Tag: ice hockey training

Breaking in to the Strength and Conditioning Industry

Last day to save 25% on all hockey training products at Ice-Hockey-Training.com!

If you missed the details, check out why I want you to save money:

http://www.KevinNeeld.com/2010/birthday-sale-25-off-all-ice-hockey-training-products

Another great post from Endeavor’s newest addition David Lasnier. Forgive his grammar. He is French.

Enter David:

This post would be for those looking to make it in the strength and conditioning world in the first place. I know that from an outside perspective, it might look like a cool job to work with athletes on a daily basis and helping them get to the next level; and believe me it is. I know a lot of people who want to make it in this industry when they first get into College in Exercise science or kinesiology. But the truth is a lot of them don’t know that it takes a lot of dedication and the process takes a certain time.

Beside from having good grades in College and pursuing continuing education, there is a lot more one needs to do to make it in this industry. Here are a few tips to help you make it in the strength and conditioning business.

– Make contacts. Go out there in seminars and introduce yourself to other strength coaches and trainers. Make sure that the successful guys out there know who you are and that you trying to make it as strength coach. These are the ones who might help you get an internship; they might refer you some athletes/clients if you live in a different region; they might even let you know about job opportunities.

– These same guys know a lot. There is a reason why they are so successful. They know a lot about strength and conditioning, but they also know a lot about the business itself. So don’t be shy to pick their brain and ask questions. They have been around for a while, so they probably know a lot more than you do.

– Internships. That is a key to making it in this industry. Most of the time you won’t get paid for them, but you need to let everyone know that you are dedicated to getting more experience and making a name for yourself. This is a necessary process if you wish to make it someday. Go out there, bust your balls and someday you’ll be rewarded.

– On a related note, when doing internships, never forget that the goal is to gain experience. It is not to let others know how much you know because quite frankly they probably don’t care. I’ve seen too much people getting out of College without any experience and thinking they know everything. You need to realize that theoretical knowledge will only get you so far. Years under the trenches are worth so much more knowledge than what you will ever learn in College. So do me a favour and respect that. So the next time you go on an internship or chat with a knowledgeable Strength coach, listen. Stop talking and listen to what he has to say, because he knows a lot more than you do.

– Be kind and polite. It may sound obvious for some, but unfortunately not enough people get that. People will always help out more somebody who’s kind and polite and they will be more willing to give out some of their time and answer questions. And I’m not only talking about the strength and conditioning business here….this would apply in general in a thing called Life!

Hopefully, I’ve helped some of you out there who wish to make it as Strength and conditioning coach. Be patient, listen, don’t be afraid to give some of your time and be polite and you will sure be rewarded someday.

David Lasnier

Enter Kevin:

I couldn’t have said it better myself. Top 5 ways to get on my good side:

1) Read everything I write, even if it sucks.
2) Email me from a computer, not a blackberry, ipod, iphone, ihome, icar, irobot, etc.
3) Take time to learn about my system before impressing your own thoughts.
4) Be humble.
5) Be coachable.

At the risk of sounding “preachy”, I expect the same from myself. Before I interned at Cressey Performance, I read EVERY single article Eric wrote. Every one. Since Eric writes in his sleep, his collection of articles was in the triple digits. It goes a long way in understanding why a coach does what he/she does and shows you’re serious about your career/education.

To your continued success,

Kevin Neeld

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Birthday Sale: 25% Off All Ice Hockey Training Products!

Tuesday, March 30th, is my 25th birthday. It seems like just yesterday I was stickhandling and playing one on one with my brother in my garage for hours everyday. How times flies.

Anyway, I can’t think of a better way to celebrate a birthday than giving you some presents to help fulfill your hockey potential!

I’ve made a special coupon for you so you can get 25% off EVERYTHING at my hockey training website.

Until Friday, April 2nd, you can save 25% on:

Hockey Training U’s Off-Ice Performance Training Course

Hockey Training U’s Hockey Training Programs

Breakaway Hockey Speed

Hockey Training Exercise Videos Membership

Just enter the coupon code “25bday” at checkout and the savings will pop right up.

…I know what you’re thinking, but I wouldn’t recommend waiting until my 100th birthday.

To another great year of hockey training!

Kevin Neeld

P.S. Don’t forget, you only have until March 31st to get access to all incredible information at HockeyStrengthandConditioning.com for $1!

Please enter your first name and email below to sign up for my FREE Athletic Development and Hockey Training Newsletter!

Hockey Conditioning: In-Season vs. Off-Season

Before reading this post, check out the two preceding posts on hockey conditioning:

Hockey Conditioning: To Bike or Not to Bike!

Hockey Conditioning: Shuttle Runs and Slideboards

As you may have noticed, I’m not a huge supporter of hockey players riding exercise bikes, but I am a huge supporter of slideboarding.

My opinion changes slightly when hockey players are in-season.

When players are on the ice for hours a week, they probably don’t need as much work in lateral and diagonal movement patterns because they get enough of that on the ice. To this extent, slideboarding consistently throughout the season could over-stress (or not allow for sufficient recovery) the hip adductors (“groin”) and lead to overuse (or under-recovery) injuries.

If Not Slideboards, Then What?

I generally think shuttle runs are a better alternative than exercise bikes if players NEED to condition (read below). With that said, one of the Hockey Strength and Conditioning Coaches I’ve learned the most from is Michael Boyle. He has his players ride exercise bikes in-season to decrease the risk of hip overuse injuries, as described above. However, he uses Schwinn Airdyne Exercise Bikes, which allow upper body movement and a more upright posture. These bike design changes remove many of the downsides of using exercise bikes for conditioning hockey players.

