PERFORMANCE PILLARS ATHLETE PREPARATION FOR RUGBY

PERFORMANCE PILLARS ATHLETE PREPARATION IN RUGBY

Injury prevention

Movement preparation

Speed

Strength & Power

Specific endurance

NUTRITION & LIFESTYLE

STRENGTH & CONDITIONING

GAME TIME

Nutrition rules

Meal builder

Hydration

Supplementation

Elite player behavior

Recovery

Principles of play

Growth mindset

Mental preparation

STRENGTH & CONDITIONING

Injury prevention

Movement preparation

Speed

Strength & power

Specific endurance

Strength and Conditioning plays an extremely important role not only in

preparing the player to meet the demands of the game, but also in helping to reduce the

risk of injury.

The good news is not only can mobility be sustained from an early age, but also we can reclaim our ability to move

freely through the integration of mobility and flexibility into our training program.

 

The key is to spend time working on the areas of your body that need it most, rather than just doing random

stretches and drills. Being assessed through a movement screening will help to identify restricted areas while also

spending time on determining your individual needs.

Stretching and mobility are often the most overlooked areas of a performance program, and also the most

misunderstood. Mobility is the ability to move freely and easily, while stretching is a key way to help achieve this.

We are born into this world with full mobility. As we age, the “use it or lose it” concept kicks in and most people

begin to slowly tighten up in various areas. Watching too much television and playing too many video games

doesn’t help this process either. We call this the iPosture (which is sitting over a computer or hunched over a

phone for to long each day).

INJURY PREVENTION

The Serevi system – Encourages integrating mobility and flexibility into training sessions for maximum

effectiveness. This can be either before during and after gym based physical preparation sessions, or prior to field

based sessions. This will then allow for greater exposure to exercises that can help maintain or regain movement

efficiency and help you remain injury free and become a more robust rugby athlete.

An example would include:

Before Training – 10-15minutes of: Dynamic stretching, self-myofascial release (please see foam roller and mobility

pictures)

Intra Gym Training – Mix strength and power training methods with mobility exercises as supersets to maximize

your time and improve areas that require work. Areas of particular tightness include the hips, ankles and thoracic

spine.

After Training – Partner PNF stretches for areas of the body that are particularly prone to tightness, active isolated

stretching, and static stretching.

 

Static stretching should not be used before training as this is actually linked to lower power outputs. Dynamic

stretching has had much better results opening the joints and muscles up to their current limits but without the

negative side effects. Dynamic stretching will not often result in large mobility gains, and therefore should be

reserved as a warm-up.

 

The Serevi System and why this paradigm shift in workout structure can give you better results.

INJURY PREVENTION

MOVEMENT PREPARATION

Mini Band walks 10/10 Superman with hip lift 10/10

DL Glute bridge 10 Squat to Stand 10

SL Glute bridge 10/10 Inch worm 10

SL Hamstring bridges 5reps/leg (5s hold/rep) Band Hamstring stretch 30s holds

1/2Kneeling Pallof press 10/10 7’s Glute stretch 30s holds

Side bridge with band row 10/10 90/90 Hip flexor stretch 20s/side

Ankle mobility 10/10 Walking lunge with hip lift holds 10/10

Rocking adductor 10/10 SL Squat+SL RDL 5/5

A/B/C Skips/Backward running 2x15m each drill

Straight leg bounds 2x10/10

High Skips 2x10/10

PoGo Hops 2x20 reps

EFFECTIVE WARM UP

GROUND BASED MOBILITY: PERFORM 2 ROUNDS

DYNAMIC WARM UP

From the match analysis and research carried out in rugby, the average distance covered in a bout of sprinting by

players from all positions ranges from 15m to 25m. These distances are actually acceleration distances and not

maximum sprint speed distances. The relatively short distances covered at maximum acceleration pace confirms

the essential requirement of the need for well-developed acceleration capability for all players.

For athletes, the following practical guidelines are proposed for different methods of improving speed elements

and in particular acceleration.

