Sharpening
Hey, we’re not talking skate sharpening here!!
Alright, camp or tryouts are right around the corner at this point. You need to be at peak efficiency on-ice. Now is the time to back way down on your lifting and running volume and ramp up your skating. My guys still lift heavy, but the number of overall sets is down to 4-5, and I want them out of the gym in about 45 minutes, tops. They may still lift 4 days but often drop down to 3. Running may be eliminated, and incorporated into the warm-up. The more you skate, the less you will run.
Remember you can maintain strength levels for several weeks on one or two heavy lifts- 3 x 3 on several multi-joint, ground based exercises(squats/deads/shoulder press) get rid of the specialization stuff for now, BUT, keep after any pre-hab work that you need for specific joint health(scap stabilization for a bad shoulder) These specialized exercises have a very low CNS cost, so they will not cost you on-ice.
Go into training camp or tryouts in peak physical form and let the chips fall where they may!
