Most players train like bodybuilders for Rugby and not only is this stupid but it can even be detrimental to your performance (and injury rate).

Heavy shrugs and rows are great for strengthening a bulking up the traps and upper back muscles. You may want to try out front squats and see hopw that works for your body shapeNot sure if you will see this as the article is quite old but it’s worth a shot.I am a 15 year old lock/blindside flanker playing at high school in Auckland. There is more to strength training than looking like a musclebound Peter Sutcliffe, bench pressing a small family car and eating your body weight in chicken breast.I mean Gaston clearly trained for strength – necking loads of eggs and generally showing off how much heavy shit he could carry or throw.But then he spent the rest of the film being all sinister and trying to rape Belle.Beauty and the Beast is a pretty fucked up film when you think about it.Basically, what I’m trying to say is that you need to put all that strength training to good work, and since pitched medieval battles in fields are no longer the cool way to settle national disputes, your next best option is team sports.Preferably intense, brutal and physically demanding team sports.This article will deal with the pre-season training routine of a rugby prop forward (me) looking to build the explosive strength and power needed for the position.The prop forward is historically the most rotund, strong and physically intimidating member of the playing squad.Whilst also being the laziest, most keen to hit the beer, and often not genetically blessed with the gift of a neck or a metabolism.I also benefit from a lower centre of gravity thanks to my stumpy legs, and a fucking abrasive ginger beard which can be used as a weapon of last resort.First of all, it’s probably a good idea to introduce the uninitiated to the sport of rugby.Essentially, you can only throw the ball backwards and there is no pussying out at any time.You also need balls-out intensity and concentration at all times.Can you name any other sports where you take to the field wearing no padding whatsoever with only an absurdly short pair of shorts to cover your modesty?With rugby, you essentially embark on pitched battle against 15 other ape like human beings hell bent on smashing you into the ground on their way to victory.Plus when the weather gets real shitty it essentially becomes one big, slightly complicated, homoerotic mud wrestle, with the addition of an egg shaped ball and a dude with a whistle.If you train for physique and spend a lot of time checking yourself out in the mirror before, during and after every gym session, then you are a back.And you might as well stop reading now and go back to creeping on girls in All Bar One, this post is not for you.If you train for strength, treat every callous as a trophy and think there is a special place in hell reserved for anybody who curls in the squat rack, then you are a forward.The two props with the hooker between them form the front row in each scrum.Packing in to a scrum is very physically demanding.A short, thick, muscular neck is really useful as it will reduce the risk of injuryTo get the idea of the strength involved at the top of the game here’s South Africa’s Tendai ‘The Beast’ Mtawarira shoulder pressing his 112kg colleague.Another great example is former England prop Andrew Sheridan.According to his Wikipedia page Sheridan is disgustingly powerful.He is a near-elite class powerlifter and able to bench press 225 kilograms (35st 6lb; 496lb) and squat 275 kilograms (43st 4lb; 606 lb).You can watch Mr Sheridan man shaming the Aussie scrum in the 2007 World cup below:If you want to find out more about rugby positions, check out the RFU’s OK, so this is technically pre-pre season before we start working stamina which means, gulp, cardio.This is without a doubt my favourite part of pre-season as I can go to the gym, lift heavy, and then go home and feel quietly smug with myself.This phase is all about lifting as heavy as you can, adding slabs of muscle, and pushing your 5RM to the absolute limit.So with this in mind I have basically tweaked the standard Once you are warmed up, every session will begin with squats – good, deep, heavy squats.And as long as you have come close but haven’t shit your intestines out of your arsehole, you may progress to the rest of the session.For vanity reasons I also chuck in some arm work – it’d be fucking embarrassing if you cannot fill out the sleeves on your jersey at the start of the season.If you know you have a certain deficiency then this early pre-season is also a great time to get to work on it.Personally I have to work on my inability to haul my fat arse up for more than three chin-ups.I haven’t listed specific weights as I don’t want to turn this into a dick measuring contest.There’s always someone who can lift more, and there’s always someone with a bigger dick.This power and strength routine includes three full-body workouts and one gentle cardio session per week.Take your shoes off for deadlifts, squats and military press.I added 20kg to deadlift overnight and all my other lifts are progressing much quicker thanks