BLOG: Offseason training (Linemen)

As I discussed in our last month’s article….(https://www.canadafootballchat.com/blog-football-training-outline/) off season training is upon us!

This week I would like to provide all the BIG MEN (aka the real skilled guys) an off season training programs!

The first thing I always tell my players is to take a couple weeks off to let your body recover after long season – Some athletes have been playing since April with summer and High school football.

Once you get back into the gym it may only be 3 sessions per week, focusing on unilateral exercises with dumbbells and pulleys.  We call this the Pre-hab phase – eliminate imbalances and strengthen the stabilizers.  The list of muscle groups we want to focus on include: hips, glutes, rotator cuff and rhomboids.  During this phase the reps will be higher and the rest periods less than 1 minute.  The Pre-hab phase will last for approximately 3-6 weeks through December and the beginning of January.   Upon completion you are now ready to increase your intensity and volume of training.

The Second phase is what we like to call Functional hypertrophy which means increasing your size and improving your strength base through exercises that are roughly 6-8 reps and the length of each set is 20-40 seconds.   Your rest periods are between 1-2 minutes in length and you will now begin 4 sessions of lifting per week.

Once you have increased their muscle mass through “Functional Hypertrophy”, you can focus on increasing your strength and power. Or what we call an “Intensification” phase, which will improve your maximal strength.

During this phase use compound lifts that are multi-joint exercises such as squats, deadlifts, presses, rows etc.

 

Here is an example of an Intensification phase

Day 1: Lower Body (Quad Dominant)

Order	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Tempo	Rest
A1	Squats	5	5	3010	2m
B1	Split Squats – Back Foot Elevated	3	5ea	2210	90s
B2	Lying Hamstring Curls – Alt Legs	3	5e	3010	90s
C1	Reverse Hypers	3	10	1010	90s
C2	Backwards Sled (heavy)	3	20yds	XXX	90s
D1	Grappler Rotations	3	15e	XXX	60s

 

Day 2: Upper (Vertical)

Order	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Tempo	Rest
A1	Standing DB Press	5	5	3010	90s
A2	Neutral Grip Chin Up (Negatives)	5	5	5 sec	90s
B1	45 Incline DB Press	3	5	3010	90s
B2	Lat Pulldowns – Supinated Grip	3	5	2011	90s
C1	Barbell Shrugs	3	8	1011	10s
C2	DB Shoulder Circuit – fwd, side, bent	3	6ea	2010	90s
D1	Neck Harness	3	15	1010	60s

 

 

 

Day 3: Lower (Posterior Chain)

Order	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Tempo	Rest
A1	Snatch Grip Deadlifts	5	5	2210	2m
B1	High Box Step Ups	3	5ea	2010	90s
B2	Glute Ham Raise	3	5	3010	90s
C1	45 Degree Back Extensions	3	8	2011	90s
C2	Forwards Sled (heavy)	3	20yds	XXX	90s
D1	Woodchoppers	3	10e	1010	60s

 

Day 4: Upper (Horizontal)

Order	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Tempo	Rest
A1	Close Grip Board Press (Football Bar)	5	5	2110	90s
A2	Bent Rows	5	5	2011	90s
B1	DB Bench Press Neutral Grip (Thick Gripz)	3	8	3010	90s
B2	1 Arm DB Rows	3	8	2011	90s
C1	Decline Tri Extensions – EZ Bar	3	8	3010	10s
C2	Thick Bar Curls	3	8	3010	90s
D1	Rolling Thunder (Grip Training)	3	15sec ea	hold	60s

 

SST likes to use 4 week training block with the first 2 weeks being full volume.  Starting in week 3 we drop training volume to approximately 80% by decreasing your sets by 1 per exercise.  In Week 4 we   deload (make it a lighter week) our athletes and drop the volume by up to 50%.  This will allow you to come back stronger on your week 1 in your next phase. By following this structure you allow your nervous system to recover and decrease the chances of overtraining.

Research has shown that Squats and Deadlifts are the best strengthening exercises for your “core” so the volume of traditional core exercises will decrease. We like to finish our upper body days  with neck strengthening, grip training or both.

If you have questions about training feel free to contact your local SST Facility.

Steve Bodanis

Sbodanis @sstcanada.com

SST Hamilton

www.sstcanada.com

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