Six-weeks, six fundamental movements - An exercise introduction for youth hockey players
For several years I ran a six-week preseason session for middle- and high-school players. It was a modification of my Zombie-Proof fitness program.
The goals:
Every week, we had two sessions where we explored one of the six fundamental movements - Carry, Squat, Hinge, Rotate, Pull, Push. For the first session each week, we would learn and try. The second session, we would repeat. The following week we would review the previous week's key exercises, and then add the next set. They practiced the strength movements at home. For the final exam on the sixth week, they all achieved the following:
Any player who successfully completed the tests received the Zombie-Proof "x-arc" mark on their wrist (a simplification of the Zombie-Proof Stickman logo). Like the training, the mark would fade over time unless they continued practicing what they had learned.
The goals:
- giving players an introduction to safe and effective strength training methods
- increase strength to protect against injuries, especially in shoulders and core
- avoid high-risk training methods (like plyometrics, or working players until they collapse from fatigue)
- improve confidence by challenging the players with baseline standards and a final set of tests
- improve team cohesion by sharing in challenges, achievements, and fun together
Every week, we had two sessions where we explored one of the six fundamental movements - Carry, Squat, Hinge, Rotate, Pull, Push. For the first session each week, we would learn and try. The second session, we would repeat. The following week we would review the previous week's key exercises, and then add the next set. They practiced the strength movements at home. For the final exam on the sixth week, they all achieved the following:
- carry bodyweight (half in each hand) about 10 steps out and back
- a turkish getup with a dixie cup of water balanced on their vertical fist
- a strict pullup
- Spiderman crawling (low hips, head and chest up) for 100 yards. Pausing to rest allowed, but no letting anything touch the ground but hands and feet.
Any player who successfully completed the tests received the Zombie-Proof "x-arc" mark on their wrist (a simplification of the Zombie-Proof Stickman logo). Like the training, the mark would fade over time unless they continued practicing what they had learned.
In addition to training, we played Ultimate frisbee at the end of every session for 10 minutes. We set up small fields of 10x20 paces, and had small teams of 3-4. Using small fields and small teams ensured lots of participation, very short sprints with lots of direction changes, and fast-paced games. Ultimate has a lot of similarities with hockey, like covering opponents, getting open to support your teammates, passing to move towards the goal, the value of many short passes, and good sportsmanship.
| 6_week_movement_pattern_grid_youth_hockey.xlsx |