Rugby Training
Check our rugby training drills and workouts that will help ensure you feel great on and off the pitch. Build your strength as well as find exercises for rugby that you may not have tried before. Get a real workout!
Strength Training
Read the notes on strength training on the site, concentrate on adjusting your workouts to allow for your body to recover, avoid training sore muscles. Train at low intensity's if you are new to weights, ideally using machines, as you become more competent aim to use free weights.
Strength training should be performed a minimum of 3 times a week for all players, with a combination of methods used by different players.
- Forwards
As heavily built players need both excellent leg power and upper body strength. Using heavy weights for low reps 4-8 for a maximum of 3 sets will give great gains in strength, followed by 1 set with half the weight previously used for maximum reps. This last set will help give you muscular endurance, especially if the weight is worked at a fast but controlled speed.
Exercises to concentrate on are all forms of squats, calf exercises and chest development
- Backs (generally)
More athletic in shape then forwards, require both strength and endurance. 1 session a week should be used for upper body strength, medium to heavy weight for 8-12 reps of each exercise for 3 sets. 2nd session should be used to work the legs and abdominals, with the 3rd session used as a high rep endurance / circuit style workout. Minimal rest with reps as high as 30-40 for 2-3 sets, for about 10 – 15 exercises
Remember to warm-up and stretch prior to doing any training, especially weights.
If you're short of time to train, you can perform your weight training sessions after your C.V. workouts, giving you more time to spend on skills required.
The press-up circuit and abdominal workouts should also be implemented into your training.
Use the weight training login sheet to monitor your progress, with the amount of weight that you can lift as well as the reps.
Co - ordination / Skills
Eye - Body - Brain, is the way we want to have our co-ordination and skills. Unfortunately many of us see the ball, and our body takes too long to react to it passing us. This area can be improved by developing what is called your motor skills, so that you see the ball, and your body automatically positions itself in the correct place.
With a complete variety of situations you can be in for a ball to pass you, you need to work on improving your total body, to react as one fast efficient machine.
On the next page we focus on drills including, ladder drills and ball drills :
