Strength matters in ice hockey!  Here’s why.  The ice is a near frictionless environment.  This is a distinct disadvantage during acceleration when the player must overcome inertia and accelerate.  In order to be effective, the player must possess large amounts of strength in order to create a large propulsive angle between the ice and skate.  In addition, large step widths and single force peaks are reliant on both strength and coordination.   Recent research has correlated single leg broad jump (strength reliant) with on-ice acceleration abilities of competitive hockey players.  Take home message:  get strong!

Positive Attitude:

Everything comes at a price!  Everything!  The question is: are you willing to pay the cost?  I call it rent, but you can call it mortgage, time, sacrifice, sweat equity, or today’s price for tomorrow’s return!  Success is rented!  That’s right…RENTED!  It’s not guaranteed, promised, or contractually obligated.  There is no allowance, no severance package or golden parachute clause.  Dad can’t pay for it, Mom can’t wish it, and you can’t taste it unless YOU pay the price.  Payment is due EVERY DAY, not at the end of the month.  You can pay rent in weight room hours, film, making good off-ice/field choices, being coachable, a respectable teammate and performing in the face of competition. If you don’t CONSISTENTLY work, you can’t afford to pay the rent.  If you can’t afford to pay the rent things get taken from you.  Houses, cars, businesses, relationships, contracts, material possession and SUCCESS! 

Michelangelo once said: “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”  This quote is relevant in multiple circumstances throughout the training process.  Many excellent programs are simple, yet affective, and many diets are simple yet results driven.  Why do we always have to make things so difficult?  Want an easy way to feel better, perform better, and move better?  Ignore the infomercial on TV, return the “supplement of the month” and turn on the tap!  That’s right, water is king!  Skip the sodas, energy drinks, coffee, tea, and other highly caffeinated beverages, and make sure you’re dinking plenty of water (Ok, I love coffee, but I make sure to drink plenty of water).  Here are some interesting facts on hydration from the book entitled “The Body’s Many Cries for Water”.

Iron deficiency is a condition resulting from too little iron in the body.  I’m not talking anemia, hemoglobin, red meat or oxygen transport; I’m talking about barbells, dumbbells, and free weights.  I can’t tell you how many conversations I’ve had with parents who are concerned that young 13-year-old Tommy who plays hockey, one of the most physically intimidating, bone crunching sports in the world is concerned that weight training may cause adverse effects.  Never mind that young Tommy is built like a coat hanger, can’t fight his way out of a wet paper bag and that the organized chaotic demands of hockey stress a young body far more than a well organized, structured strength and conditioning program.  This leads to a condition I refer to as Iron Deficiency.  Iron deficiency is a dangerous condition where the musculoskeletal system is not prepared to meet the demands of the stress imposed on it.  It affects a large majority of the youth population who spend the summer’s playing Nintendo, running long distances, and engaging in non-external resistance training such as boxing, MMA and Insanity.