Ice Hockey TRAINING
SPEED, AGILITY & STRENGTH TRAINING
FOR TODAY'S ice hockey PLAYERS
Athletic Republic is the leader in hockey training, with over 500 NHL players trained and four major Division I universities using our program. That includes the best players in the U.S., at the U.S. National Team Development Program in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Athletic Republic is the industry leader in hockey performance training—a systematic progression of hockey training programs appropriate for all ages. The programs are embedded with the science of properly developing hockey players, while safely taking them past their limits.
Athletic Republic Hockey prides itself on speed and separation, knowing that in the “new” NHL (and at every other league, at every other level), speed and power dictate success. That is why, at Athletic Republic Hockey, we provide our players a program specifically designed to “Light the Lamp.” Our programs are designed to increase any hockey player’s abilities on and off the ice. We offer a means to increase dynamic stability, lower body explosiveness, first-step quickness, and top end speed.
Plyometric Training
- Plyometric training is a very effective form of power training ideally suited to hockey. Hockey players perform specific plyometric drills for increased motor performance (coordination), explosive power, vertical jump height, lateral power and rotation, and landing strength.
- Plyometric training combines elements of both speed and strength in single movement patterns that include the Athletic Republic PlyoPress, cord technology, longitudinal and vertical jumps, box jumps, and medicine ball drills for upper body and middle body torso power.
Agility
- In an average hockey shift, a player changes direction 50-60 times. In order to improve agility skills, athletes learn a variety of agility drills, including advanced ground based agility patterns and a speed agility ladder.
- Ground-based agility patterns are conducted on our indoor turf, Plyo platform, and wood floor.
Cardiovascular/ Endurance Training
- Typically, the body takes anywhere from five to seven minutes to reach a comfortable cardiovascular output after the rise in heart rate. Because a hockey game lasts over an hour, with high-intensity, full-ice sprints, the body works in both the anaerobic and aerobic modes throughout the game.
- Cardiovascular and endurance training includes short interval/high intensity sprinting sequences on our high speed running treadmill. By using the same energy systems and tactical movements utilized in a regulation hockey game, athletes become more fit and faster.
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Flexibility
- Hockey specific flexibility exercises include static stretching, isometric stretching, and active isolated stretching (AIS). Improved flexibility helps to prevent injuries in assuring the muscles and tendons work together properly. It also makes the muscles more elastic for increased lower body explosiveness.
Strength Training
- Hockey is a fast-paced game of finesse where the strongest players come out on top. Stronger players are faster and not as easily knocked off the puck. A sound weight-training program promotes stability and reduces the risk of injury.
- Strength training emphasizes lower body power in particular, with the development of hockey-specific gains to the hip region and explosive single-legged power.
- Hockey players utilize resistance bands, free-weights, medicine balls, and physio balls to strengthen muscles, joints and connective tissues.
- Exercises are biomechanically specific to hockey, including muscle movements used in shooting, passing and goaltending.
Dynamic Balance
- Hockey is a game that is constantly being played off-balance. Hockey players perform a series of balance-specific exercises to strengthen their stabilizing muscles and allow for better muscular synergy and joint control.
- Training routines include unstable and stable lifts, dynamic balance movements with the Bosu ball, and a variety of off-balance training aids.
Core Stabilization Training
- Core stabilization is essential for proper posture, balance and stabilization. Functional exercises focus on spinal stabilization and increased proprioception (the ability to read and respond to changing conditions) during sports activities. Core muscles support every twisting, turning, jumping, and lateral movement; additionally, they are essential in posture, balance, and stabilization.
- Core training consists of dynamic, multi-joint exercises that use free weights, medicine balls and circuit training.
What Athletes are saying
Sport-Specific Training
Many aspects of the Athletic Republic Acceleration Training programs are universal to all sports, designed to develop overall athleticism and resilience, but we also recognize that each sport and discipline has specific demands. We address those needs not only with our individualized “One Size Fits One” approach to training, but with extensive sport-specific protocols developed over nearly three decades of training athletes.