to an improvement in stability and form.Good back strength is crucial in setting the height of the scrum at engagement and dominating your opposite number.But I only do them during off-season otherwise your back never recovers for games.And if you are new to them, start with half your body weight at most and slowly work up.Form is important as you don’t want to decapitate yourself, and be prepared for your hammies to burn the next day.Take your dumbbells over to the matts or just take them for a walk past the sexcersizer, whatever keeps you going.Take my advice and try to avoid walking into the guys bigger than you, and be careful to avoid dropping the fucking things on your toes.An important aspect to bear in mind when squatting is the pace at which you do it.By which I mean you take three seconds to slowly lower the weight, and then once you are at your lowest point, you immediately explode upwards.There is no resting at the top – you must instantly begin taking the weight down again.After squatting heavy every session the 5k run will feel like 15k.Try to avoid any steep inclines and remember that the focus in this phase is power, so don’t feel like too much of a douche if you have to sacrifice a little running distance to keep your squats strong.Admittedly you’ll feel a bit of a tit when the 8kg dumbbell has you sweating on the last set.Personally I have seen great improvements in shoulder strength and flexibility, as well as quicker gains on the bench and shoulder press compared to before I started.I just love food too much – I train dirty, I eat dirty.For instance, I cut 5kg (probably a lot more fat than that as I gained muscle) in one month by just reducing carb intake.I had tuna/chicken and salad at lunch, much smaller carb portions at dinner, and snacked smarter, eating fruit, nuts (almonds are fucking delicious and a great source of protein) and biltong (thank you South Africa for your meat drying skills – and while we are at it well done for abandoning racial segregation as a means of maintaining minority rule).Don’t suddenly cut back on the calories or your lifts will be shit, your training will be a waste of time, and you’ll just generally be a disappointment to everyone.If you feel inspired to take up a proper sport and put some of your hard earned muscle to good use, then use the RFU’s You’ll also benefit from the rich and varied social scene which goes with it: chinning pints until you’re sick through your nose, drinking out of any vessel which can hold liquid, getting naked on away day buses and freaking out the little old lady in a Nissan Micra you’re overtaking.Or watching your teammate shit himself halfway down the M40 because he’s too tired and pissed to get up out of his seat.If you have any questions about this pre-pre season workout, rugby in general, or the average wind speed velocity of an unladen swallow, then let me know in the comments section below.A reluctant gym goer, Adam has played rugby at an almost national level.
Take it a little easier – especially on the squats or you’ll feel like you’re trying to run through syrup.Nutrition-wise I am not the man to ask tbh, It’s my failing – I should be asking for your help.This seems like a really good training plan for my off-season training.I just recently finished my rugby season and I just signed up for 7s (not serious) just for fun with my mates.It’s on a Friday night and I only have access to a gym on Monday to Friday – do you think if I do the Day 3 session on Friday in the morning I will be too fatigued to play my 7s in the night?Take it a little easier – especially on the squats or you’ll feel like you’re trying to run through syrupFirst thank you for your article, there’s some great advice in it and I really like your style of writing.I am playing currently second row, would you also recommend your training guide for me, or should I focus on some other exercises? Want to take the time to learn the game as best I can before I’m out competing on the pitch and generally getting in the way. It is essential to keep your head up. Flexibility- The last thing you would expect a prop to do is kick for points after a try is scored. If you don’t have a landmine at your gym, just wedge one end of an Olympic bar into a corner and use that instead. Don’t let your backside stick up in the air, you should be a like a workbench. Ruck Maul Specific Training For Rugby Props Football Down Don’t get me wrong, he fit every other stereotype. If you’re becoming a stronger, meaner and all round better rugby player, what the hell does it matter? The Rugby Diet Plan You train hard and practice your skills but you just can’t achieve the level of fitness and the physique you need to make the impact on the pitch that you should be making.
I was wondering if this programme would help me put on size and strength?Josh – don’t get fixated on your weight – fuck that. This day is used to simulate rugby … Power and strength is still crucial for the position. I’m no professional but i know through experience that doing workouts like this and eating a lot of the right foods will bulk you up and get you stronger.


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