top of page
FRONT ROW GUIDE
CONTENTS
DISCLAIMER
INTRO
SPORTING DEMANDS
ADDRESSING COMMON INJURIES
GET STRONG
GET BIG
GET EXPLOSIVE
GET FAST
GET AGILE
GET FIT
HOW TO PLAN YOUR WEEK
DISCLAIMER
THE INFORMATION PROVIDED ON THIS PAGE IS BASED ON THE AUTHORS OPINION. YOU SHOULD DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH TO CONFIRM THE AUTHENTICITY OF THIS INFORMATION ALONGSIDE OTHER RESOURCES. THIS GUIDE AND WEBSITE ARE FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND DO NOT REPLACE PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL ADVISE, DIAGNOSIS OR TREATMENT. ALWAYS CONSULT A PHYSICIAN BEFORE STARTING ANY EXERCISE PROGRAM, ESPECIALLY IF YOU HAVE EXISTING INJURIES OR MEDICAL CONDITIONS.
BY USING THIS GUIDE, YOU ASSUME FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY RISK OF INJURY. STOP ANY EXERCISE THAT CAUSES PAIN OR DISCOMFORT AND SEEK MEDICAL ATTENTION IF NEEDED. YOU TRAIN AT YOUR OWN RISK.
INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENTS MAY VARY. THIS IS A GENERAL GUIDE THAT PROVIDES GENERAL RECCOMENDATIONS AND DOES NOT REPLACE PERSONALISED COACHING. WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO UPDATE OR MODIFY THIS GUIDE AT ANY TIME WITHOUT NOTICE. FOR QUESTIONS PLEASE CONTACT US AT ADMIN@JL-PC.CO.UK
THANK YOU!
INTRO
SO... YOU PLAY RUGBY?
THIS GUIDE HAS BEEN BUILT TO GIVE THE ASPIRING RUGBY PLAYER ACCESS TO TRAINING AND INFORMATION OF THE SAME STANDRD AS PROFESSIONAL RUGBY. WE WILL TAKE YOU THROUGH THE STEPS TO GET:
SIZE
STRENGTH
SPEED
POWER
CONDITIONING
AGILITY
MANAGING YOUR INJURIES
AND HOW TO PLAN THIS ALL INTO YOUR WEEKLY SCHEDULE
INCLUDED ARE SOME SESSION IDEAS THAT YOU MAY USE OR MODIFY TO SUIT YOUR OWN NEEDS. WE ALSO COVER THE KEY PHYSICAL COMPONENTS THAT ARE REQUIRED TO BE AN ELITE RUGBY FORWARD AND SOME BENCH MARKS YOU SHOULD BE LOOKING TO ACHIEVE WITHIN YOUR RELEVANT AGE BRACKET.
WITHIN THIS GUIDE SHOULD BE ALL THE INFORMATION YOU NEED TO LEVEL UP YOUR TRAINING AND START PHYSICALLY TRANSFORMING YOURSELF INTO A RUGBY PLAYER. THIS UNFORTUNATELY WILL NEVER REPLACE PERSONALISED COACHING BUT THIS IS FREE. IF YOU ARE SERIOUS ABOUT YOUR TRAINING AND LOOKING FOR SOME MORE BESPOKE ADVICE, PLEASE REACH OUT TO US AT ADMIN@JL-PC.CO.UK AND WE WILL BE HAPPY TO HELP.
THE DEMANDS OF RUGBY
BEING A FORWARD IN RUGBY IS A TOUGH JOB. YOU NEED TO PACK SOME SERIOUS STRENGTH AND SIZE, ALL WHILST BEING EXPLOSIVE, AGILE AND WELL CONDITIONED. SEE BELOW SOME OF THE KEY PHYSICAL COMPONENTS WE BUILD INTO OUR RUGBY FORWARD PROGRAMS.