WARM UP THOROUGHLY

For all speed work, players need to be well warmed up. Warm-up is covered prior to field-based sessions during

the Residency Camp. An example is also included in the appendix.

USE SHORT DISTANCES

Distances of up to 30m are appropriate for acceleration training for Rugby. These efforts can be completed from a

variety of starts: from a standing start, a falling start, from a rolling-start, from a variety of ground-based positions.

Later, you can advance to resisted training methods using, for example, a weighted sled. Note that the weight used

should not decrease the player’s sprint time by more than 10%. Weighted vests are an alternative to the weighted

sled method. The guidelines suggest a weighted vest between 10 and 20% of body weight for optimum benefits.

SPEED

WORK AT MAXIMUM PACE

Players must run or accelerate as fast and as powerfully as possible. Working at sub-max speed does not really

make a player more powerful or faster. However, during resisted acceleration training, the player’s acceleration

speed may be reduced. As long as his/her mechanics are not affected, then this reduction in speed will likely assist

with unresisted acceleration power and speed.

USE FEW REPETITION

To develop any element of speed, the player should not be asked to constantly repeat efforts or sprints with

minimum recovery between efforts. The number of runs or work efforts should be low so that sufficient recovery

occurs. A typical speed acceleration session may have two sets of three acceleration sprints over a variety of

distances. The quality of the effort is the important point here. Note that speed will deteriorate as fatigue builds

with an increasing number of maximum effort repetitions.

ENSURE GOOD RECOVERY

This key point follows from the previous one regarding limited repetitions. A sufficient recovery is vital between

speed efforts to ensure that the following effort also occurs at maximum pace. Players may require up to 2 minutes

between short sprint – acceleration efforts (5-20m) and a longer recovery of 3 minutes between intermediate

distance efforts (20-30m).

SPEED

A focal part of any program is the development of strength and power to excel at rugby.

Serevi Rugby has collaborated with Volt Athletics to develop rugby specific programs that integrate mobility,

technique development, strength and power work with an added element of injury prevention. These are being

delivered remotely “online” with 2 months of a 12 months subscription being included in your Res Camp Package.

STRENGTH & POWER

WHY USE VOLT ATHLETICS ONLINE PLATFORM?

Rugby and preparation for rugby is one of the hardest jobs in sport. You have to merge every energy system and

physical quality in order to become an elite player.

However, 1 physical quality underpins the others -Strength. This is why we focus on that particular physical quality

in our programming. Not exclusively, but it is the priority. Especially for high school and collegiate athletes with

very low training ages.

There are so many issues of coach / player / schedule / education / social life / facilities / other sports to dovetail

in order to accomplish your goals.

We can individualize by prescription loading and manipulating sets/reps/intensity/volume/density. There are just to

many variables to program successfully in rugby. Even the best teams in the world have not found the "magic

bullet" to successfully condition all athletes in an individual manner. Technology has helped enormously, but as we

know the athlete has to have the desire to work extremely hard and diligently to maximize potential.

We just hope to optimize performance by providing most 'bang for your buck' program design building on nearly

20 years of experience developing rugby athletes capable of competing at International level and delivering that

content via Volt Athletics, anytime to your smart phone or tablet.

There is an obvious trend within the time-motion studies completed to indicate that the game is certainly a

multi-activity sport with periods of high intensity play punctuated by varying durations of rest intervals. It is

clear that the higher the level of play, the greater the frequency and total duration of high intensity work. In order to excel at rugby, all players will require highly developed levels of multi-component fitness.

Here is an example endurance session mimicking the demands of the game.

SPECIFIC ENDURANCE

Activity Duration/Distance Rest

Partner Maul 20s (1 rep) 0s

Sprint 20m 60s

Tackle shield leg rive 20s (1 rep) 0s

Sprint 30m 30s

Down up 1rep 0s

Jog 100m 0s

Tackle bag shuttle 3 reps 0s

Shuttle run 2 reps (5m return, 20m return) Starting with chest on the floor 90s

Repeat the circuit of activities for 3-5 rounds. Resting as directed in the activity list.

