It’s been another exciting week for me personally and for this site. We broke another traffic record (over 16,500 visits in the last 30 days!), again thanks to all of you passing along the posts you like to your friends, and I broke the 1,000 twitter follower threshold. I’m going to be doing more twitter Q&As in the future, so if you want me to answer your questions live, then go here to follow me! Follow Kevin on Twitter
Earlier in the week I posted a hockey conditioning article on a new thought process I have about a specific component of resistance training and how it improves fatigue resistance, as well as a great interview with Sean Skahan of the Anaheim Ducks. You can check out both at the links below:
Hockey Strength and Conditioning featured some great content this past week.
To get the week rolling, I added an article on “directional rolling”. Self-myofascial release work has become relatively accepted by most strength and conditioning programs over the last 5-10 years. That said, our understanding of the exact effects of what it does is still relatively limited, and we’re inevitably going to make changes as we move forward. This article dives into some information from Thomas Myers and how we should change our foam rolling protocols to make them more specific to our needs. Check it out at the link below.
Click here to read >> Directional Rolling
Darryl Nelson followed things up by posting two stretching/mobility/dynamic warm-up routines that he’s using with his players before practices and lifts now. Players appreciate variety in their warm-ups, especially pre-lift, so if you’re feeling stagnant with your current routine, this would be a great program to grab.
Click here to check out the warm-ups >> Stretching and Warm-Ups from Darryl Nelson
Finally, Jeff Cubos wrote what may be the best “call to action” suggestion on the NHL concussion epidemic that I’ve come across to date. I’ve been somewhat outspoken over the last few months about the importance of distinguishing between actually brain injuries (concussions) and the other few factors that can cause concussion-like symptoms (that are NOT concussions, but may be brought on by the same contact as the concussion, if there was a concussion at all). Jeff took a different angle on the issue and addressed why so many players are taking violent hits to begin with. Frankly, I think his suggestion is an inevitable part of hockey’s future.
Click here to read >> NHL Concussions: Have Our Players “Outgrown” Our Sport? from Jeff Cubos
The forums have also been hopping over the last week. Make sure you log in and check out these threads. And chime in! We’d love to hear from you.
That’s a wrap for today. As always, if you aren’t a member yet, I encourage you to try out Hockey Strength and Conditioning for a week. It’ll only cost $1, and if it’s not the best buck you’ve ever spent, I’ll personally refund you!
To your success,
Kevin Neeld
P.S. I have some really exciting stuff lined up for you next week so make sure you check back Monday!
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