SPEED
POWER
STRENGTH
SKILL
FITNESS
SIZE
AGILITY
STRENGTH
WHETHER YOU ARE SCRUMMAGING, TACKLING OR LIFTING, YOU HAVE TO BE STRONG IN ORDER TO COMPETE AS A FORWARD. UPPER AND LOWER BODY STRENGTH ARE BOTH EQUALLY IMPORTANT, AS WELL AS DEVELOPING STRENGTH IN DEEP RANGES.
YOU SHOULD BE HEAVY STRENGTH TRAINING 1-2 TIMES PER WEEK IN SEASON OR 2-3 TIMES PER WEEK OFF SEASON. THIS IS DEPENDANT ON YOUR TRAINING AGE (HOW MANY YEARS OF QUALITY STRENGTH TRAINING YOU HAVE DONE) AND YOUR TRAINING SCHEDULE.
YOUR STRENGTH TRAINING SHOULD INCLUDE:
- BOTH LOWER AND UPPER BODY
- KEY MOVEMENT PATTERNS YOU USE
- SINGLE LIMB/UNILATERAL WORK
- DIRECT CORE/TRUNK WORK
SIZE
EVERYONE ASSOCIATES FORWARDS WIH BEING THESE HUGE UNITS THAT STEAMROLL ANYONE WHO GETS IN THEIR WAY, AND WHILE THIS CAN DEFINATELY BE TRUE, YOU NEED TO ENSURE YOU ARE PUTTING ON SIZE IN THE CORRECT WAY TO ALLOW YOU TO STILL MOVE AND PLAY RUGBY TO A HIGH LEVEL.
WE GAIN SIZE THROUGH HYPERTROPHY TRAINING, MORE ON THIS IN GET BIG, AND WE SHOULD BE AIM TO TRAIN HYPERTROPHY 1-2 TIMES PER WEEK IN SEASON AND 2-3 TIMES PER WEEK OFF SEASON. THIS IS DEPENDANT ON YOUR TRAINING AGE (HOW MANY YEARS OF QUALITY HYPERTROPHY TRAINING YOU HAVE DONE) AND YOUR TRAINING SCHEDULE.
YOUR HYPERTROPHY TRAINING SHOULD INCLUDE:
- BOTH LOWER AND UPPER BODY WORK
- SINGLE LIMB/UNILATERAL WORK
- DIRECT NECK & FOREARM WORK
- A FOCUS ON KEY INJURY SITES SUCH AS SHOULDERS
- DIRECT TRUNK/CORE WORK
AGILITY
YOU NEED TO BE LIGHT ON YOUR FEET AS A FORWARD. RUNNING STRAIGHT ONLY WORKS SO OFTEN AND CAN REALLY TAKE A TOLL ON YOUR BODY LONG TERM. IF YOU CAN ALSO LEARN TO SHIFT YOUR WEIGHT AROUND AND HIT GAPS WITH MINIMAL CONTACT, YOU BECOME FAR MORE DANGEROUS AND UNPREDICTABLE AS A FORWARD.
YOU CAN IMPROVE YOUR TECHNIQUE 4 OR 5 TIMES PER WEEK WITH LOW FATIGUING DRILLS; IF YOU ARE DOING INTENSE, HIGH SPEED AGILITY SESSIONS, KEEP THESE TO TWICE PER WEEK.
YOUR AGILITY SESSIONS SHOULD INCLUDE:
- LOW INTENSITY TECHNICAL WORK
- HIGH INTENSITY TECHNICAL WORK
- AGILITY AT SPEED
- AGILITY IN GAME SPECIFIC SCENARIOS
- SMALL 3V3 TO 5V5 DRILLS
SPEED
MOMENTUM WINS COLLISIONS, ITS SIMPLE PHYSICS. AS WELL AS BEING BIG, YOU HAVE TO BE FAST. THIS COMBINATION GIVES YOU ONE HELL OF A CARRY THAT TEAMS SHOULD BE AFRAID OF.
