COACHES UNDERSTAND THE value of sound preparation in the weeks and months leading up to the football season. As part of this process, you should encourage your players to participate in a rigorous off-season strength and conditioning program.

Unfortunately, there’s often little thought given to how progress made in the spring and summer will be maintained or even built upon during the season.

If I were to ask you what time of year you would like to have your players be at their strongest and most fit, what would your answer be? I’m certain you’ll agree that you want your players at their best during the season! Why then is there so little emphasis placed on the in-season strength program?

Certainly, film breakdown, scouting opponents and the other details associated with game planning take precedent. A real or perceived lack of time or understanding of what to do or how to go about it can make implementing an in-season strength program seem that much more difficult.

Here are a few ideas the Baltimore Ravens have used to implement and manage a successful in-season program.

Head Coach Support
Head coach Brian Billick knows the value of a properly designed and administered strength-training program. It can improve performance potential, reduce the incidence of injury or lessen its severity. If an injury does occur, a player who’s stronger or fit will return to the field sooner.

For these reasons, he sets aside specific times in the weekly schedule for our players to lift weights. A weightlifting workout is considered as important as a meeting or practice. All players participate and there are consequences for tardiness or missed workouts.

In team meetings, coach Billick frequently mentions the importance of strength training in each player’s weekly preparation. Because the head coach reinforces its significance, it has become important to the players.

Keep Your Players Accountable
Players will be more likely to follow a program that is sensible and organized. If the head coach has allocated time for the players to train, make good use of it!

Design a schedule so that everyone has an assigned time and therefore a commitment. Take the total time available and divide it into equal time blocks that are long enough to allow a workout to be completed.

Next, divide the team into the number of groups to fill those blocks. The team can be divided into either offensive and defensive groups or three groups:

Group 1  Offensive, defensive linemen.
Group 2  Tight ends, linebackers, running backs, quarterbacks, punters and kickers.
Group 3  Wide receivers and defensive backs.

If you have the luxury of an extended window of time, divide your team into smaller groups that work out every 30, 45 or 60 minutes until the entire team is done.

When the schedule has been set, post it for all to see. It’s critical to track attendance on a chart so that all of your players and coaches have a visual reminder of who’s working hard everyday and to keep players accountable.

Keep Things Simple
The next step involves designing the workout. In most instances, sticking with basic, multi-joint exercises is the most effective and efficient way to get results.

With proper supervision, leg presses and/or moderate to higher rep squats, hamstring curls, knee extensions and some calf exercises will cover the lower body.

Various pressing exercises with barbells, dumbbells or machines will take care of the shoulders and chest, while chin-ups, pull-downs and rows will train the upper back.

For collision sports such as football, include strengthening exercises for the neck and traps. Have your players also do some rotator cuff and grip work.

Finally, don’t neglect training the abdominal muscles and lower back. Make up workout cards or use some method to record and monitor progress (see the April/May 2001 issue of Gridiron Strategies, page 8, for tips on tracking workout progress). The positive reinforcement of seeing strength levels increase will enhance the players’ enthusiasm for training!

Keeping in mind the physical limits imposed by each player’s genetic makeup, everyone can improve through consistent and progressive training.