Daily Training Tip #558

Continuing from yesterday, what are you doing to keep the pecking order the way it is?


If you are on the top line and the top power play, what are you doing to stay there?

If you are on the top team, what are you doing to stay there?

If you beat a team the first time you play, what are you doing to assure you beat them again?

The pecking order is always changing, which means if you are on the top, you had better be paying a heck of a price to stay there. There is always someone else that is trying to take your spot. There is always someone else that isn't happy with their pecking order and are doing everything they can do to change it. You need to be doing everything you can do to stay on top. You don't have time to sit on top and enjoy the view, you need to be making strides up and up!

Daily Training Tip #557

What are you doing to change the pecking order?

If you are playing on the third line, what are you doing above and beyond the six (6) players on the top two lines?

If you are on the B team, what are you doing above and beyond the players on the A team?

If you lost the first game against a certain team, what are you doing above and beyond them to beat them when you face them again?

If everyone is doing the same things, everyone is going to improve in a similiar fashion. My question to you is, what are you doing above and beyond everyone else to catch back up to them or to pull ahead of them even further. It doesn't matter where you stand, it matters where you are going.

There are lots of "little extras" you can be doing to put yourself in a position to change the pecking order. You can always shoot more pucks, stickhandle more, spend more time in the gym or get on the ice more.

The pecking order is always changing, make sure you are always moving up!

Daily Training Tip #556

When you are on a tight training and competition schedule, there is no room for drugs and alcohol. You can't perform to your best ability if you abuse your body!

Daily Training Tip #555

Use this Thanksgiving break to get caught up on your academics, sleep, training and to heal up any injuries you might have.

Daily Training Tip #554

You need to push yourself off of the ice, just like you do on the ice. With the proper workouts and the proper work ethic off of the ice, you can really seperate yourself from your opponents.


Pay a Price!

Daily Training Tip #553

If you have aspiration to play in pros, then don't train like the pros. Train harder than the pros. A pro has already accomplished a lot of things, you need to catch up! Pay a bigger price, get bigger results!

Daily Training Tip #552

If you become injuried and are expected to miss a portion of time, your dietary needs will probably need to change. When you are training and practicing on a daily basis, you burn a lot of calories. If you stop all of your training, because of your injury, you need to, at a minimum, cut back on the amount of calories that you intake. Intaking more calories than you burn will increase your body fat, which is something you don't need.


However, you can't cut back to much! Don't under eat! By under eating, while injuried, can actually prolong inflammatory response and can slow down your immune function. So don't cut back to much!

Daily Training Tip #551

Testing shows improvement. If you've gone through a series of tests and haven't show improvement, you probably didn't work as hard as you could have during the off-season.

Daily Training Tip #550

There are always a lot of studies going on, on how to improve on first step quickness. All come back with a combination of plyometrics and strength training; something that MHC excels at!

Daily Training Tip #549

In-Season training is just as important as Off-Season training. In-Season training is slightly different than Off-Season training in the fact that the amounts of reps and sets are different. Sometimes the exercises themselves are different. In-Season training has to be scheduled around game times, etc.


However, In-Season training is the same as Off-Season training in the fact that the intensity level is still very high. It is very crucial to be training as hard as possible. Never put it in cruise control!

Daily Training Tip #548

I read a study yesterday on the NFL. It stated that the shortened preseason, lead to an increase in injuries.


My question to those players is, what did you do on your own during your off-season? Didn't you prepare yourself?

Typically, muscle strains and muscle pulls that occur during the early part of the season can be avoided. During the first few entire team practices and/or games, players tend to go a little harder than they are used to, causing injuries. But my question is, if a players training is proper and they are in proper shape, wouldn't those first few workouts be breeze?

The harder and smarter you train, the better your results will be!

Daily Training Tip #547

If you warm up properly for a game/competition, why wouldn't you warm up properly for a practice or workout?


A neuromuscular dynamic warm up not only helps your body get ready to perform, it also helps reduce the risk of injury.

Daily Training Tip #546

I've written a lot about the proper way to train and condition yourself to be the best hockey player that you can be. How to train your core, how to create power & explosiveness, why one-leg training is important, how to prevent injuries, etc.


However, all successful people do the same thing...

They are willing to push themselves to the limit.

They are willing to outwork every competitor that they have.

And they never look for a handout from someone else. They go out and get it!

It's easy to make excuses, that's why there is only one champion at the end of the season.

Daily Training Tip #545

Knee Bend, Knee Bend, Knee Bend... http://www.letsplayhockey.com/1049blatherwick.html Jack Blaterwick wrote a great article in this weeks' Let's Play Hockey. Take a look and read it for yourself!


A couple of key points...

-"How can you teach skating without dryland training?" Dryland training needs to be a part of your hockey routine. Head to the rink for practice, then head to the gym for dryland. In today's world, a lot of youth associations do have a structure dryland program, however, way too many kids work hard on the ice and then skip dryland. Practice and Dryland need to go hand in hand.

-"Strength Training should be thought of as Skating Practice!" We've been saying this for years, you become a better skater off of the ice!

-"Make this position your comfort zone by completing hundreds of repetitions!" It is impossible to keep your knees bent down to the proper position without proper leg strength. Proper leg strength comes with hard work off of the ice!

Daily Training Tip #544

Don't wast your time doing aerobic training. If done properly, all anaerobic training becomes aerobic after a certain amount of time.

Daily Training Tip #543

Fatigue is also caused by a poor diet and poor sleep habits. YES, the way you eat and the way you sleep will directly affect your performance!

Daily Training Tip #542

The impact of fatigue is seen in a lot of places.


-Your skating form breaks down, causing you to skate slower and less explosive.

-Your puck and stick skills become slower and less accurate.

-Your head/mind become less focused causing an increase in errors.

Training helps delay the onset of fatigue. The better conditioned you are, the longer it takes for fatigue to set in.

Daily Training Tip #541

Just ask the Brainerd Boys & Girls Hockey Teams...Running stairs is a great way to get your morning started!


Running stairs can be completed as it's own seperate workout or part of a workout. While running, make sure to keep good form; chest up, light on your feet and have good knee drive up the hill!

Daily Training Tip #540

Lots of muscles play a role in your over all leg strength. Which means, you have to do multiple exercises to strengthen them all. You should be doing squats, lunges, deadlifts, RDL's, calf raises, etc. Multiple lifts helps build balance, which increases results and decreases injuries.