There was a study done years ago in a scientific journal that looked at excelling ice hockey players and what attributes they have off-ice that separate themselves from the rest of the pack and help them excel in the game of hockey. Ever since reading the article in my early career as a hockey coach and strength and conditioning coach I have used it as a guideline for my programming and how I trained athletes. Consequently, these are still some of our guiding principles with what we do at F.A.S.T. 14 years later.
#1 Lower Body Power
This is no surprise. Hockey revolves around the ability to skate, skate fast, and usually in quick, anaerobic (less than 6 second) bursts. The ability to propel yourself forward quickly will get you to more loose pucks, create separation from other players, move to an area on the ice before someone else, close your gap on offensive players, etc. With that being said, the best skaters are often the ones with the most lower body strength and power.
- Power is the ability to apply force over a certain time period, so think about creating maximum effort bursts of force over the shortest amount of time possible. This power is what separates the high performers from the pack. In your training, prioritize plyometrics, jumping, and sprinting short distances will all improve your power. In these exercises make sure you are going "all out" every time and allowing yourself maximum rest between bouts.
#2 Pulling Strength
The second physical attribute on the list was upper body pulling strength. For some of you this might seem odd, but the ability to pull is an often overlooked aspect in your overall total strength and some of the most important muscles in your body responsible for major functions lie on your back side! AKA NOT bench press and biceps muscles.... In this case specifically for hockey players, we are thinking about pulling strength from a vertical position and the LAT (lattisimus dorsi) muscle with the role it plays in shooting and hockey specific movements. The LAT muscle (and core musculature) is a major component of diagonal movement patterns involved with shooting in hockey as well as other hockey movement patterns so players who have strength in these muscles and are able to "pull" a lot of weight will be stronger in those areas. NOTE: Being stronger doesn't necessarily mean you will have a better hockey shot as it is a skill based movement requiring accuracy as well. The same reason Bryson Dechambeau can hit a golf ball on the PGA Tour a mile long but doesn't always hit the fairway or win golf tournaments....
-Think about Pullups and Rows! These are the major movements associated with upper body pulling strength and the more you strengthen these movement patterns the better player you will become. There are monkey bars for pullups at almost every playground in America (assuming most of my readers here live in the US) and many different variations of rows. Get creative, no excuses.
#3 Body Composition
The third attribute from the scientific research talked about body composition. As mentioned earlier with lower body power, much of hockey is played at a high rate of speed and therefore the energy systems needed to excel in the sport are anaerobic in nature pushing your body to workloads 70-90+% of your max heart rate. That's no joke. Your body is not going to be able to withstand this kind of output very long if you don't have a physique that is capable of performing like this. Body fat will slow down your engine and prevent you from working at your fullest capacity. Body fat percentages above 10-12% for boys and 14-18% for girls is counterproductive to what you are trying to accomplish on the ice.
-Body composition comes down to how you train, your daily habits, and most importantly, what you consume (food and drink)! Training with intervals of high intensity followed by some rest time or circuits with multiple exercises done together will help promote a healthy body composition. Daily habits like staying hydrated, regular sleep/wake times, and regular meal times are a major part of your fitness. Finally, what you eat and drink has a MAJOR impact on your body composition. Sugary sodas/sports drinks, sweets, fried foods, and junk food (not calorie dense) will absolutely destroy your body composition. You do not have to be perfect with your eating and drinking habits, but you need to eat well and be consistent to show long term results.
These were the findings from the research studies and these are three key factors you can keep in mind while training to be the best you can be in your hockey pursuits. These three attributes are also tested annually at the NHL Combine prior to the NHL Draft. Prospective draft picks are measured on these attributes and more as their draft profiles and future success in the sport are projected from all NHL teams.
If you are looking for ways to improve these elements of your training, I have been working with Youth, NCAA, and Pro hockey players to improve their performance for 14 years and I would love to help you make your next career step as well! We currently have an online training program as well as 1-on-1 and small group trainings available in Chicago. Get in touch with us and let's get to work!
