Ice Hockey Training: Good Calories In, Mega Calories Out

To a non-fan, hockey may not seem to be that serious of a workout. For a professional level player, they play at bursts of around two minutes apiece and take breaks between periods. But, for those two minutes, the athlete is playing at maximum potential with full gear on and fighting off an opponent at the same time. Ice hockey training then must focus on more than just the basics of skating and can be an intense, advanced level work out that can torch high numbers of calories even for those who are not hockey players.

Ice hockey training focuses on agility, flexibility, speed, strength and balance. Each player’s position has additional aspects of play that they will focus on, but all start with these basics.

Imagine a goalie: he is the only player that remains on the ice for the entire game, unless he has had a really horrible performance and is replaced by the coach at some point. He must perform nearly acrobatic stops, even batting the puck out of the air and passing it up the ice to his players, hoping for an odd man rush. For the goalie then, the ice hockey training must be even more serious and dedicated because he will either be busy for the entire game or will face long periods when the action is all focused at the opposite end of the ice. During those times, the goalie must still be mentally alert but also remain active so that his body does not stiffen up, increasing his risk of serious injury. The ice hockey training is meant to keep everyone in the game and injury free, including the goalie.

Some of the aspects of ice hockey training might look a little familiar. For instance, they run for miles on end, sometimes on the treadmill but usually outdoors because they are used to cold temperatures. They also lift weights, including working the muscles of their entire body, from their shoulders down to their ankles.

Upper Body Ice Hockey Training

For the hockey player, a strong set of shoulders and arms is important to take and block shots and to keep the other players away from his goal. Hockey players have also been known to drop the gloves, so they have to be ready for a little fist-cuff action on the ice as well. To incorporate some of their training routines into your own, you will need to learn good form, some basic lifts and have a decent set of weights because they change up the weights or the number of repetitions to keep their muscles confused and to force themselves to stay focused on what they are doing.

Lower Body Ice Hockey Training

In addition to upper body strength, a hockey player works on the muscles of the lower body so that he can be strong and fast as well as agile and flexible. He will need to be able to change directions quickly and smoothly, take bursts of extreme speed and even dive onto the ice, all while wearing ice skates!

The Core of Ice Hockey Training

Above all, the hockey player has to focus on his core, his stability. The abdominal and lower back muscles are what he uses to keep himself upright on the ice, to stay balanced and to keep from falling down.

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