Football
We take football training far beyond the standard weight room. Our football training for prepubescent athletes focuses on developing coordination, agility and speed since muscle mass develops later in a young athlete’s life. As athletes mature and the level of competition increases, training focuses more on the development of power/strength and running efficiency. Professional players spend the largest portion of time on power/strength development, but still spend time working on movement skills and running efficiency.
Baseball / Softball
Baseball and fastpitch softball are games of inches that require split-second reactions, instinctual skills and lightning fast agility. By focusing on speed, power, and agility we can give every baseball player the tools to be more successful on the field, regardless of their position. Our training improves rotational strength and stability to develop hitting with explosive power. Pitching velocity is increased by strengthening the acceleration and deceleration muscles used for every throw, while at the same time we focus on arm health for longevity. Our dynamic stability training develops the body control that is essential for making a defensive play.
Basketball
Every basketball game is made up of hundreds of short bursts of speed; our basketball training works on improving sprinting efficiency and speed using our high-speed running treadmill. Explosive power translates into the ability to drive to the basket, chase down a loose ball, or leap for a rebound or jump ball; we focus extensively on hip strength to generate the power that informs all aspects of a player’s game. Finally, our basketball training emphasizes dynamic stability so players can maintain body control in all directions and stability under all situations, even at full speed.
ice Hockey
Skating is the foundation of playing hockey. It takes proper skating mechanics, explosive speed, quickness and balance to consistently outmaneuver your opponents and become a top player. This is why hundreds of past and present professional hockey players have trained at Athletic Republic. Using a combination of cutting-edge technology like our Hockey Treadmill, or utilizing hockey powercords to facilitate optimal nerve and muscular stimulus, our hockey athletes come away with significant improvements in skating efficiency, coupled with improved puck-handling and shooting movements.
field Hockey
The game of field hockey requires players to have sport specific skills, as well as athletic attributes. Working on becoming an athlete can be a very significant aspect of the game. Field hockey requires speed, quickness, explosive power, as well as strong aerobic endurance. A solid aerobic endurance base will help a field hockey player with the repetitive series of high intensity movements and exercise required to play at a high level.
Lacrosse
As the preferred training partner to the US National Lacrosse teams, we understand what it takes to become the best athlete and lacrosse player: the right mix of lacrosse specific skills, enhanced speed, agility, quickness and power. It is essential that a lacrosse-specific training program balances the rigours of lacrosse’s heavy endurance load, while establishing an elite speed-program rooted in acceleration training. Our program focuses on advanced level conditioning, strength training, as well as speed and agility work that translates to both sides of the field in lacrosse.
Soccer
We’ve developed a unique program to specifically train soccer players to improve their acceleration, agility and power so they can become not just better athletes, but better soccer athletes. Through our evidence-based training protocols and patented equipment, we can improve an athlete’s mechanics so they have a faster first step, can change direction quicker, and have the stamina to play as well in the opening minutes as the closing minutes. In addition, they develop the dynamic stability that is crucial to becoming more resistant to lower-extremity injuries.
Tennis
The quick change of direction required in a top level tennis athlete is almost unparalleled in other sports. Athletic Republic speed and agility work performed on our patented Super Treadmill and Plyofloor elevates muscle coordination, footspeed, and movement precision to facilitate that next-level change of direction. On average, a 20% gain in peak force and power provides another level to a tennis athlete’s game. And the unique Plyo Press Machine allows tennis athletes to take explosive power training to a higher level.
Volleyball
Our training protocols for volleyball players to improve their acceleration, power and on-court agility for success on the court. We can improve an athlete’s mechanics so they rise higher with more hang time giving them more explosive power behind every hit. We also provide exact neurological learning and coordination that improves functional volleyball strength and the ability to set, pass, serve, spike and block, as well as improve take-off and landing mechanics.
