Blogs

The athletes that SUSTAIN success commit themselves to doing the little things right, consistently. They warm-up with intent before practice. They train regularly in-season. They hydrate, eat, and sleep with purpose, with a performance mindset. Often times, these acts are monotonous. They’re repeated on a daily basis for months in a row. The best athletes do them […]

Lateral Bound from Pause w/ Drop Start Similar goal as the Squat Jump w/ Quick Dip with maximizing transition speed except now the push is lateral, so the athlete should “push the turf away” to cover as much ground laterally as possible. The emphasis is on the push, NOT on reaching out with the lead […]

The stretch reflex of the quadriceps is typically utilized from a low position in skating. This is the first of two examples of simple modifications to commonly performed jumping exercises to emphasize the stretch reflex and power output from these “skating-specific” positions. Squat Jump w/ Quick Dip The athlete starts around skating depth, quickly dips, and then […]

See below for a quick video on rate of force development. Force output following a quick stretch (i.e. the stretch reflex) can be enhanced with INTENT and training. INTENT to move quickly recruits high force motor units earlier and leads to faster rate of force development, both in the short-term and as a result of training. INTENT […]

Different mechanisms. Different training implications. To your success, Kevin NeeldSpeedTrainingforHockey.comHockeyTransformation.comOptimizingAdaptation.com P.S. If you’re interested in improving your speed on the ice, check out my book Speed Training for Hockey. Enter your first name and email below to sign up for my FREE Sports Performance and Hockey Training Newsletter!

See below for a quick video outlining the influence of the stretch reflex and stretch shortening cycle in skating. Major Take-Away: The stretch reflex should primarily be trained in positions of deep hip and knee bend, with less focus on the more upright posture, short contact time exercises applicable to top speed sprinting OFF the […]

While the previous two videos (see: Integrated Core Training for Dynamic Stability and Core Training Variations for Dynamic Stability) help reinforce elements of low-position control important for skating, the Single Leg Stance Med Ball Figure 8 is more of a traditional balance exercise. The goal is to stay tall and centered over the foot. When someone […]

Following up on a previous post, over the next few days, I’ll share other core variations we use to reinforce stability across a variety of different positions. The video below is of a Split Squat Med Ball Figure 8. As with the last video, the goal is to maintain depth and a forward lean/shin angle, […]

One of the key skating characteristics of elite hockey players is that they adopt a low skating position. From an off-ice training perspective, hockey players should first demonstrate that they have the mobility and low position strength and endurance to get into and hold these types of positions. Once this has been achieved, it can be helpful […]

In a previous post, I discussed two strategies to improve hip abduction range of motion as a means of allowing hockey players to increase stride length from a deeper skating position. A key point of emphasis from that post is that range of motion is more likely to be integrated into dynamic patterns if strength/stability are […]