Rugby fullback training program

Do you gas out after a couple of sprints? Do you struggle with the initial intensity of the game but come back as the opposition tires?

These questions often give a better insight into your fitness training needs than a one off test. Maximal Aerobic Speed training is a great way to build you aerobic capacity for rugby. It involves determining your MAS from a 5min running test and then using it to program individual specific intervals. There are loads of variations to use and the MAS numbers make it an easy way to program progression. If you have access to a good hill then you can get one hell of a fitness session in.

It should be clear by now that you fitness training should improve your ability to produce specific work that you perform in a game and obviously sprinting is high up there! The ability to repeat sprint efforts with minimal drop off in performance is extremely important for rugby players. Some of your rugby fitness workouts should include sprint efforts with relatively short rest periods to simulate the fitness demands of a game.

High Intensity Interval training is a must for anyone who is serious about getting fitter for rugby. These types of sessions will include change of direction, down and ups and of course a variety of different distance sprints.

All of these elements make them a rugby specific and tough fitness training workout. These types of sessions are short and intense which makes them a good choice to add at the end of your rugby training to add a conditioning stimulus. The majority of your running should be done on the field but treadmill fitness sessions can be a good way to reintegrate following an injury or as a change of pace when the pitch is water logged! Difficult to perform really high intensity fitness sessions as it takes a while to get up to speed but great for aerobic work and slightly less stressful on the joints.

You see rugby fitness is more about repeated high intensity sprint efforts and physical work than running continuously for long periods of time. To really persuade you would you want to play rugby if you had the physique of a distance runner?! Complexes are great for challenging the whole body under load for a continuous time. They will improve grip strength, body composition and conditioning.

A barbell complex consists of typically barbell exercises performed back to back without putting the bar down. Loaded heavy they can be really tough. The only issue is that usually one exercise limits the load. For instance you can squat and deadlift way more than you can overhead press.

Resistance circuits involve using a selection of strength training exercises organised in a circuit to elicit a fitness effect as well as building strength. These help with preparing you for the physical aspects of rugby like rucking, mauling, scrummaging and tackling.

The goal here is to be able to produce force repeatedly with as little fatigue as possible. Strongman training is a great addition to a rugby fitness training plan. It adds variety and the exercises tend to challenge the body in compromised positions that you may just find yourself in during a game!

Farmers walks, tyre flips, sandbags and keg toss are good places to start. Really good option for front five players. Kettlebells , if used correctly, build a strong grip, back and core something that will really help your fitness and rugby performance.

They are also an excellent teaching tool to learn how to hip hinge properly. Rugby Kettlebell Workout. Medballs are great for building total body fitness for rugby. There are tons of exercises you can use which challenge the body differently to other exercises.

Full body explosive exercises repeated with short rest periods is a great way to get fitter and build explosive power and rotational core strength. They are ideal for teams and individual training…. These five drills will improve your foot speed and coordination….

Flexibility Exercises for Hockey Increased flexibility may reduce the risk of certain injuries. It may also allow a rugby player to move with greater dexterity, agility and finesse….

But can it be prevented or treated? Physiological and anthropometric characteristics of amateur rugby league players. Br J Sports Med. The relation between running speed and measures of strength and power in professional rugby league players. Journal of Strength Conditioning Research ; Aerobic exercise physiology in a professional rugby union team.

Int J Cardiol. A series of studies on the training of high-intensity muscle power in rugby league football players. You can look at the chart below and gauge where your weight should be, depending on your age.

At junior levels, a rugby fullback who picks up weight gradually might be overlooked in favour of the heavier guys. As you slowly gain weight you rely on your skills to get ahead in the game.

Then eventually, when you are as big and strong as the brutes, they have no skills to fall back on. One of the best ways to learn a position, is by studying how the best in the world go about it. Choose one player that resembles you in physique and attributes, then track everything about them. I enjoy watching Stuart Hogg. He is an all-round solid player and an excitement machine.

Not to mention the fact that he can really kick. Watch the video below to see a massive punt from him:. To be a rugby fullback, you must either be THE fastest or one of the fastest players on the field. Your team entrusts to cover a ton of space in the back field. They are confident that you are the best player on the field at exploiting that space too. A rugby fullback will rarely run more than 40m at once.

This means that top end speed is secondary to acceleration. Your acceleration is dependent on two factors:. You can increase the amount of force you can produce by doing strength exercises like front squats and box jumps. Your rate of force production can be developed through plyometric movements such as box jumps and broad jumps.

One of the biggest challenges new fullbacks face is positioning. It can be hard to decide when to move up into the backline and when to hang back, as cover. Whilst those players suffering back injuries were associated with poor shoulder symmetry, scapulae abduction, back asymmetry and spiral malalignments such as kyphosis lordosis and scoliosis.

Musculoskeletal screening of all players and an individualised prehabilitation training program designed for year round use. Ensure selection of players for specific positions is based around the knowledge and experience of the player having played in the position and having the body type to fill the demands of the position.

Each prop touches the opponents upper arm and then pause before the front rows meet. Warm Up — Dynamic Movement Drills. Work through this list of exercises and perform the movement over 22 metres where applicable or for 15 repetitions each leg, prior to performing the movements move around at a progressively quicker pace for 5 minutes.

The loading phase of each jump should be as brief as possible. Every jump should emphasise a vigorous thrusting up of the arms. Time will simply be wasted if your effort is not maximal. Rest between 1 and 2 minutes between sets and initially perform 1 set of 4 different exercises for 10 repetitions per set, a total of 40 contacts.

Increase this by 10 contacts per week until you are at contacts per workout, do not exceed contacts per workout. You should do the jump workout twice per week after you have completed the dynamic warm up drills above and before any other training. Bench blasts — one foot is on a workout bench and the other is on the floor, push off high into the air and alternate foot position on landing. Iso squat jump — hold a static quarter squat position for 10secs and then vertical jump from that position.

As everyone connected to sport realises the first function of the strength and conditioning coach is to minimise the risk of injury. From this principle evolved the CARE program. Injuries to all major joints are possible. Some of the mechanics of the injury make them impossible to prevent, but with adherence to an overall conditioning program, they may be minimised.