This article is for all you young aspiring ice hockey players out there without gym programs.  The AIHL season is over and the Dogs are already back in the gym getting ready for 2010!  As your season draws to a near this might come in handy for your off-season.  We have tried to come up with 10 ways that require minimal time in the gym for all those who don’t have a gym membership.

Each week we release one new way to improve your ice hockey off the ice counting down from 10.

Number 10: Flexibility

You kids might think stretching is boring but have you ever realised that one of the biggest factors stopping any athlete from reaching their full potential is injury.  All that hard work gone to waste because you didn’t make time to stretch.

Ideally you should be stretching everyday especially the older you get and the more you start working out.  “I separated my collar bone when checked into the boards playing junior in Canada and the doc pinned it down to my inflexibility as a major contributing factor” explains Scott Stephenson.  ”Because I neglected stretching when I was younger I am now facing all these issues that will take me even longer to reverse”.

By increasing your flexibility it actually increases your range of motion which will benefit your stride and your shooting power!  Try to make a habit of at least doing a couple of stretches when you wake up and before you go to bed in addition to stretching after every work out and training.

“Flexibility is important, I think back to Australian Youth and Junior teams and so many players would be pulling groins as there body was not ready for the increased 2 a day trainings at camp. When guys are off the ice, it tends to let the team down” adds Dogs Defenceman Tomas Manco.

So make the habit of stretching now as we drip feed you with exercises over the next 10 weeks to improve your ice hockey. We don’t want you getting injured now do we!