THERE is shimmer of a light at the end of the tunnel of this whole lockdown period with the ease up on restrictions enabling some outdoor small group training – as long as it’s not for a team (but if you all played for different teams, batter away…)

As we head towards some form of a return to normality, I decided to look back at some articles I’ve written at this time of the year in the past for inspiration for this week’s piece. Throwback Thursday is on. Opening paragraphs incoming!

June 2nd 2014 –

If someone asked you what are the three most common patterns of movement when you step on to the pitch, what would you say? I’ve talked at length about how our beautiful game is a multi-directional sport, so training in straight lines isn’t the best way for you to improve your speed, but one thing that’s often forgotten is that as well as moving back and forward, and from side to side, there is A LOT of jumping.

June 1st 2015 –

“I will put on weight if I eat a BBQ every night”- FICTION!

When it comes to weight gain it’s more often than not a question of calories in versus calories out. So whether you’re getting your dinner from the oven, the hob or the BBQ it’s a more a question of how much rather than where from. Plus, BBQ’s are awesome. Stick on a few chicken fillets and a nice thin steak, pair that up with a big green salad and you couldn’t beat it!

May 27th 2016 –

The schedule of the modern GAA player is from another world. Take in to consideration we play an amateur sport, therefore we’ve got full time jobs or study to do as well as train and compete at our chosen level. I’ll use the Tyrone hurlers as an example. Twelve games in 13 weeks. That is a relentless fixture list. Any given individual will have to commit to multiple training sessions with their county, individual strength programming, club fulfilments as well as their day job. Doesn’t leave much time for family, and less again for friends!

May 30th 2017 –

“Attitude is everything” is a powerful quote. A bad attitude is like a flat tyre, if you don’t change it then you’ll never go anywhere. I can tell fairly early on what sort of attitude my clients have. How receptive they are to the advice I’m giving them, how hard they’re willing to push themselves out of their comfort zone, how quickly they throw the head up and make excuses when things aren’t going their way.

May 29th 2019 –

What’s your initial advice for players after picking up an injury?

The first thing is to protect it from further harm, this may mean withdrawing from the game/training and get it assessed by your team physio/doctor. Getting on the right track from the outset is key to not making it worse and not losing precious time in the rehab process. The other basics to consider here are adequate hydration, avoid anti-inflammatories unless medically advised; The sympathy beers are also not a good idea, alcohol should be avoided in that acute phase!

27th of May 2020 –

The more things change the more they stay the same. You should still be practicing better jump and landing mechanics every time you go out on the field. Weight loss, or gain for that matter, is still a case of calorie balance. Your attitude will dictate the success you have in whatever it is you’re trying to achieve. If you get injured, seek help from a physio straight away and get on top of it as quickly as you can.

And finally, never again will we complain about a fixture pile up or playing too many games in a short space of time. Those hurlers back in 2016 didn’t know how lucky they were.

For more training and nutritional advice you can catch me on Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook by simply searching PGthePT.

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