Off-season Workouts Should Focus on Planned Incremental Improvement

Pushing yourself to improve is essential to reaching the ultimate goal of a college scholarship offer.

 Today’s college prospect works year round. It’s necessary because you know that somewhere someone is working hard to take the scholarship you want. Competing for scholarships, then, assumes a high degree of intensity and if you are unwilling to make sacrifices to achieve your ultimate goal, your competition will snatch every opportunity from your grasp.

College coaches are now searching not just for the athlete who demonstrates the ability to contribute, but who additionally possesses the work ethic needed to significantly improve. They dig through stacks and more stacks of potential recruits to find that one needle in the haystack whose focus goes beyond the norm and whose determination and competitive drive are integral parts of who they are as people and as athletes.

Perhaps more than any other time of year, off-season workouts are where aspiring college athletes make the most improvements. It’s during this time that prospects are not encumbered by games and travel, by outside noise and bothersome influences. But, it is also where prospects can lose the most ground to their more dedicated rivals if they do not have a solid, workable plan for making advancements.

Formulating a well-organized, deliberate off-season workout regimen is crucial. The best of the best plan not only to workout, but to accomplish specific goals with each one. Here’s a plan which will put you in the position to make substantial gains:

1) Scrutinize your abilities with your coach. Look objectively at each skill at your position and determine where you need to be as opposed to where you currently are. Nothing should be off the table in this assessment. Every aspect of your game is worthy of consideration. It’s very important that you take nothing for granted and that you desensitize yourself to any criticism regardless of how harsh it may seem at the time. Listen and learn. Take copious notes. Be on the lookout for every deficiency which may need your full attention.

2) Examine your off-season calendar. Making the commitment to working out regularly dictates that you ample time for harder, more intensified sessions. Keeping to a schedule is essential. When reviewing your upcoming timeline, you may have to shift other, less meaningful and more flexible obligations so that your workouts become an integral part of your weekly routine. Look at early mornings, after school, evenings and weekends as options. Think about hours of time, not minutes. And, consider all other potential schedule conflicts such as extracurricular activities and family plans. Then, once you have settled on a doable schedule, communicate this with your parents, friends and coaches. Ask them to review it for conflicts which you may have overlooked. Finally, ask for their support. It may be particularly tough to convince your friends to honor your workout times, but that is one of the sacrifices you and they will have to make if you are to reach your goals.

3) Recruit the help you will need to succeed. Undergoing a serious endeavor such as this will necessitate help from others. Approach teammates, parents, coaches and friends that may be available. You may have to trade off some of your time to reciprocate with these people. That is, you may need to commit to doing something for them in return for their service to you. Being able to accurately describe what you will need from others is also very important. Give them details. Will you require them to spot you during weight training sessions? Will you need them to time you with a stopwatch? How much of their time will you expect them to give up for you? Any number of other issues are involved which you will have to think through and address with them, so be fully prepared to discuss any pertinent matters with them prior to their involvement.

4) Plan your workout the night before. Using the examination of your skills in Step #1, make a plan which will allow you to specifically address each area of improvement. On your calendar, jot down the skill you will work on that particular day and list the essential points which will push you toward improvement. For instance, if you are a basketball player and want to work on ball handling, you may write down the following: 2-mins, dribble two balls, bouncing them in sync; 2-mins, dribble two balls, alternately bouncing them; 2-mins, dribble with off hand only while jogging up and down the length of the court; stay in a good basketball poster (low) during all drills. Whatever your sport, the more details you can put into your pre-workout notes, the better focused you will be.

5) Get mentally prepared. You are up against an often ignored problem — life. It comes at you fast and unexpected things will surely happen. But, when you approach the time for your workouts, you must have the mental steadfastness to put those things behind you, regroup, home in on your daily goals and shut out everything except what you are there to do during that particular workout session.

6) Work hard, but stay hydrated. There is no replacement for hard work. Push yourself. Expect excellence. But, always have a readily available source of replenishing liquids. Stay away from sodas. Have cold water and/or sports drinks with you and put 2-3-minute breaks throughout your workouts.

7) Evaluate your workouts and the progress your make. Documenting your workouts and honestly evaluating your progress is the finishing touch to your improvement efforts. Develop a spreadsheet with each day’s skill sets described and measured. If you are measuring weights, put down the weight you lifted and the reps you did. If you are being timed, for instance in a shuttle run or 400 meter run, list your exact time for those events. If you are doing a list of skills, such as hitting 100 ground strokes or punting 20 footballs inside the 10-yard line, check them off.

Each day, focus on improving in one specific area or skill. Vary your workouts, though. Today you may work on slap-hitting, then tomorrow or the next day you might practice running the bases faster or throwing accurately. Regardless, raising your game incrementally, day by day, is your objective. A focused plan and then an earnest effort toward executing that plan will get you there ahead of your competitors.