1. The Not-Really-A-Program Program
General Sport Conditioning
INTRODUCTION
So you want to start a sport conditioning program to get ready for the upcoming season. Whether you
play recreationally or are a week-end warrior, it’s good to prep your body during your off-season to give
yourself a head start when your season arrives. As athletes, you’ll want to take time off to rest your
bodies after the season is over. Taking 2-3 weeks off from anything too physical is great idea and in the
world of athletics it’s known as the recovery period. Once you’ve taken a few weeks off though, it’s
time to start prepping your body for the long season ahead. There are countless programs designed to
get you in shape for the season but even the very best designed programs will fail if they aren’t
enjoyable and you end up not doing them or can’t fit them into your summer schedule. Most require a
big time commitment during a time where you just want to enjoy your summer holiday so…introducing
the Not-Really-A-Program Program! This is designed to require no equipment and takes you through 4
fundamental areas of fitness. You can adjust the program to fit your time requirements and it’s so
adaptable, there’s really no excuse not to try it!
For those of you that are looking to prepare for the season ahead, I’ll give you examples of some of the
best exercises you can do to get ready that will include core, balance, plyometric and
strength/conditioning training without the need for equipment. No equipment means you can do this
anywhere and anytime. All you need to do is choose any one of the exercises listed for Core, Balance,
Plyometric and Strength and do them one after the other without a rest…that’s the conditioning part!
Don’t have time for all of them? No problem…just pick a couple core and balance moves and do them
while you’re watching TV. Anything that you can do from those two categories in the off-season will
CORE
BALANCE
STRENGTH
PLYOMETRICS
 All your
strength and
power starts
with a strong
core!

2. benefit you when you hit the ice, field, court or wherever you play and will give you the edge over your
competition.
Nothing beats staying flexible. A proper flexibility program can keep you playing
at your best and lower you chance at injury. If nothing else, you should strive to
incorporate the following stretching program during the summer. The stretches I
use here are for those muscles that are usually tight in an athlete…the calf, hip
flexors and lat muscles. Stretching before a game can actually limit your strength
and explosiveness so you should be doing very little stretching pre-game and
when you do, it should only be these 3 stretches. Besides…stretching before a
game is so 1980’s!
FOAM ROLLER-STATIC STRETCH: If you don’t have a foam roller you should get
one because, well…Ovechkin and Crosby use them so why not you right? If you
do have one then great…you are well ahead of everyone else! A good strategy is
to foam roll and then right after do some stretching of the muscles that are typically tight in an athlete.
To foam roll, hold the roller on a tight spot for 30 seconds and move onto the next spot. You can spend
maybe 5-6 minutes per side if you’re short on time. The stretches we do right after foam rolling should
be held for 30 seconds. This type of stretching is called static stretching. It all comes together like this:
CALF--- QUADRUCEPS---LAT MUSCLE
THEN
FLEXIBILITY
 Instead of
the word flexible
we should really
use “optimal
range of motion”
You can actually
be too flexible
and it’s really not
a good idea to
stretch muscles
that don’t really
need it.

3. If that’s all you can do during the summer then you’ve done a good job at increasing your range of
motion for some very important muscles and lessened your risk of injury. But there is more you can do if
you choose. Let’s get into things by starting with the warm-up
The warm up can help prepare your body as well as your mind for the game ahead. You want to use the
warm up as a period where you start thinking about the game. It’s important to start to develop your
own pre-game rituals and start to develop your own warm up that best prepares YOU. As a general rule,
a good warm up has the following pieces and should last about 5-10 minutes.
1. Foam rolling
2. Static Stretch tight muscles OR if no muscles are tight;
3. Light cardio such as jump rope or jog in place
4. Dynamic stretching
Dynamic stretches will take your body through similar movements that you will see in most sports while
moving your muscles through a full range of motion…so think lunging and twisting. Think of the warm
up as movement prep so try to do some moves that are similar to what you will use in your activity…like
hockey or baseball. There are hundreds but here’s a few top notch moves:
WARM UP

