By Shaun Rodgers, Physiotherapist
Dominate Your Next AFL Season: Off-Season Physio Tips for Teenage Players
With the AFL season recently coming to a close, the players are getting a well deserved break, as are you!
If you want to know how to get the most out of your off season in order to bounce into next year's AFL season, keep reading for expert physiotherapy tips.
These are some key principles that can help you get the most out of your off season so that you return refreshed, fit and robust to take on next season, ready to dominate!
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1. Start with an off-season plan
It is worth taking time to make a plan for your off season and taking stock of how you feel now.
What do you feel you need?
An extended rest?
Work on your strength?
Work on your flexibility?
Noting down what you feel you need and making SMART goals for the off season can be helpful.
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2. Rest can be productive including de-load weeks
It is called the “off season” for a reason.
Relative rest is helpful to restore your energy levels so training at the intensity you were in-season is not recommended.
Schedule your week so you have time doing things you enjoy that are not physically exhausting - this might be a walk with friends, some leisurely golf, getting coffee, whatever works for you. Nevertheless, it is important to keep some fitness levels up (see point 3!).
While you are training in the off season, de-load weeks can be another useful tool.
This might be every 4 weeks where instead of for example, doing 2 gym sessions and 2 runs you might do 1 gym session and 1 run, substituting those other 2 sessions for some coffee with friends, this allows your body to have “mini-breaks” in your off-season and helps with keeping your training effective and purposeful.
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3. KEEPING FIT IN THE AFL OFF-SEASON
As mentioned, rest can be productive, however, we want to achieve a balance of recovery in the off season but also maintain a level of fitness so that we can go into pre-season with the capacity to perform effectively.
This is where your plan comes into play, having a schedule helps us stay consistent and accountable. This may look different for each athlete as we all have different needs.
For example, you may feel like your cardiovascular fitness is really good but you lack upper body strength.
In this case you might schedule an extra upper body workout day into your week, or you might add an extra set into your upper body workout exercises, or you might even add 2-3 upper body exercises at the end of your leg day.
The question to ask yourself is what do I actually need?
4. SPRINTING IN THE OFF-SEASON
Now I don’t mean the Netflix documentary as much as that was enjoyable, I mean you should sprint, even in your off season.
Hamstring injuries have the highest incidence and prevalence in AFL with an average of 6.5 injuries per club in the 2021 season.
An enormous amount of force is generated by your hamstring when you sprint/complete high speed running. If your hamstrings are not used to this force, this can predispose them to injury when running fast.
Therefore, in your off season, you should keep up a level of high speed running.
The prescription may look different depending on your position, previous injury history or current injury status.
Your physiotherapist can help you with programming this into your schedule.
5. AFL Sport specific skills and deficits
It can be a good idea to keep up your sport specific skills like kicking, catching and fending. This can even be in a kick-about with your mates.
Repetition of skills helps them become automatic, so keeping this up in the off season to a lower intensity can be helpful.
The off season can also give us time to work on any deficits we may have.
As mentioned above, some of us might want to work on flexibility, others strength, others cardiovascular fitness.
Getting assessed by a physiotherapist can be helpful to ascertain where our deficits lie and how we can address them.
We have VALD strength testing technology in clinic to assess your power, strength and endurance accurately so that we can give you an objective measure of where you are at.
This tech is exactly what the AFL clubs use, and you can access this at our Malvern East, Blackburn and Essendon clinics.
6. ENJOY SOME DOWN TIME
Finally, enjoy it!
This is your time to recharge and spend time doing what you love.
If you want any advice on planning for your off season, developing an off-season plan, getting screened for deficits with our technology or help with an injury, get in contact!
We excel at helping athletes achieve their goals.
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LEARN How OUR MELBOURNE SPORTS PHYSIO TEAM can help you?
At Melbourne Sports Physiotherapy our goal is to get you moving pain free as soon as possible.
But, we also want you to actually move better and live a healthier, more active and fulfilling life!
If your sports, fitness training or work has been wearing your body down, book in with one of our expert massage therapists so we can help you reduce your pain or stiffness.
If you are showing some signs of this condition or simply want help prevent this from happening in the future then book in with one of our highly experienced Remedial Massage Therapists today!
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