Recently at HockeySC

 Hockey, Strength and Conditioning  No Responses »
Jan 082013
 

 

Hi Everyone

Happy new year from all of us at HockeyStrengthandConditioning.com!

Sunday was a great day as the world woke up to the news that the NHL lockout was going to end.  I can’t wait to get going because its going to be a great season.

We are also looking forward to a great 2013 here at the site.  We are looking forward to many positive additions.

Recently, here is what we have added:

Articles

Youth Training by Darryl Nelson

Explosive Lifting for Hockey by me

We also added some classic research/review papers:

Physiology of Ice Hockey by David Montgomery

Applied Physiology of Ice Hockey by Michael Cox

Videos

Teaching the 1-Leg SLDL by Matt Siniscalchi

1-Arm Rotational Row by Mike Potenza

Double Kettlebell Swing by me

2-Arm DB Snatch by Darryl Nelson

Programs

Escalating Density Training by Mike Potenza

We have also had some good discussions going on the forum such as an interesting one on PRI.

Thanks for the continued support.  See you at the rink!

3 Things That I Learned in 2012

 Education, Hockey, Motivation/Inspiration, Strength and Conditioning  No Responses »
Dec 272012
 

Former Los Angeles Lakers head coach Pat Riley has a quote in his book The Winner Within: A Life Plan for Team Players, “If you’re not getting better, you are getting worse”.  I love this quote because I believe it’s true. I always want to see myself as a beginner in the Strength and Conditioning/Sports Performance profession.  Honestly, there is so much that I don’t know.  Which has just dawned on me that I think this is why I am not the biggest fan of some of the internet gurus who-  A- really aren’t coaching anyone and B- really haven’t been doing this for a long time.

2012 was another good year that brought about some life learning experiences both personally and professionally.  Here are 3 things among others that really stood out:

1-  I really enjoy coaching on the floor in the weight room and on the field/ice.  Professionally, this is what I love doing.  Interacting and coaching my athletes while they train is what I am passionate about.    This is what keeps me going.  When something is taken away from you for reasons way beyond your control, you realize how much you love to doing it.  Hopefully, I’m back to doing it soon.

2-  The diaphragm is a really important muscle to ensure that is functioning properly.  While I am still in the infant stages (no pun intended) of learning about its roles in breathing and in spinal stabilization, the reality is that I really didn’t give it the time of day up until a year or two ago.

The diaphragm is an important muscle in function because of its importance in creating deep abdominal pressure (in conjunction with other muscles including the pelvic floor and other abdominals) prior to movement of the upper and/or lower body limb(s) in function.  From an injury prevention perspective, I think this a huge area of importance because if there is insufficient intra-abdominal pressure, dysfunction can easily occur in a part of the chain of events that occur in movemdddddent.  Maybe I’m wrong, but I do know that I will learn more about this.  Thanks to my learning about breathing and my recent attendance at the DNS-A course, this has been brought to my attention and will soon be part of my daily coaching strategies.

3-  I really like USA Hockey’s long-term American Development Model which is I am pretty sure is going to be instituted at the mite level next year in Southern California.  One of the main components of this model at the mite level is that kids will be playing cross-ice games instead of full ice.

What I have learned is while that I agree with the change overall, I am not sure that I agree with it when it comes to my own son.  Please let me explain.  In his situation, he is now playing in travel mite full-ice game hockey at the age of 6.  Prior to this season, he played cross-ice mini games when he was 4 and then played full-ice In-House at age 5.  All of the time however has been spent practicing in mostly station-based drills and cross-ice mini games.  My question is, does he then spend the next 2 years (mites are ages 8 and under) playing cross-ice while he is now capable of playing full ice because he is as big, if not bigger than most of the kids in the mite age group while also being an average- above average skater?  Would this take him backwards as I feel that he can play full ice? Maybe in my eyes, his progression is going good, however he could benefit from the small area games to develop his skills.  I’m not sure, but I’m sure there will be some other kids with same questions.

Recently at HockeySC.com

 Hockey, Strength and Conditioning  No Responses »
Dec 142012
 

I hope you are doing great.  I want to update you on what is going on at HockeySC.com.  Recently, we had a survey on what the subscribers would like us to see more of on the site.  As a result from looking at the results and seeing some of your comments, we are going to be making some awesome improvements.  We will be doing more webinars, audio interviews, and also putting up much more content from other people in the field who may do things a little differently from the way that we might do things in some situations with our players.  We are really excited about this.  Stay tuned!

Here is what have had added to the site since my last update:

Articles

Sequencing by Anthony Donskov

Simplicity by Darryl Nelson

Working Effectively as a Staff by Ken Hetzel

Dissecting the 2-Way Skater by Kevin Neeld

Training With Velocity by Devan McConnell

Videos

Double Kettlebell Front Squat by me

Lateral Wall March by Kevin Neeld

Lateral Plyometrics by Darryl Nelson

Programs

In-Season U-16- U-18 Programs by Kevin Neeld

Phase 5 Lift and Pre-Practice Warm Ups by Devan McConnell

That’s it for now.

