In-season Training and Offseason Training Tips for Athletes
Tips for In-Season vs Off-Season Training
Do You Know The Difference Between In- and Off-Season Training?
If you are hoping to improve your athletic skills or gain a competitive edge then the training you do out of season is just as important as the training you do during your competitive season. The approach to training, however, is not the same throughout the entire year.
During off-season training you are working to maximize gains in strength, power, endurance, and speed and addressing any injuries or weaknesses that may predispose you to injury.
Once you begin your competitive season, however, your goals should be to maintain as many of the gains you earned in the off-season while ensuring proper recovery between competitions and practices. Keep reading to learn more tips about how to structure your off-season versus in-season training regimens.
OFF SEASON IS THE TIME TO HUSTLE
While it may seem like the off-season is the time to relax and recover after finishing your competitive season, your time will be much better spent in the training room. It's true, in order to prevent burnout, you need to ensure that you make time for things you enjoy such as spending time with friends and family and participating in other hobbies that interest you. It is also important, however, that you spend your time wisely if you want to be in shape to perform at your best when practices and competitions resume.
So what is so special about the off-season? One of the reasons the off-season is the ideal time to develop things like strength, power, speed, and endurance is because you do not have to worry about how these workouts may negatively affect your performance during a competition. Strength, power, and speed development, for example, require performing exercises at high intensity which leads to muscle micro-injury and fatigue and can result in delayed onset muscle soreness. None of these things is ideal for a player that is about to line up on the blocks for their next track race or step onto the field for their soccer match.
During the off-season you will often deprioritize some of the sport-specific drills and exercises, at least until pre-season training begins, and you will spend more time on the following:
Muscle hypertrophy and strength development: improving muscle recruitment and increasing muscle size should be a priority of the off-season. Lifting heavy (but within your capabilities) is what leads to muscle hypertrophy. If you haven’t done this type of training before it’s important that a trainer or physical therapist observes your form. Lifting heavy, when done correctly and in the right volume, will lead to gains in strength, but done incorrectly can definitely lead to injury
Power development: Power workouts involve developing the ability to apply or create maximum force as quickly as possible. A sprinter requires power to explode off the blocks. A defensive tackle requires power to quickly oppose the equally powerful forces generated by the offensive line. A javelin thrower needs to generate power to propel the javelin as far as possible. Plyometrics are an example of a power workout. Lifting for power involves moving loads near your 1 rep max performed at low volumes. Workouts to develop power should build upon a foundation of good strength and good biomechanics and should be tailored to meet the demands of your specific sport.
Anaerobic conditioning and aerobic endurance: Building aerobic endurance and anaerobic conditioning requires a lot of time to develop and plenty of time for recovery. If your sport requires you to run a lot at a moderate speed with bouts of sprinting, for example, soccer or lacrosse, you can use your off season time to work on your endurance with plenty of long slow runs and your speed with some carefully crafted speed workouts. If you want to move up to a longer distance swimming event, for example, then spending more time in the pool swimming longer distances will build your capacity to compete at these distances more efficiently.
Injury rehabilitation and prevention: If you came out of the competitive season with any nagging injuries this is the time to address them. Working with a physical therapist that is familiar with your sport will ensure that your rehabilitation program is tailored to the demands of the sport you play. Did that nagging ache or pain go away after the season ended and you got to take some time off? Great! You should still consult a physical therapist or work with an athletic trainer though, because the reduction in volume may account for the improvement in your symptoms but failing to address the underlying problems that led to your injury ensures it will likely return as practices ramp up and the season starts again
Sport-specific skill development: You’re right, we did say in the beginning that sport specific skill development takes a back seat during the off-season but as you approach the pre-season time frame you should begin to incorporate more sport specific drills to improve neuromuscular control. Practicing these skills as you approach the competitive season will help build motor patterns that improve proficiency and precision on game day.
IN-SEASON IS NOT THE TIME TO REST EITHER
Many athletes put in a lot of great work during the off-season only to lose it when the season starts because they aren’t sure how to adapt their workouts to the demands of in-season training and competition. If you experienced muscle fatigue and soreness after workouts during the off-season you may be hesitant to keep lifting because, as we pointed out above, this is not how you want to feel when you wake up on the day of a competition or game. With some modification to the programming, however, you will be able to keep up a training routine that will help you maintain the strength and power gains, improvements in neural connections, and changes in body composition that you worked so hard for in the off-season.
Keep lifting heavy but lower the volume: You became strong in the off season by lifting heavy weights. If you stop lifting those heavy weights you will definitely lose strength but lowering the volume to fewer sets will help maintain muscle mass without impacting performance
Focus on recovery: Recovery is king during this time. Tissue work like foam rolling, stretching, and using the massage gun can help reduce soreness and tightness. Getting enough sleep, staying hydrated, and fueling properly are also incredibly important to help heal any small injuries and allow the body to recover fully.
Keep up an injury prevention routine: Proper dynamic warm up and accessory muscle activation, for example, prior to practices and competitions can prevent injury. The best routine to warm up and get muscles fired up and ready to meet the demands of your sport will depend on the sport you play. A physical therapist can help you develop a personalized warm up routine to get your muscles and tendons ready for play and reduce the likelihood of injury.
Address aches and pains right away: Employing the “wait-and-see” approach is a bad idea. What may initially feel like merely an annoyance can quickly turn into a full blown injury if not addressed quickly. While you might worry that if you talk with your coach or trainer you could lose valuable playing time, handling these issues when they first develop can save you from sitting out more than just a game or two.
A WELL-THOUGHT OUT TRAINING PROGRAM IS A WINNER
After reading this article you should feel more confident in the type of work needed to maximize performance both in-season and off-season. By understanding how to make the most of your off-season and how to maintain those gains as you enter the season of competitive games, meets, and matches, you will be well on your way to being the best athlete you can be.
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