2019 Athlete Development Program

Whether your goal is to lose body fat, build muscle or become stronger or faster your focus should always be on one thing: improving your overall athletic performance. Athletes train in the weight room and on the field to enhance their talent and skill. Being the best lifter doesn’t necessarily make them a gold medallist, however, it increases their athletic potential which enhances skill acquisition. And while maintaining a certain aesthetic look isn’t an athlete’s top priority, it’s often a nice by-product of training with a purpose.

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As we enter the 7th year of our coveted Athlete Development Program, we’ve arrived at a whole new ball game. We’ve upped the ante with programming, new testing protocols and competitiveness. As the name suggests: ‘Athletic Development Program’ is exactly that; you participate in a program based on what athletes perform ‘in-season.’ Ultimately, you will work on getting faster, more powerful, leaner and more importantly, maintaining strength, through a combination of field-based training and individual training events.

While the ADP is catered to supplement and improve our performance over the year to date, it is developed with competitiveness in mind in order to provide a kick in the pants post our winter hibernation. Like any of our specific programs, there will be a break-up at the end of the program where the winners will be announced. This will also serve as our Christmas Party.

It’s time for the bluff and bluster to be tested and with the coaches having a vested interest, never have the competitive fires been stoked so vigorously.

Why should I do this?

As you would have noticed, it is springtime and like every spring here in Queensland, it’s basically Summer. This means less clothing is mandatory thus the state of our rigs are exposed. If you have been a little off over the winter months than this is the time to get cracking for some serious gains as it becomes a little easier to get up in the morning and a little easier to get limber before your sessions. The work done now puts us in good stead for the silly season which is just around the corner whilst giving us a decent starting point for holidays at the end of the year (trust us Woolies and Coles will have Christmas Decorations up in no time).  We cannot think of a better time for a Clinic to get us to the end of the year in a better state then we started the year.

We will execute a formidable exercise regime built around competition and having fun. So, enter our Athletic Development Program to fill the motivational vacuum.

What is it? What does it involve?

Team-based format

Like last year, the ADP will involve a team-based challenge format. Participants will be allocated to a coach’s team. Teams will be issued on the day of the competition. A team will be chosen on a draft system mimicking the NBA/NFL and AFL competitions. Picks will be done in a lottery format and then teams will be formed once the order is established.

Programming

1. Resistance programs that mimic in-season regimes of professional teams (with due regard to competency);
2. Power work – plyometrics (or jumping), hurdle work, repeated jumping work, landing mechanics work; and
3. Conditioning – from repeated sprint work to wrestling (remarkably metabolically demanding), up and down movements and lateral movements, all coupled with complex task drills and games.

These training methods enable us to get faster, stronger, more efficient and most importantly, leaner. To increase any of these attributes, we are required to reduce our body fat, as it stands to reason that the more we carry, the harder it is to perform. The high metabolic cost of these methods, coupled with the variety of new movement patterns, provides for an incredibly efficient reduction of body fat over a short period; however, this will not be without some element of discomfort, so prepare to be sore.

Competition / Athletic Combine

The aim of this program is to train for a ‘combine’ (a feature of the NFL Draft), which essentially is several measurable challenges. These challenges will cover every aspect on the energy system spectrum as well as power and strength and body composition.

The program will culminate on Friday 13th December, where from 5:30pm till roughly 8:30pm, the Final Challenge events will take place and the champions will be crowned (based on points scoring system weighted across the respective events). The combine (tests) will remain unknown until the night of the event. There will be team-based and individual based events.

The scoring system will consist of the following: 3 points for the win, 1 point for second and 0 points for the loss. Obviously, the team with most points at the end will be crowned the ADP Champions (a trophy will be provided and has to sit in our waiting room with the team’s name on it; the respect or hatred of your fellow competitors is added incentive to the victory).

A post-combine Celebration

As additional motivation, we will be celebrating with drinks at a hotel or bar (TBA) will follow with the champions being shouted by their vanquished foes. This will also serve as our Christmas Party for all clients as it falls on 13th December 2019.

Fines and Penalties

As is the custom each year, there will be a fine and penalty system, with the results of such placed into a kitty that will contribute to the break-up at the hotel or bar (TBA). This doesn’t go into the Hammer coffers as some elaborate Ponzi scheme; in fact, Hammer will match the kitty to provide drinks during the breakup dinner.

Penalties and fines are to be imposed for the following:

• $1 fine, accumulated per minute of lateness, for anyone that attends late to a session (max $5);
• Non-attendance at a session without prior notice or adequate excuses – that’s a paddling. No wait, it’s a $10 penalty;
• The two losing teams will pay $10 each into the kitty in order for the winning team to eat and have drink for free at the Pub, post-competition.