SUMMARY:

Acceleration training is a clear requirement, as is deceleration training. While time-motion studies have not

focused on the agility demands of the game, it is clear that agility is an important component for all players.

Strength and power training are also requirements for all players. The ability to reproduce high intensity

bouts of activity with varying degrees of rest recovery between bouts is also a requirement. Strength and

power training (both general development and specific activity development), and speed acceleration

training (which includes acceleration, deceleration and agility patterns) are central to the most demanding

work efforts that we see during match play. Hidden within these physical activities is the player’s efficiency in

terms of expressing strength, power and speed repeatedly. Match play involves varying work to rest ratios

and a player’s ability to tolerate repeated high intensity bouts of activity for the duration of the game will also

be dependent on their ability to recover between high intensity bouts. Specific integrated conditioning is important here as it can be organized to mimic more closely the different

work to rest ratios that occur in the game.

SPECIFIC ENDURANCE

SESSION 2

SPRINT 10m

RUN BACKWARDS 10m

SPRINT 28m

RUN BACKWARDS 18m

SPRINT 40m

TURN / JOG 50m

REST 30sec

6 - 8 REPS

SESSION 1

SPRINT 22m x 3

JOG 78m

REPEAT from other end

6 SETS

KEY

SPRINT

JOG

RUN BACKWARDS

START

FINISH

SESSION 1 SESSION 2

START FINISH

Women's Standards Mens Standards

Vert Jump" Backs Forwards Vert Jump" Backs Forwards

Elite 27+ 25 Elite 37+ 33+

Eagle 25-26.9 23.5-24.9 Eagle 35-36.9 31-32.9

Excellent 22-24.9 22.1-23.4 Excellent 32-34.9 29-30.9

Good 20-21.9 19.1-22 Good 30-31.9 27-28.9

Average 18-19.9 16.1-19 Average 28-29.9 25-26.9

Below Average <18 <16 Below Average <27.9 <25

10m Sprint Backs Forwards 10m Sprint Backs Forwards

Elite <1.75 <1.8 Elite 1.52-1.58 1.6-1.65

Eagle 1.76-1.81 1.81-1.86 Eagle 1.59-1.63 1.66-1.71

Excellent 1.82-1.87 1.87-1.92 Excellent 1.64-1.69 1.72-1.77

Good 1.88-1.93 1.93-1.98 Good 1.7-1.74 1.78-1.83

Average 1.94-1.99 1.99-2.04 Average 1.75-1.8 1.84-1.89

Below Average 2+ >2.05 Below Average 1.81> 1.9>

40m Sprint Backs Forwards 40m Sprint Backs Forwards

Elite 5.35-5.45 5.56-5.65 Elite <4.7 <5

Eagle 5.46-5.55 5.66-5.75 Eagle 4.71-4.8 5.01-5.1

Excellent 5.56-5.65 5.76-5.85 Excellent 4.81-4.9 5.11-5.2

Good 5.66-5.75 5.86-5.95 Good 4.91-5.04 5.2-5.29

Average 5.76-5.85 5.96-6.05 Average 5.05 5.3-5.39

Below Average >5.86 >6.05 Below Average >5.05 >5.4

Yo-Yo Yo-Yo

Elite 17 16.5 Elite 21+ 21+

Eagle 16.5 16 Eagle 20.5 20

Excellent 16 15.5 Excellent 20 19

Good 15.5 15 Good 19.5 18

Average 15 14.5 Average <19 <17

The ‘Combine Tests’ that you undertake at residency camp and the results of the specific tests will allow you to

goal set for your strength and conditioning moving forward:

ELITE RUGBY ATHLETE STANDARDS

NUTRITION & LIFESTYLE

Nutrition rules

Meal builder

Hydration

Supplementation

Elite player behavior

Recovery

Nutrition is the most under-rated part of an athlete’s preparation.

