I am sure you have heard it all before so I will not harp on the fact that in order to improve you need to dedicate some time to training. We, as recreational and amateur players, don’t have the same kind of time to devote to training as the pro’s but there are a few things we can add to our routine that will help advance our games.
Staying Focused During Injury
Well, lets face it – Injuries suck.
Following up on our last post about Paul Coll today’s post is going to look at fitness. Squash is a tough game physically and being in good physical shape is imperative to performing at your top level. There are 4 key elements that I want to focus on. The 4 are endurance, core strength, flexibility and explosive power. The reason I am focusing on them now is twofold. it is just about the new year so a lot of people will be making new years’ resolutions. I am also focusing on them now as I need to work on them myself! Watching Paul Coll’s run at the Channel VAS Championship a couple of weeks ago, really brought in to focus just how far athleticism can take you.
Shahier Razik has been the #1 Squash player in Canada for a number of years now. With the retirement of Jonathan Power in 2006 Shahier has consistently been the best player in Canada.
I love watching Shahier play. Why, because he plays a type of game that we can all strive for. He certainly is extremely talented and can hit amazing shots but what impresses me most about his game is his efficiency on court, his patience and his work ethic.
I was logged in to my Twitter account and found a post this morning from SquashSite about training featuring Nick Matthew. Below is the article, the author and original source.
Source: http://www.menshealth.co.uk/living/men/the-mh-interview-nick-matthew
Author: Ed Vanstone
How many hours do you spend training a week?
About four hours a day, six days a week. This has altered over the years: I think when you're younger you do a few stupid things which, these days, the body wouldn't be able to cope with. Training smart not hard, with lots of recovery work and non-impact sessions such as getting in the pool if there's little time between tournaments – this is my principle now. But I always have just the one day off a week. Possibly another half day depending on the schedule.
Are you on court every training day?
It's pre-season now, so I'm not doing as much as I would be during the season, when I'll be on court at least five days a week. Sometimes twice a day when I really want to sharpen things up. And that time will vary between drills with my coach, drills with a partner, solo practice – which is really important in squash – and match play.