THERE IS MORE AND MORE RESEARCH COMING OUT TO DO WITH SPEED TRAINING. YOU SHOULD BE AIMING TO SPRINT AT MAX VELOCITY 2-3 TIMES PER WEEK. WITHIN THIS, YOU SHOULD BE PERFORMING 6-10 MAX VELOCITY EFFORTS WITHIN THE WEEK. FOR EXAMPLE THIS COULD BE 4 ON TUESDAY AND 4 ON FRIDAY. THIS CAN ALSO INCLUDE MAX SPRINTS DURING A FIXTURE IN THAT WEEK.
YOUR SPRINT TRAINING SHOULD INCLUDE:
- 6-10 MAX VELOCITY EFFORTS PERFORMED 2-3 TIMES PER WEEK
- STRAIGHT LINE RUNNING
- CURVED RUNNING
- GAME SPECIFIC SCENARIOS
- SPRINTING FROM DIFFERENT STARTING POSITIONS
POWER
POWER AND EXPLOSIVENESS MIGHT BE THE MOST TALKED ABOUT PHYSICAL QUALITY WHEN IT COMES TO A RUGBY FORWARD. WHETHER IT'S TACKLING, CARRYING OR JACKLING, YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO PRODUCE EXPLOSIVE POWER FROM ALL KINDS OF LOW AND AWKWARD POSITIONS DURING THESE SKILLS.
POWER IS DEFINED AS STRENGTH X SPEED, AND BEING A HIGH INTENSE TRAINING MODALITY MEANS THAT YOU SHOULD ONLY POWER TRAIN 1-2 TIMES PER WEEK. TRUE POWER COMES FROM BALANCING A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT PIECES IN YOUR TRAINING INCLUDING:
- STRENGTH TRAINING
- JUMPS AND PLYOMETRICS
- THROWING AND PUSHING HEAVY AND LIGHT
- AGILITY AND SPORTS SPECIFIC WORK
CONDITIONING
WHILE NOT TALKED ABOUT ANYWHERE NEAR ENOUGH, CONDITIONING MIGHT BE THE MOST IMPORTNAT SKILL FOR ANY GAMES PLAYER. IF YOU ARE NOT FIT ENOUGH, YOU WILL BECOME A LIABILITY DURING THE LATTER STAGES OF A MATCH. YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO PERFORM AT YOUR BEST RIGHT UP UNTIL THE FINAL WHISTLE, AND THIS REQUIRES ELITE LEVELS OF CONDITIONING.
AS A RUGBY FORWARD, YOUR CONDITIONING SHOULD INCLUDE BOTH AEROBIC AND ANAEROBIC WORK. AEROBIC WORK CAN BE DONE 2-5 TIMES PER WEEK. ANAEROBIC WORK SHOULD ONLY BE COMPLETED 1-3 TIMES PER WEEK, BOTH DEPENDING ON WHERE YOU ARE IN THE SEASON
YOU SHOULD ALSO BE TACTICAL AND INCLUDE BOTH ON FEET AND OFF FEET CONDITIONING SESSIONS TO MINIMISE THE LOAD ON YOUR BODY.
KEY ADVICE:
ALL OF THIS IS IRRELEVANT IF YOUR SKILL LEVEL IS NOT HIGH ENOUGH. ENSURE YOU ARE PRACTICING YOUR RUGBY SKILLS AS A PRIORITY IF THEY ARE LACKING
PHYSICAL QUALITIES WILL NOT MAKE UP FOR POOR RUGBY ABILITY
ADDRESSING COMMON INJURIES
IMPORTANT READ
IT'S NO SECRET THE INJURIES THAT CAN OCCUR WHILST PLAYING RUGBY. YOU NEED TO BE AWARE OF WHICH INJURIES ARE COMMMON AND WHAT STRATEGIES YOU CAN USE TO HELP REDUCE THE LIKELIHOOD OF THESE INJURIES OCCURING.