4. CORE (30 seconds)
Plank
Side Plank
Floor Bridge
Floor Cobra
Quadruped
BALANCE (30 seconds)
Single Leg Balance
Single Leg Lift/Chop
Single Leg Windmill
Single Leg Balance Reach
PLYOMETRIC (8 reps)
Squat Jump
Jump Forward
Jump To The Side
Jump Transverse
STRENGTH (30 seconds)
Squats
Narrow Push-Ups
Jack, Push, Climb
Forward Lunge
REST-30 Seconds
Repeat as many
times as you have
time for
PLYOMETRIC (8 reps)
Squat Jump
Jump Forward
Jump To The Side
Jump Transverse
STRENGTH (30 seconds)
Squats
Narrow Push-Ups
Jack, Push, Climb
Forward Lunge
Here’s how it works…pick one or two exercises from each box below and complete them in a circuit
fashion (that’s one right after the other without resting) and then rest for 30 seconds. If you have more
energy and time then do 2-3 rounds because you’re an athlete in training and that’s how we roll.
Complete each section for 30 seconds except for plyometrics where you will do 8 reps.
JUNE
**Check the glossary at the end of the guide to
see the exercises
**If the Single Leg Balance is too easy, make it
harder by closing your eyes
**Hold the landing on the plyometric moves for
3-5 seconds. When you jump, explode with all
you’ve got!
The Non-Program Program

5. REST-1 Minute
Repeat as many
times as you have
time for
CORE (1 minute)
Crunch
Russian Twist
1-Leg Floor Bridge (30
seconds)
Plank (45-60 seconds)
Side Plank with Leg Raise
PLYO (1 minute)
Tuck Jump (8 Reps)
Butt Kick (8 Reps)
Lunge Jump (8 Reps)
Jump Rope (1 Minute)
BALANCE (1 minute)
Single Leg Squat Touchdown
Forward Lunge With Balance
Side Lunge With Balance
Transverse Lunge With
Balance
Single Leg Balance (Standing
On Pillow)
STRENGTH (1 minute)
Push-up With Rotation
Burpee
Pike Press
Split Squat
Jump Jacks
Wall Sits
JULY
**Time to increase the intensity.
Each exercise lasts a minute now.
**During the plyometric moves
you will no longer be holding the
landing. The jumps are done
explosively one after the other for
8-10 reps. Still have more of your
minute left? Do another plyo move
or jump rope to finish off.

6. REST-1 Minute
Repeat as many
times as you have
time for
CORE (1 minute)
Crunch
Single Leg Floor Bridge
Russian Twist
Plank
Side Plank
PLYO (1 minute)
Ice Skaters
Forward Bounding-Single Leg
Line Hops-
Forward/Side/Transverse
Forward Jumping-2 Legs
BALANCE (1 minute)
Single Leg Squat Reach
Single Leg Hop Forward/back
Single Leg Hop Side to Side
Single Leg Hop Diagonal
STRENGTH (1 minute)
Mountain Climbers
Burpees
Plank to Sphinx
Push-ups With Rotation
Jack-Push-Climb
Alligator Crawl
One-Leg Wall Sits
AUGUST
**You’re nearing the end so get
your mind into it and give these all
you have. Each month builds upon
the last. Do this routine for 3 weeks
and take the 4th week off with some
flexibility work.

7. **Most movements are shown but some of the more common ones that you would know are left out
such as jump rope, burpees etc**
JUNE
Plank Side Plank
Floor
Bridge
Floor
Cobra
Quadruped
Single Leg
Lift/Chop
Single Leg
Windmill
Single Leg
Balance
Reach
Squat
Jumps
Forward
Jump
Side Jump
Transverse
Jump
Forward
Lunge
Jack-Push-
Climb
This is 1 jump Jack-1 Push up-1
Mountain Climber
GLOSSERY OF MOVES

