Measure Twice, Cut Once

‘I bet I can make them hurt using just their body weight’ he told me over the phone. Disappointed but not unexpected, I ended the call there.

It was 2005, we were mid way through the sporting season, a 24 round competition over 6 months, not including trials and finals of a contact team sport. This trainer was attempting to impress for all the wrong reasons.

From the early 2000’s through around 2012 I got inundated with these ‘opportunities’ while physically preparing a club with teams competing in three grades of playing levels.

I can confirm, as can 100’s of players over the years, bodyweight exercises were included, more than most could imagine, at appropriate times.

Recently this signaling of ‘I can fatigue you in training using little to no weights’ has resurfaced.

The first thought that comes to mind, ‘so what’?

The bottom line is alternate training activities can be beneficial provided they are done early enough in the preparation and done sparingly.   

Rationally figuring out what you need in training will return the greatest bang for buck.

If that is or part of it is slow speed body weight exercises, great! If it’s not, do what you it is you need.  

The boxer may require prioritising footwork. The rugby player passing left to right. The surf ironman athlete a focus on transitions. Prioritising time and energy in these areas will pay the greatest dividends, in these random examples.

I remember taking a player in the English Rugby Union team surfing on a day off from his training, during a two-week training camp in Brisbane. He was no slouch. It was a beautiful Gold Coast day, warm water, and small waves. Perfect learn to surf material. He fatigued quickly. He was used to running, scrums and line-outs, not paddling a surfboard in the water.

Nearly everything we’re not used too is difficult the first time we do it. Builders recommend we ‘measure twice, cut once’. Where measuring is planning relevant training and cutting is the training itself, I recommend the same.