capacity assessments.
2) Plan…
A training load progression using the results of your baseline assessment as a starting point. You can calculate a session training load using a simple formula:
Minutes trained x Overall session RPE = Session load
As a general rule for progression, your total weekly training load should not be more than 150% of the average weekly training load over your last 4-weeks.
The planning process will make it clear how long it will take to progress from your baseline up to a level required to cope with seasonal training and match loads. Performing this calculation early will ensure you’ve given yourself enough time to build your training loads up safely.
Our Physiotherapists and Exercise Physiologists are experts in prescribing and monitoring training load progressions and can help you design an individualized plan for you and your sport.
3) Monitor…
The training load that you actually end up doing (actual training load) will usually not be equal to what you planned to do (prescribed training load). So, adjustments to your program need to be made as you work your way through.
4) Be specific…
Make sure you do training that matters. If you are a netballer, going for a 10km jog won’t necessarily help you to sprint 5m and change direction on court. Too often we hear about athletes performing irrelevant training in their offseason and pre-season that fails to adequately prepare them for in-season training and matches. Ensure that the training you do represents the demands of your sport in terms of volumes, intensities and movements.
We are the experts. Why not leave it to us to plan, prescribe and monitor your pre-season training program.
We can make you stronger, fitter, more flexible and more powerful and reduce your injury risk through evidence based, planned training. Get in contact with us today, round 1 is just around the corner! (02) 4356 2588
Helping the Central Coast Feel Well, Move Well and Perform Well!