UNFORRTUNATELY, WE CANNOT PREVENT INJURIES FROM OCCURING, IT IS JUST NOT POSSIBLE. ANYONE THAT TRIES TO SAY THEY CAN IS LYING. HOWEVER, THERE ARE EXRCISES WE CAN DO TO HELP REDUCE THE LIKELIHOOD OF CERTAIN INJURIES OCCUING. THIS SECTION WILL GO OVER SOME OF THE MOST COMMON INJURIES IN RUGBY, AND WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP REDUCEE THE CHANCE OF SOME OF THESE INJURIES FROM HAPPENING.
JUST A DISCLAIMER, THE LANGUAGE IN THIS SECTION IS CHOSEN CAREFULLY AS I AM NOT ABOUT TO PROMISE YOU THAT DOING THESE EXERCISES WILL STOP YOU GETTING INJURED EVER. THEY WON'T, YOU STILL MIGHT GET INJURED, HOWEVER THESE EXERCISES ARE STILL 100% WORTH ADDING TO YOUR TRAINING REGIMENT.
THE SHOULDER
WHAT INJURY IS MORE COMMON IN RUGBY THAN THE SHOULDER? THEY TAKE SUCH A BEATING DURING MATCHES AND ARE INVOLVED IN MANY DIFFERENT PHYSICAL CHALLENGES. FROM TACKLING AND JACKLING TO THROWING AND CATCHING; AND MOST IMPORTANTLY FALLING AND IMPACT
​
THIS IS BY NO MEANS AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST, BUT YOU CAN BEGIN TO SEE HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO KEEP YOUR SHOULDERS HEALTHY
​
WE NEED TO ENSURE WE TRAIN THE SHOULDER THROUGH ALL 5 OF THESE KEY COMPONENTS:
​
- STRENGTH
- SIZE
- RANGE OF MOTION (ROM)
- ENDURANCE
- IMPACT
​
STRENGTH IS THE PHYSICAL COMPONENT THAT UNDERPINS ALL OTHERS. IF A MUSCLE IS NOT STRONG, IT BECOMES INCREASINGLY DIFFICULT TO CREATE ANY OTHER NECESSARY ADAPTATIONS. ENSURE YOU ARE STRENGTH TRAINING YOUR SHOULDERS REGULARLY
​
BIG SHOULDERS PROVIDE US WITH NECESSARY PROTECTION FROM REPETITIVE HITS (PLUS THEY LOOK COOL). IF YOUR SHOULDER IS NOT BIG OR STRONG ENOUGH TO HANDLE A HIT FROM A LARGE FORWARD, ITS GOING TO BOTH HURT AND RUN THE RISK OF AN INJURY. ENSURE YOU ARE INCLUDING BODYBUILDER STYLE TRAINING AND INCREASING THE SIZE OF ALL 3 SHOULDER HEADS (ANTERIOR, MEDIAL AND POSTERIOR)
​
YOU CAN HAVE THE BIGGEST AND BADDEST SHOULDERS IN THE GAME, BUT IF YOU CANNOT LIFT YOUR ARMS OVER YOUR HEAD, YOU'RE GOING TO ENCOUNTER SEVERAL PROBLEMS. IF YOU STRUGGLE TO GET YOUR ARMS TO TOUCH YOUR EARS OR YOUR SHOULDERS FEEL LIKE THEY ARE GOING TO SNAP EACH TIME YOU SCRATCH YOUR BACK, YOU MUST PRIORITISE INCREASING YOUR SHOULDER ROM. YOU CAN PERFORM STRETCHING AND MOBILITY WORK EVERYDAY IF YOU CAN CREATE THE HABIT, JUST AVOID LARGE SESSIONS IN AND AROUND TRAINING AND MATCHES.... OH AND PLEASE WARM UP PROPERLY
