Top 3 Mistakes Athletes Make Heading into the Hockey Season

The season is fast approaching! It’s always a crazy time as September hits, schedules will be changing and you need to know to prepare properly! That’s what will go through today to ensure you don’t make the same mistakes so many athletes make! Let’ make sure you have your best season yet!

1. Lack of Preparation

This one is everything! Yes showing up is half the battle…but you still need to prepare in advance to ensure you have your best season yet! This not only includes on-ice skills and off-ice workouts but also proper nutrition habits, schedule adjustment, sleeping habits, and mental preparation!

• Start to prepare for change of schedule now!
• Build proper nutrition habits now so you can keep them once the schedule gets crazy
• Start to get back to a normal sleep schedule little by little, if your waking up at noon set your wakeup time back an hour each week. ex: 11am, then 10am, etc.
• Mentally prepare for everything that is to come! Know who your playing, gear your prep towards that week and what you need to focus on to have your best week.

2. Stop Off- Ice Development

We see this one too often! With the schedule change schedules get crammed and off-ice goes to the wayside. Proper off-ice development programs are a year round process. It’s not just random workouts when you can. It’s committing to what is needed to ensure you continue to develop and not run out of gas as the season progresses. As convenient as team workouts are, you still need to have a dedicated program towards your individual needs.

• In season development program – 2-3x a week
• Geared toward your specific needs to maintain and peak as the season goes
• Injury prevention, strength, speed and power maintenance
• Adjusts with the crazy demands of the season

3. Losing Good Habits

Any good habits built in the summer usually come crashing down and completely disappear once the high demands school and the season start. Don’t let this happen to you! Build your habits up strong and then figure out how they still fit into your schedule as things get crazy. I promise if you prepare in advance it’s easier to fit everything in, instead of just letting whatever is easiest happen!

• Build strong habits first
• Prepare and see how they WILL still fit into your schedule
• No excuses, just make it happen!

  Don’t let crazy change of schedule intimidate you, this is all easily manageable by creating strong habits, preparing in advance, and staying focused on your development! Any questions feel free to reach out! You can also schedule a complimentary movement/goal assessment to see where your movement baseline is and how to properly set goals for the season! Thanks for reading!  

#unleashthepotential

Written by:

Rob Jost – ACE-CPT, NSCA-CPT

Suggested Article: Top 4 Ways to Maximize Your Off-Season Lift Program

Take action… Now!

Voorhees Flyers Training center.

The Hollydell ice arena, in the main building.