8. JULY
Crunch
Russian
Twist
1-Leg Floor
Bridge
Single Leg
Squat
Touchdown
Forward
Lunge with
Balance
Side Lunge
with
Balance
Transverse
Lunge with
Balance
Tuck Jump
Butt
Kickers
Lunge Jump
Push up
with
Rotation
Pike Press
Split Squat Wall Sits

9. AUGUST
Single Leg
Squat
Reach
Single Leg
Hop
Forward
Single Leg
Hop Side
Single Leg
Hop
Diagonal
Ice
Skaters
Line Hops
Forward
Line Hops
Side
Line Hops
Transverse
Mountain
Climbers
Plank To
Sphinx
Alligator
Crawl
Forward
Jumping

10. So, the whole program can be done
without any equipment at all plus, you
can pick your own routine by mixing and
matching the exercises…how can it get
any better than that? I’ll bet there are a
few of you that want just a bit more.
Well, welcome to the bonus section.
Every athlete knows that no training
camp can be complete without some
sort of speed, agility or quickness drills.
If you want to take your training outside then try some of these drills.
Sometime around mid-July is a good time to start.
Speed: Hockey players rarely need maximum speed training. Instead, it’s best to work on acceleration
drills. Pick an area where you have about 10 yards that you can run. The trick is to start your sprint as
quickly as possible, accelerate as fast as you can and stop at the 10 yard line. You can do about 8 of
these but you MUST rest between each one. Each trial must be maximum effort and you can’t give your
best if you are still winded or your legs are tired from the first try. Change your starting position also, for
instance start form a laying down position, from a side shuffle start, from a backward peddle start etc.
Agility/Quickness
If you can get outside then these are some great drills you can do with a couple cones.
BONUS—SAQ Training!
 These agility drills are
great for developing
acceleration and deceleration
as well as being able to
change direction quickly. At
first, start off slowly until you
get the movement patterns
down then slowly increase
your speed. Excelling at these
drills also decreases your
chance of injury.
 While doing these drills
you should remain in the
athletic stance

11. Body Mechanics: A lot of young players are simply too upright when they skate. Stride length is
shortened the taller you stand. You can practice skating lower by both bending at the knee and at the
hip. There is no proper depth for every player; the proper depth is individual and based on your own
confort. Try getting lower in your stride and find the depth that is best for you.
Increase stride force: This is where off-season training comes in. Increasing the force produced by your
legs can be done by increasing the strength of your legs using proper exercise selection. Build strength
by doing strength exercises like squats (one-leg squats are awesome here so work your way up to doing
those) split squats and deadlifts will all work the legs and buttocks (those 2 big muscles you sit on---
those are the ones that drive the stride)
It’s important to increase the explosive power of your legs as well and this is where plyometric training
comes in. There are many but box jumps, split-squat jumps, depth-charges are all good but eventually
work your way up to single leg jumps.
Increase Stride Frequency: Increasing the quickness in which you can
recover your push leg back under your body is the aim. There are
exercises that can improve this such as any drill that has you move your
legs quickly (fast high knees for instance) but the best way to increase
stride frequency is more about making a conscious effort to return your
stride leg quickly. Practicing stride frequency on the ice seems to be a
better way at creating the body memory needed to move your legs
quickly. Cueing vs. training seems to work best here.
Arm Swing: Not directly related to stride but I see this a lot. You see a
player skating as fast as they can with their arms swinging side to side.
Notes on Increasing Skate Speed
 Final thoughts: There’s
more that can be done to
train in the off-season but
hey, we wanted to keep this
simple, use as little equipment
as possible and not take up
too much of your time
Besides, you have camping,
bike-riding and summer
vacations and that stuff
doesn’t take care of itself!

12. What this does is takes away from your forward momentum by introducing side forces which works to
slow you down, not make you faster. Arm motion should be similar to that of a sprinter...that is your
arm motion should have a pumping action front to back.
Increasing skating speed is something that can be worked on both on and off the ice. As such, why not
make some time this summer to work on your off-ice work by increasing your plyometric and leg
strength workouts