Today I’m excited to let you know that we have a guest post from my friend Maria Mountain. I’ve known Maria for a few years now and admire her work. In fact, her newsletter is one of the only ones that I’m still subscribed to and one of even a smaller list that I read every time! She was kind enough to offer some tips on goalie-specific training for you today. Enjoy!
Enter Maria…
This one is for the goalies and it focuses on post-to-post power, which is the key ingredient to speed. I know it is often referred to as post-to-post speed but I think the term ‘power’ is better suited because it is typically a single effort.
There may be repeated efforts within a short time span but typically you are not scrambling back and forth between posts in succession (hopefully not anyway).
So when we talk about power we are talking about the rate of force production. How quickly can you fire your muscles and direct force into the ice? There are two ways you can improve your power 1) you can increase your strength 2) you can increase the rate of force production.
Today I am going to give you some exercises for both, but make sure you start with a good foundation of strength.
I do appreciate that not every lateral push in the crease is a maximum effort, but if we can increase your power capacity, then even when you are pushing side-to-side at 75% of your top speed, you will still be using a relatively lower percentage of your max effort. Does that make sense? In other words, by improving your post-to-post power you will be using less energy throughout most of the game, leaving more gas in the tank for those extended penalty kills.
The exercises in the video are not meant to be a workout unto itself; that would be overkill. Instead, add one or two of the exercises to you regular workouts, twice per week.
The volume will stay low for these exercises because you are either trying to build strength or power, so you do not want to work to fatigue. Here are some guidelines, but remember, these exercises should be added to your existing base of strength…
- ½ Kneeling Crease Push – 2-3 sets of 8 reps each
- Bottom Up Lateral Lunge – 2-3 sets of 4 reps each side
- Lunge Lateral + Lateral Bound – 2-3 sets of 3 each way
- Leap Frog Lateral Bound – 2-3 sets of 4 each side
Hope that helps – happy training.
For Kevin’s readers only! A free copy of the Goalie Stretch Solution – a follow along flexibility routine for hockey goalies and a complete dynamic warm-up so you are ready to play from the second the puck drops. Just click HERE, register as a new user and get instant access for FREE.
Strength and conditioning coach Maria Mountain, MSc is the owner of Revolution Sport Conditioning in London, ON and the founder of www.HockeyTrainingPro.com. Her training systems have helped athletes from recreational to Stanley Cup and Olympic Champions maximize their potential while reducing their risk if injury.
To your success,
Kevin Neeld
UltimateHockeyTraining.com
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Together We Rise: A Campaign for Everyone
Hi Kevin,
My son is now 10 years old and starting to be more serious about his hockey. He recently played with a spring hockey team for one weekend and was frustrated at his lack of foot speed. He has played multi sports for a number of years now. I have noticed that he is not able to get the appropriate leg, knee or hip flexibility to maximize his full stride. I will be at home with my kids every morning for the months of July and August and wanted to run a fun, yet effective dryland hockey school for them. My kids are 10, 8,6. I was going to purchase your program but want to know if you think it is appropriate for them. I too want to go through the program to see what effects it has on my game. I still like to play 1- 3 per week myself. I have followed you for a few years and love your articles.
Thanks for any help you can give.
Hi Marc,
I’m not sure which program you’re referring to, but Ultimate Hockey Training has a lot of information that will be helpful in designing appropriate programs for them. That said, there will be a lot of information in there that is more appropriate for players further along in their development (aka older). The exercise video database available to UHT Insiders has over 800 videos, however, several of which can be fun and appropriate for players at your son’s age. Whether you decide to invest in one of my books or not, the thing that’s important to keep in mind is that success at 10 years old has little to no bearing on success later in life. At 10 (and younger), I think the two most important things to instill in athletes are passion and respect. Going beyond that, start to educate them on more optimal lifestyle habits (e.g. eating real food, sleeping at regular intervals, etc.). Being successful and optimizing skill potential is important, but sports are a powerful platform to instill quality values in kids. Honestly, It seems like people are always interested in the new “secret” exercise and overlook the fact that they (or their kids) eat one vegetable a month and are sucking back energy drinks. Not saying that’s you or your family, but it’s out there!