Feature Story

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What sets and reps should I do in the weight room?

By Jack Blatherwick

Let’s Play Hockey Columnist

The letter starts like this: Mr. Blatherwick (already this makes me nervous. It’s the same way the IRS letters always start.) — Could you send my 16 year-old daughter a program for the off-season, especially the number of sets and reps she should do in the weight room?

I’d be a fool to answer this — but I’ve done foolish things before, so here’s the response.

I’d be doing your daughter a disservice to answer this question. Her off-season training absolutely must start with her own plan, one she writes out — not one she gets from someone else. She might talk with her hockey coach and get input from other hockey people, but she must give this considerable thought — or her efforts this summer will have no impact.

The plan begins with her own written priority list based on her aspirations, her abilities, her commitment and her access to training environments, equipment and supervision. It should not be biased by current trends in fitness and strength training, so she should not consult with her school’s strength coach until an appropriate — later — time.

Since you listed strength training first — as does every letter I get — I will say this: of all the things she could do to improve her hockey ability, STRENGTH TRAINING is NOT near the top of the priority list I’d make for a 16 year-old girl.

I would definitely include strength training — even without seeing your daughter — but I’d place other attributes above it on this list. Just watch any great player in action and see if the word STRENGTH is the first thing that comes to your mind.

Improvement in hockey is all about RINK SENSE, SKILLS and ATHLETICISM. For a concise definition of ATHLETICISM, picture Randy Moss.

Since your letter didn’t include a list of her priorities, here is my generic list for many 16 year-olds, based on the attributes I see in elite hockey players like Natalie Darwitz, Jenny Potter, Krissy Wendell, Alexander Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby.

• Rink sense, rink sense, rink sense

• Stickhandling (“on-ice and off” could be added for the entire list)

• Shooting (“on-ice and off”)

• Skating fundamentals

• Skating posture on-ice and off (knee bend, etc.)

• Leg strength and power — especially one-legged

• Quickness

• Agility

• Speed

• Strength

• Core strength gained from the sum of above, not by isolating core muscles

• Dynamic balance incorporated into the training above

• Dynamic flexibility gained from above

• Hockey endurance gained from playing other sports and from above

Once the list is completed, there is a tendency to compartmentalize the training by emphasizing each attribute in a separate workout. This is like isolating every muscle in the body individually. Remember that in a hockey game all of these attributes must come together at one time. Therefore, we should integrate the various aspects into highly ATHLETIC workouts as often as possible.

It’s too common, for example, to compartmentalize endurance workouts. Words like “cardio, aerobic, anaerobic and metabolic training” are incorporated, when in fact, they are irrelevant, because HOCKEY ENDURANCE is all of the above — at the same time.

So the question should be asked, “How can I kill two (or three or four) birds with the same stone? How can I improve endurance while working on skill or speed or explosive power?”

The reality is this: endurance gained any other way is not likely to transfer to a hockey game anyway. However, by playing hockey, soccer or basketball at a high tempo, you’ll improve quickness, agility, speed and endurance at the same time.

By shooting pucks — including some heavy pucks, or with a heavy stick — you’ll improve skill at the same time as upper body and core strength. Should there be additional strength training? Yes, of course, but make sure the increased strength becomes part of your game by doing hockey-specific drills, too.

This is why on-ice skating practice is not as effective as planning for — and integrating it with off-ice skating drills and one-legged strength training. There is a synergistic relationship between skating, strength training and skating-specific jumps. The end result is much greater than the sum of the individual, compartmentalized training effects.

Set your priorities. Plan. Make a commitment to improvement, not just punching the clock. Only then will your workouts make you a better hockey player.

Jack Blatherwick, Ph.D., is a physiologist for the Washington Capitals.