​
IF YOU CAN ONLY DOMINATE YOUR FIRST 3 TACKLES BEFORE YOU START TO FATIGUE, YOU NEED TO ENSURE YOUR SHOULDERS ARE WELL CONDITIONED TO BE EFFECTIVE ACROSS THE WHOLE MATCH. SPECIFIC CONDITIONING SUCH AS DOWN UPS, BAG HITS AND WRESTLING DRILLS CAN BE A GREAT WAY BUILD BOTH STRENGTH AND ENDURANCE IN THE SHOULDER. EVEN BETTER IF YOU ARE COACHED BY A QUALIFIED PROFESSIONAL
MAYBE THE LEAST THOUGHT ABOUT BUT DEFINITELY MY TOP PRIORITY IS ENSURING THE SHOULDER IS PREPPED AND CONDITIONED TO TAKE MULTIPLE IMPACTS OVER AN EXTENDED PERIOD. EXERCISES SUCH AS DROP CATCH PRESS UPS, FALLING DRILLS, WRESTLING DRILLS AND CRAWLING WORK ARE GREAT IN ENSURING THE SHOULDER IS READY FOR CONTACT. AND ONCE AGAIN, PLEASE ENSURE YOU WARM UP THOROUGHLY
THE NECK
SIMILARLY YOUR NECK TAKES A HUGE BEATING DURING SCRUMMAGING AND TACKLING, WE NEED TO ENSURE OUR NECK CAN WITHSTAND THE IMPACT IT WILL FACE DURING A MATCH
A STRONGER NECK CAN IMPROVE HEAD STABILITY DURING IMPACT, SUPPORT BETTER POSTURE IN CONTACT SITUATIONS AND HELP ATHLETES TOLERATE THE PHYSICAL DEMANDS OF THE GAME MORE EFFECTIVELY. NECK TRAINING MUST BE A CONSISTENT PART OF YOUR TRAINING PROGRAM
WE SHOULD BE TRAINING OUR NECK 2-3 TIMES PER WEEK THROUGH BOTH ISOKINETIC aND ISOMETRIC EXERCISES. EXERCISES SUCH AS NECK CURLS, NECK EXTENSIONS AND NECK BRIDGES ARE EXCELLENT WAYS TO ADD STRENGTH AND SIZE TO YOUR NECK
ALSO TO BE NOTED, ENSUE YOU ARE REGULARLY PRACTICING YOUR SKILLS, ESPECIALLY TACKLE TECHNIQUE TO ENSUE YOUR NECK IS IN THE ORRECT POSITIONS. THIS WILL ALSO HELP TO REDUCE THE LIKELIHOOD OF NECK INJURIES
THE KNEE
YOUR KNEE WILL BE EXPOSED O TREMENDOUS FOCES THROUGHOUT A RUGBY MATCH. EVERYTHING FROM SPRINTING TO TACKLING, YOUR KNEE NEEDS TO BE BOTH STRONG AND STABLE TO MINIMISE THE RISK OF INJURY
WE NEED TO BE TRAINING THE FOLLOWING:
- STRENGTH
- STABILITY
- CHANGE OF DIRECTION (COD)
- PLYOMETRICS
LOWER BODY STRENGTH TRAINING IS VITAL FOR IMPROVING KNEE STRENGTH. EXERCISES SUCH AS LUNGES AND SPLIT SQUATS ARE GREAT BECAUE THEY NOT ONLY BUILD STRENGTH BUT ALSO ENFORCE KNEE ALIGNMENT AND STABILITY. WE SHOULD BE STRENGTH TRAINING 1-2 TIMES PER WEEK IN SEASON AND 2-3 TIMES PER WEEK OFF SEASON
STABILITY COME FROM BALANCE AND PROPRIOCEPTION EXERCISES. THIS CAN BE AS SIMPLE AS STANDING ON ONE LEG, WORKING UP TO MORE ADVANCED DRILLS INVOLVING MULTIDIRECTIONAL BALANCE. AS THESE EXERCISES TEN TO BE LOW FATIGUING, WE ARE USUALLY ABLE TO DO THESE UP TO 3-4 TIMES PER WEEK IF NECESSARY. THESE EXERCISES WORK GREAT AS SUPERSETS OR TOWARDS THE END OF YOUR WORKOUT
