Workout
Some off-ice drills that will turn you into a Big Bad Washington Wolf in no time:
Sprints, Crossovers: Turn to the side and run sideways to your destination. Place one foot over the other with one step, then under the other with the next step. Once you’ve completed your distance, stay facing the same direction and return to the starting point.
Jump Rope: Combine long sweeping loops with short bursts of speed for optimum performance. The long sweeping loops are great for conditioning and endurance, but with the added short bursts, you’ll improve your agility and speed.
Jumping Bean (or Figure Eight): This one is great for goalies. Stand in the center of an imaginary square. You can place markers to indicate the corner of the square if you like. From the center, jump with both feet together to the upper left corner of the square, then to the bottom left, then back to the center, then to the upper right, then the bottom right, and back to the center. Continue doing this drill for 15-20 seconds, take a small break (about 10 seconds) and go the opposite way. You can also try doing this drill on one foot for the first 15-20 seconds, and then the other for the next 15-20 seconds.
Jumping Hourglass: This is another great goalie drill. Stand in the middle of an imaginary square with both feet together. You can place markers to indicate the corner of the square if you like. With both feet together, jump forward and land with your feet apart (larger than shoulder’s width, as far apart as possible). Then, without turning around, jump backwards to your original spot, landing with both feet together. From this position, jump backwards again, landing with your feet apart (again, larger than shoulder’s width), and then back to the center, landing with both feet together. Continue this drill for 15-20 seconds at a time. Alternate Drill – upon each landing with your feet apart, do a 180 degree turn.
Relay Sprints: Set up three cones or markers in a line, five yards apart. Start at the middle cone, sprint to the end cone, sprint to the other end cone, and then past the other end cone again. At each arrival to a cone, bend down and touch the ground. Alternate Drill – set up two lines of cones and race, or try to beat your own time.
Shuttle Drill: Set up four cones or markers in a line, five yards apart. Start at the first cone, sprint to the second, then back to the first. Sprint to the second cone, then back to the first. Sprint to the third cone, then back to the first. And finally, sprint to the last cone, and back to the first. At each arrival to a cone, bend down and touch the ground. Alternate Drill – set up two lines of cones and race, or try to beat your own time.
Rose’s Bike Workout: Stretch, then 3 min warm up on the bike. Then, in one minute intervals, do the following:
(1) Shift into a high gear for 15 seconds and pedal as fast as you possibly can; all out effort. (I go from 6 to 13 on the Kaisser bikes but do what works for you; if you have bad knees, skip this step and just pedal like the wind). This is to simulate an end-to-end breakaway.
(2) Downshift slightly for the next 30 seconds (I go from 13 to 8 or so). Give it about 75% effort … This is to simulate normal play where you’re moving your feet, not gliding by any means.
(3) Downshift for the last 15 seconds to super slow gear like 6 or less. Just let the pedals move your feet around. This is simulating a bit of gliding then resting on the bench.
Repeat the 1 min intervals above 10 times (more or less, you decide) — now you’ve skated one period. Do it for 3 periods, then cool down for 2 min. Entire workout takes 35 min.
Thanks to all 17 Washington Wolves who participated in the 2010 workout challenge! The average workout time in a week was 5 1/2 hours. Special congratulations to …
D team runners up: Jill and Sonja
C team runners up: Bethany and Stephanie