Do Hockey Players Need to Condition In-Season At All?

The amount of in-season conditioning players need depends on the amount of ice time they get and the composition of that ice time. There is nothing more hockey-specific than skating intervals. If coaches build conditioning-type drills into their practice or go through familiar drills at a high tempo, it’s likely that many players won’t need ANY off-ice conditioning.

Train Hard. Train Smart.

Kevin Neeld

P.S. If you want to use a PROVEN ice hockey training system this off-season to guarantee you enter tryouts and next season at your best, check out my Off-Ice Training course.

Please enter your first name and email below to sign up for my FREE Athletic Development and Hockey Training Newsletter!

The Ultimate Hockey Strength and Conditioning Site!

If you play hockey, coach hockey, or train hockey players, this is for you!

If you’ve been reading my blog recently, you know that I recently launched Hockey Training Expert, a site that I knew would training hockey player development forever.I have great news!

In an effort to truly raise the bar for providing the hockey community with the best information in the world, I’ve recently teamed up with Michael Boyle (Boston University), Sean Skahan (Anaheim Ducks), and Mike Potenza (San Jose Sharks) to develop HockeyStrengthandConditioning.com!

We’ve literally put together the greatest collection of hockey strength and conditioning coaches in the world! Check out the incredible list of contributors:

-Michael Boyle (Boston University)
-Sean Skahan (Anaheim Ducks)
-Mike Potenza (San Jose Sharks)
-Chris Pietrzak-Wegner (Minnesota Wild)
-Chuck Lobe (Tampa Bay Lightning)
-Jim Reeves (Mind to Muscle)
-Brijesh Patel (Quinnipiac)
-Cal Dietz (Univ. of Minnesota)
-Chris Boyko (UMass Amherst)
-Maria Mountain (Revolution Sport Conditioning)
-Tim Yuhas (Yuhas Performance)
-Matt Nichol (former Toronto Maple Leafs)
-Kim McCullough (Total Female Hockey)

I’m blown away by the amount of incredible information already on the site. There are articles on a variety of topics, including Strength and Conditioning, Programming, Youth Training, Injuries, Female Training and Coaching. There are webinars, audio interviews and videos up as well, all about hockey!

Each week, we’re going to add videos, articles, and programs. None of these coaches are shy about questioning the norm, so I know the Coaches Forum will be hopping right from day 1. We also have plans of adding hockey-specific webinars and audio interviews every month!

To let you test drive HockeyStrengthandConditioning.com we’re offering a $1 30-day membership, after which it’s only $9.95/month! This offer only lasts until March 31st and the $9.95 price may jump up soon, so don’t wait. Head over to HockeyStrengthandConditioning.com and sign up today. It’s only a buck!

I look forward to seeing you inside the site!

To your continued success,

Kevin Neeld

P.S. If you have a Hockey Training Expert membership, check your email! I personally sent you an email letting you know the details about the change. As of Friday, March 19th, Hockey Training Expert will officially merge with Hockey Strength and Conditioning!

P.S.S. It’s only a buck! To get access to over a thousand years of collective hockey training experience, you only need to INVEST $1. Go to HockeyStrengthandConditioning.com and sign up now!

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Hockey Conditioning: Shuttle Runs and Slideboards

A couple days ago, I wrote a post on why hockey players shouldn’t use exercise bikes to condition.

If you missed it, check it out here: Hockey Conditioning: To Bike or Not to Bike!

So if you aren’t going to bike, what should you do?

The main two conditioning modalities that I recommend are:

Shuttle Runs

Pros:
This full body high intensity movement requires similar energy system characteristics as skating.

Shuttle runs require direction changes, which are inevitable on the ice.

Hockey players will produce force into the ground in a free movement pattern in order to accelerate, decelerate, and change direction.

Sprinting involves full hip extension and core control of this extended posture, which helps reverse the hunched over posture that hockey players spend too much time in.

Sprinting necessitates single-leg stability, just like skating.

Cons:
Shuttle runs minimally stress lateral movement patterns and the involved hip musculature that is used in skating.

Slideboards

Pros:
Slideboarding is a high intensity movement that requires similar energy system characteristics as skating.

Slideboarding involves constant lateral loading and direction changes, which reinforces the direction changes hockey players perform on the ice and strengthens the muscles on the lateral and medial (outside and inside) aspects of the hip. This helps decrease skating-related injuries (hip flexor and groin strains), while improving single-leg stability.

Slideboarding can easily be progressed to wearing a weight vest without interfering with the pattern, which mimics the loading and thermoregulatory changes that upper body equipment places on hockey players.

On-ice stride patterns can be improved off the ice using a slideboard. Specifically, hockey players can groove a proper skating posture and recovery mechanics on a slideboard. I’ve helped many players alleviate back pain from skating due to excessive rotation at the lower back simply by bringing it to their attention while they are on a slideboard.

Slideboards are awesome.

Cons:
Slideboards can be expensive and aren’t available at common gyms. If you’re lucky enough to be around Endeavor Fitness, we have slideboards AND a skating treadmill. If you’re not, you can build a slideboard for less than $50. Actually, I built two when I was younger for less than $50. It took about 2 hours and was a great father-son bonding experience. Nothing says family togetherness time like building high intensity hockey training equipment!

Reread the above paragraph. There are no cons.

Check back in the next couple days to learn how these rules change based on whether you’re in-season or out of season.

To your continued success,

Kevin Neeld

P.S. If you want to use a PROVEN ice hockey training system this off-season to guarantee you enter tryouts and next season at your best, check out my Off-Ice Training course.

Please enter your first name and email below to sign up for my FREE Athletic Development and Hockey Training Newsletter!