You can’t out train a bad diet.

NUTRITION RULES

5 Ingredient Challenge: Choose foods that have 5 or less ingredients on the packaging and you know and can

pronounce each ingredient, examples:

• Fruits; apples, oranges, bananas, berries etc.

• Vegetables; spinach, broccoli, carrots etc.

• Proteins; beans, chicken, turkey etc.

• High Fiber Carbohydrates: Oatmeal, whole-wheat pasta, sweet potatoes, black beans , etc.

Follow the Rainbow: Eat fruits or vegetables with each meal. Choose a wide variety of colors for the biggest

benefit.

Protein: Include a LEAN protein source with each meal. Examples include chicken, beef, lean pork, fish and some dairy products (Greek yogurt and feta cheese are good choices).

Eat Healthy Fats: Include healthy fats in your diet like olive and coconut oils, nuts, natural nut butters, avocado’s and

oily fish (examples peanut-butter).

Eat breakfast every day: When you eat within 30 minutes of waking up, you jump start your metabolism. This

gives you more energy to get your day going. TIP: Alternate between 3 breakfast options of oatmeal (with a serving of berries), Greek yogurt with nuts and

berries, or eggs (scrambled, poached, boiled and omelets).

Eat more often: Eat smaller portions more often, spread evenly across the day. No excuses – you should be

eating 4-6 meals/day! Aim for all three food groups (carbs, protein, and fat) every three hours for optimal

fueling.

Supplements: Eat real food first and supplement second. If you are not getting what you need through food,

add a multivitamin supplement into your daily routine. A supplementation program should aim to improve

health and performance without emptying your wallet. **Before you take any type of supplement, make sure

to check in with your doctor or registered dietitian.

The 90/10 Rule: Each meal and snack is an opportunity to fuel your body optimally. Choose the foods that are

best for you 90% of the time and incorporate some of those foods that may not be the best, but are your

favorites, 10% of the time!

Stay hydrated: Dehydration = Decreased Performance. Drink at least three liters of water every day. TIP: Limit

sports drinks loaded with sugars or sweeteners.

NUTRITION RULES

Decreased performance (increased lactic acid), increased chance of injury, decreased cognitive function (brain

power). Take the Hydration Challenge: Drink at least eight 10-oz glasses of water each day. Make sure you are drinking

during practice or training. If you wait until you’re thirsty, you’ve waited too long! The diagram below illustrates an

easy of use guideline for a test of hydration. Simply observe the color of your urine when using the bathroom. (Do

note that multi vitamins sometimes change the natural color of your urine).

NUTRITION RULES

DO YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU ARE DEHYDRATED?

URINE CHART

HYDRATEDMILD DEHYDRATION

MODERATE DEHYDRATION

SEVERE DEHYDRATION

SYMPTOMS FATIGUE HEADACHE WEAKNESS DECREASED ENDURANCE

CONFUSION HEATSTROKE MUSCLE SPASMS LOSS OF BALANCE

MUSCLE CRAMPS LIGHTHEADEDNESS MOOD DISTURBANCE IMPAIRED CONCENTRATION

Carbohydrates Protein Extras Beverages

Step #1 Step #2 Step #3 Step #4 Step #5

¼ plate Grains/ Beans/Starch

½ plate Vegetables / Fruit ½ plate Protein

Starches: Vegetables: Fruit: Animal sources: Plant-based: Best:

Oatmeal Artichoke Fresh or frozen Eggs Healthy fats: Water

Rice Asparagus Berries Milk Oil (olive / coconut) Milk:

Potato Beetroot Grapefruit Greek yoghurt Oil based dressing Whole cow’s

Sweet potato Bell peppers Melon varieties Cottage cheese Avocado Almond

Rye bread Broccoli Apples Chicken breast Olives Coconut

Whole meal bread Cabbage Bananas Turkey breast Nuts / seeds Caffeine-free tea

Bagel Carrots Pears Lean ground turkey/beef Flax meal Coconut water

(unsweetened)

