It’s the best time of year.  Your season is about to start, and you have spent the last few months gradually building up your training intensity to prepare your body for the demands of the season.  But, with the first practice or game of the new season comes a bad habit among many at the high school level.  The season starts and training stops.  Not continuing with your training can only hurt what you have worked so hard to build up.  So, let's talk about finding the time and developing the right approach to stay on track and never miss a training session.

Find the Time

Listen, in-season training is important.  If you expect to maintain your off-season gains, maximize your recovery, and reduce your risk of injury, you have to train during the season.  Professional and collegiate athletes have much more demanding schedules than high school athletes and they still find time to perform their strength training.  If the best athletes in the world train in-season, then why wouldn't a high school athlete who desires to play at the next level?

For the high school athlete who plays 2-3 games per week, there should be no problem finding time for the weight room.  Just 30 minutes once or twice a week can make a difference over a relatively short high school season.

Finding the right day will be important.  Typically, there should be a day or two between games, so one of the best times to train is after a game.  This will give you plenty of time to recover before the next game.  For the same reason, another great time to train would be the day before an off day.  You should be training at least two times per week - at the very least one time a week.  Your needs and schedule may be different.  So, take a look at your schedule and adjust accordingly.

Quality Over Quantity

Should your training in-season be the same as your off-season and pre-season training?  NO!  We know the high school season can be demanding on your body.  But, you need to be at your physical best to play in competition.  Training at an off-season volume will only cause you to be sore and fatigued come game time.  Furthermore, you need to stay healthy.  Missing games are never fun, and staying on the injured list is the most effective way to miss games.  With in-season training, intensity should stay relatively high while your volume should be significantly lower than your off-season training program.

A few things to consider:

• First and foremost, you need to be taking care of your pre-hab work.  For you overhead athletes, this means your shoulders.  And every athlete should be staying consistent with their hip and core work.  Take care of the small things and they will take care of you.

• Secondly, not all exercises and movements are of equal quality.  You are already pressed for time, so you need to get the best bang for your buck on the movements you are performing during your training sessions.  A solid clean variation, squat variation, or deadlift are all quality choices.  Remember, high intensity, low volume.  That means 1-2 sets for 6-8 reps for these bigger lifts.

• Train your legs hard.  You can be a little more cautious with your upper body.  Opt for push-up variations over a heavy bench press or incline press.  Rows and pull-ups are great for keeping your back strong.

• Foam rolling and mobility work will be key to your recovery, and can be done everyday if the need arises.  Skipping this type of work is like skipping your workouts all together.

Be Smart

Remember, every athlete will be different.  Some sports may have more needs to consider than others..  Freshman and JV players may be able add a little more volume compared to varsity athletes.  Your schedule may only allow for one day of strength training.  Whatever it may be, just be smart and use your head. Your primary goal is to play.  If fatigue and soreness creep up, then you may need to tone down the strength portion of your workouts and focus more on pre-hab, mobility, and foam rolling.

Good luck!

(adapted for Max Performance)

We the staff of Max Performance, in Order to form a more perfect facility, establish training goals, insure quality equipment, provide for the common athlete, promote the general strength, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Bill of Rights for Max Performance and our facility.

Article I – Max Performance Staff Freedom of Speech and Rule-making

Section I

• It doesn’t matter if you like the staff or not – they run the facility.  Respect shall be given to ALL staff of the facility.

Section II

• The staff has the right to refuse entry to anyone for any reason. They can throw people out or ask them to leave for any reason.

Section III

• The staff has the right to change these rules at any time.
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At Max Performance, we require all athletes who wish to train with us to have a sport screen with one of our physical therapists before they begin training.  This screen helps to identify any deficiencies in the athlete's overall make-up.  For example, most athletes that walk through our doors have poor posture, tight hamstrings, and unbelievably weak hips.  Sometimes it's a wonder that a kid can be so talented at his or her chosen sport with so many things limiting their athletic ability.

Stop waiting for tomorrow to start on the road to success.  Check out what Colorado Springs athletes are doing to improve their athletic potential.  With so many different ways to train, athletes are coming to Max Performance to work on their speed, agility, strength, and power.  It’s time for you to join them and become a Max Performance athlete.