COD MOVEMENTS ARE FAMOUS FOR BEING BRUTAL ON KNEES, BUT THE DON'T HAVE TO BE. FOCUSING ON YOUR COD TECHNIQUE WILL NOT ONLY HELP TO MINIMISE INJURY RISK, BUT WILL ALSO IMPROVE YOUR PERFORMANCE ON THE PITCH, ESPECIALLY THROUGH YOUR CARRYING AND TACKLING. INTENSE COD DAYS SHOULD ONLY BE DONE 1- TIMES PER WEEK, HOWEVER LOW INTENSE TECHNIQUE DAYS CAN BE DONE MORE THN THIS. ENSURE THAT YOU ARE PLANNING YOUR LOAD CAREFULLY. MORE ON THIS IN HOW TO PLAN YOUR WEEK
PLYOMETRICS ARE EXCELLENT TOOLS FOR YOU AS A FORWARD. ENSURE THAT YOUR KNEES TRACK STRAIGHT OVER YOUR TOES WHEN PERFORMING THEM. EXERCISES LIKE DEPTH JUMPS AND POGOS ARE GREAT TO START BUILDING UP SOME WORK CAPACITY IN THE TENDONS IN YOUR KNEE, AS WELL AS LATERAL BASED MOVEMENTS SUCH AS BOUNDS AND SKATER JUMPS. THESE SHOULD BE PERFORMED WITHIN THE SAME PARAMETERS AS YOUR COD MOVEMENTS
THE GROIN
YOUR GROIN, OR KNOWN AS YOUR ADDUCTOR, CAN BE SUCCEPTABLE TO INJURY MAINLY DURING RUNNING AND CHANGE OF DIRECTION MOVEMENTS
KEY AREAS TO FOCUS ON ARE:
- CHANGE OF DIRECTION (COD)
- STRENGTH
- FLEXIBILITY
IMPROVING YOUR COD SKILLS WILL PUT YOUR BODY IN MORE ADVANTAGEOUS POSITIONS WHICH WILL BOTH IMPROVE YOUR PERFORMANCE ON THE PITCH AND ALSO HELP TO DECREASE YOUR LIKELIHOOD OF INJURY. LIMIT INTENSE SESSIONS TO 1-2 TIMES PER WEEK, AND LIGHT TECHNICAL SESSIONS YOU CAN PERFROM 3-5 TIMES PER WEEK IF YOU WISH
STRENGTH WILL ALWAYS BE A NECESSARY QUALITY TO IMPROVE. START OFF WITH SQUEEZE VARIOATIONS IF YOU HAVE PARTICULARLY WEAK ADDUCTORS AND THEN MOVE INTO COPENHAGENS AND THEN MORE DYNAMIC ADDUCTOR EXERCISES. WE SHOULD BE STRENGTH TRAINING 1-2 TIMES PER WEEK IN SEASON AND 2-4 TIMES PER WEEK OFF SEASON
FLEXIBILITY IS FAR FROM THE MOST FUN THING TO TRAIN, BUT IF YOU DRASTICALLY STRUGGLE TO SIT WITH YOUR LEGS CROSSED WE SHOULD PROBABLY LOOK TO ADDRESS THAT. STRETCHING CAN BE DONE EVERYDAY OF THE WEEK IF IT IS PROPERLY PROGRAMMED IN, HOWEVER WE NEED TO BE STRENGTH TRAINING THROUGH FULL RANGE OF MOTION ON TOP OF THIS TO SEE ACTUAL IMPROVEMENTS. TAKING UP YOGA OR PILATIES IS ALSO A FANTASTIC OPTION AND MANY PRO TEAMS HAVE THIS AS PART OF THERE WEEK
ANKLE
GET STRONG
GET BIG
GET EXPLOSIVE
GET FAST
GET AGILE
GET FIT
HOW TO PLAN YOUR WEEK
bottom of page