Happy Holidays!

Sean

Recently at HockeySC

 Hockey, Strength and Conditioning  No Responses »
Nov 142012
 

I hope everyone is doing well.  I just got back from a really great weekend spent in Phoenix, AZ for the DNS-A course.  This was a great opportunity for me to finally get to this course as my usual day job schedule hasn’t allowed for me to attend in the past.  So, with the current work situation still taking place, I was able to go.  It was well worth the investment and time.

When I attend seminars, I must admit that I get really excited about applying some of my recently obtained knowledge as soon as I return with my athletes.  However, I now have to store the info and hopefully not have to wait long before I am able to use some of my new tools.  Get it done boys.

I do plan on writing a review on the course real soon.

As for what is going on at HockeySC, we have had some outstanding contributions since my last update.  I must say thank you to those who have taken part in our survey.  We are already implementing some of your suggestions.

Here is what is new at the site:

Articles:

Cats and Cows by Brian Sipotz

NHL Lockout: Why Playing Overseas During the Stoppage is Beneficial to Players

Biomechanics Powers Ice Hockey Performance by Michael Bracko

Early Rehab for Anterior Lumbo-Pelvic Hip Injuries by Jeff Cubos

Videos:

Kettlebell Pullover by me

1-Arm DB Clean by Darryl Nelson

T-Spine Warm Ups by Mike Potenza

Programs:

Off-Season 2012 Core Progressions by me

A reminder, don’t forget to log onto and check out the forum.  We have had some great discussions recently including thoughts on Rear Foot Elevated Split Squats and Elite player game day routines.

We hope you enjoy the site.

Thanks!

Sean

What’s New at HockeySC

 Hockey, Strength and Conditioning  No Responses »
Oct 122012
 

I hope everyone is doing well.  The weather is actually starting to get a little cooler here in SoCal indicating fall is here (I guess, because it is still in the 70’s-80’s).  I’m doing my best to stay busy between being a dad and husband, reading, writing, and training myself.  It’s been lots of fun watching Will at his practices and games as I know that those are moments that I wouldn’t be able to do usually at this time of year.

It’s been a while since my last update as to what is going on at HockeySC.  As usual, we have had some great contributions:

Articles

Youth Training Program: Olympic Lifting Teaching Exercises by Mike Potenza

My Experience Working with New Players by Darryl Nelson

This is Russia by Eric Renaghan

Communication: The Key to In-Season Training by Rob Mclean

Revisiting the FMS with Teams by me

Videos

Phase 4 Acceleration Drills by me

Side Plank with Hip Abduction by Kevin Neeld

Barbell Split Squat by Darryl Nelson

5-Jump Eval Test by Mike Potenza

Reactive Jumping/Plyometric Exercises by Kevin Neeld

Programs

Final Off-Season Movement Phase by Mike Potenza

5-Day Off-Season Training Program- Phase 4 by Kevin Neeld

Phase 5 Off-Season Strength Training by me

Obviously, that is a lot of content in a 1-month period.  We hope you like it.

In addition to all of the content that we have, we also have a great discussion forum going.  If you aren’t a member yet, you can check it out for $1 day for 7 days.  You won’t be disappointed.

Thanks!

Sean

Interview with Jeff Angus

 Hockey, Strength and Conditioning  No Responses »
Oct 102012
 

I recently did an interview with Jeff Angus.  I think he did a really good job with pictures and quotes relative to the discussion.

You can check out the interview here:

Interview with Jeff Angus

Check out his blog at www.AngusCertified.com.  It features some great content including some other interviews with Strength and Conditioning Coaches from professional hockey.

Thoughts on Planks

 Hockey, Strength and Conditioning  No Responses »
Oct 012012
 

I really like planks. As long as I can remember, I have always used them in my program.  Whether I called them planks or “Forearm Bridges”, planks have been a staple in the program.  I think they are beneficial for all athletes for developing stability or “pillar” strength.

We are now coaching and performing planks differently.  For a long period of time, we would have our athletes just hold the plank position and ask them not to move.  We also asked them to think about squeezing and firing their “core”.  We may have lightly tapped them with our hands and/or feet so that they resisted us moving them.  Now we are using more of an “RKC Plank”.  This is a version of the plank that I learned at the RKC cert in 2011.

I must be honest and say that I didn’t think there could possibly be any different versions of a standard plank. However, I may be guilty of losing some attention to detail when it comes to the Plank.   Previously, we may have asked our athletes to hold the position until the time ends.  We are now asking our athletes to sustain the plank position by producing total body muscular tension for the whole time.  We will tell them to contract their glutes, tighten their core, lift their kneecaps up with their quads, and try to push their elbows and feet into the floor.   Also, we want their feet together, head neutral, and elbows slightly ahead of the shoulders.

The Plank will also help us coach our athletes on some proper positions on other exercises.  Exercises such as standing presses, pull ups, most TRX exercises, and carrying variations are going to include the plank position somehow.

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