Pita bread Cauliflower Pineapple Fish varieties: Coffee

English muffin Celery Kiwi fruit Salmon Flavor boosters:

Wild rice Cucumbers Mago Tuna Mustard Limit to during / post exercise:

Barley Green beans Peaches / Nectarine Cod Balsamic vinegar Sports drink

Bulgur wheat Kale*Frozen vegetables and fruits are great

options. Mackerel Garlic Chocolate milk

Buckwheat Lettuce Shrimp Salsa 100% fruit juice

Quinoa Mushrooms Pork loin Hot sauce

Flour tortilla Pumpkin Tender loin Herbs / spices

Corn Onion Steak

Pasta Spinach Plant sources: Use in moderation:

Beans Swiss chard tomatoes

Peanut / Almond butter Butter

Lentils Zucchini Nuts Margarine

Squash Sunflower / pumpkin seeds

Creamy sauces / dressings

Beans Sour cream

Lentils Cream cheese

Hummus Mayonaise

*GREEN IS BEST CHOICE Gravy

BBQ sauce

Teriyaki sauce

Sugar

ATHLETE MEAL BUILDER

Avoid in food (check ingredients): Trans fat “partially hydrogenated oil,” High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) Sunflower, cottonseed, soybean and safflower oil

Avoid in drinks: Soda Energy drinks Sugary drinks

Specialty coffee drinks Alcohol

FOCUS: NUTRITION AND RECOVERY AND REGENERATION

ELITE PLAYER BEHAVIOR

1. Turns up to training having eaten the correct breakfast

2. Understands recovery is a commitment long term

3. Brings the correct snacks and meals to training to eat at the right time

4. Self manages portion sizes well against their bodyweight

5. Eats according to their nutritional plan

6. Understands their recovery strategy and adheres to it

7. Communicates openly and honestly with staff involved in performance

8. Plans ahead to avoid bad food choices

9. Seeks to get the best food ingredients within their budget

10. Understands their supplement needs and complies with it

11. Uses proper nutrition as a tool to increase performance.

KEY MESSAGE: DO THE BASICS CONSISTENTLY AND GET THE MOST OUT OF EVERY TRAINING SESSION

In order to maximize your performance, scheduling times to rest your body is key. In rugby, because of the

demand of playing and training, physically and mentally, an “off-day” is not always enough. As you increase the

levels in which you train and compete, carefully planned “recovery sessions” are necessary.

While having a great work ethic is admirable, it’s impossible to go all-out all the time. You won’t train as

effectively and you’ll likely break down with injuries and ailments. On the other hand, if you can focus on having

high-quality rest and regeneration you’ll be able to get more return on investment from every minute of your

workouts.

Here are five recovery strategies that athletes can easily integrate into their lifestyle:

GET MORE SLEEP

Getting adequate sleep is the easiest way to boost performance. It’s crucial to maximize deep, restorative sleep

time, which happens in the first few hours of sleep each night. That potentially means letting go of Facebook and

video games late into the evening and substituting reading or listening to music. (The type of music used to

maximize recovery is a personal choiceIts).

Young athletes should aim to have a minimum of 7 hours of sleep per night and optimally try to get 9 hours.

**Make getting extra sleep a priority if you fall short of the recommended 7 hours minimum.

RECOVER WITH NUTRITION (Please see the nutrition section. As you can see nutrition, lifestyle and recovery are

all interlinked!):

Nutrition is one of the 6 pillars of the Serevi Rugby’s performance program, but it’s also a key part of recovery. Be

sure to take advantage of that 30-minute post-match recovery period when your body is craving nutrients to

replenish itself.

Give your body what it needs when it’s most open and able to absorb it.

It’s ideal to consume an individually prescribed recovery shake, and/or sports drink (protein and carbohydrate

blend) immediately following a workout or match. Do this before anything else. The food or supplement you

choose should provide about a 3:1 ratio of carbohydrate to protein.

You’ve already done the hard work in the gym or on the playing field, so don’t sabotage yourself in the kitchen or

by being under prepared with your post match or post training nutrition. Plan ahead…(See lifestyle choices and

elite behaviors).

RECOVERY

REHYDRATE

It’s impossible not to want water following a match or workout, and you should drink two cups for every pound

lost during exercise. You can jumpstart your recovery and optimize performance by staying hydrated

throughout the day. Keep a water bottle with you all day. Drink ½ to 1 ounce of water per pound of body weight

per day to stay hydrated. Keep an eye on your urine color. It should be clear. If not, drink more water. (You have

a visual diagram in the nutrition section of this workbook).

GET A MASSAGE OR DO FOAM ROLL

Ideally, we’d get professional massages immediately after matches or tough training sessions. Since that’s not

usually practical or affordable, do some self-massage with a foam roller or lacrosse ball. Included are some

recommended recovery exercises to work on areas of the body that are particularly tight in the majority of

athletes. (Foam rollers cost around $10–20, and a lacrosse ball is around $3).

CONTRAST SHOWERS AND BATHSFor the first few times that you use contrast showers, it may be uncomfortable but still invigorating! There are

different time sequences used, but Serevi Rugby recommends 30s as cold as you can stand followed by one

minute as warm as possible for 3 or 4 rounds. Perform contrasting and you will feel great! Contrasting relaxes

and excites the muscles, moves blood through, and shortens the restoration time

RECOVERY

GAME TIME

Principles of play

Growth mindset

Mental preparation

The reasons athletes prepare is to perform when it’s game time.

source: www.irbrugbyready.com

PRINCIPLES OF PLAY

PRINCIPLES OF ATTACK

1. Gain Possession

2. Go Forward

3. Support

4. Maintain Continuity

5. Apply pressure

6. Score!

PRINCIPLES OF DEFENSE

1. Contest Possession

2. Go Forward

3. Apply Pressure

4. Prevent Territorial Gains

5. Support

6. Regain Possession

7. Counter Attack

These principles form the backbone of the sport of rugby. They are an essential tool in developing athletes and

teams. Coaches can and should link all that they do back to these key components of the sport.

FIXED VS GROWTH MINDSET

MENTAL PREPARATION

LEVEL 3

LEVEL 2

LEVEL 1

PERFORMANCE SKILLS

PREPARATORY SKILLS

BASIC SKILLS

CONCENTRATION (9)

MANAGING EMOTIONS (8)

MANAGING ANXIETY (7)

MENTAL IMAGERY (6)

SELF - TASK (5)

PEOPLE SKILLS (4)

GOALS & COMMITMENT (3)

MOTIVATION (2)

ATTITUDE (1)

BACK SQUAT

FOUNDATION

FRONT SQUAT

FOUNDATION

GOBLET SQUAT

FOUNDATION

BODY WEIGHT SINGLE LEG BOX SQUATS

FOUNDATION

BARBELL STEP UP KNEE LIFT

FOUNDATION

DUMBBELL BULGARIAN SPLIT SQUATS

FOUNDATION

DUMBBELL REVERSE LUNGE

FOUNDATION

BARBELL RDL

FOUNDATION

BAND GOOD MORNINGS

BAND PULL THROUGHS

BARBELL RDL SHRUG (CLEAN)

BARBELL HANG CLEAN

FOUNDATION

GHD GLUTE HAMSTRING RAISES

FOUNDATION

BODY WEIGHT SPLIT JUMPS

LATERAL CROSS OVER

BOX DRIVES

SINGE LEG HIP THRUSTS

HAMSTRING BRIDGE

FOUNDATION

MED BALL CROSSOVER TO THROW

FLOOR PRESS

DUMBBELL BENCH PRESS

SINGLE ARM DUMBBELL BENCH PRESS (ALTERNATE)

SINGLE ARM ROW

FOUNDATION

BAND FACE PULLS