Rugby Fitness - An Autumn Fitness Drive?

As the Rugby season kicks off it is common to see the fitness efforts of pre-season begin to wane as game focus takes over and you fall into a break even with your fitness progress. This is a shame as there is still a huge opportunity to develop many to most elements of your fitness even around playing games.

There are a little over 13 weeks left in the year and that means plenty of time to still achieve some amazing results. It is enough time to take great improve your base aerobic fitness, e.g. 3km, to add KG’s to your main lifts or transform your body so you are quicker and more agile. In 13 weeks you could lose 7-12kg (16-30 lbs) or gain some nice amounts of muscle. There is so much you can achieve, but what are the best steps to take?? For me it would be something along the lines of:

Get Specific & Scientific About Your Fitness – It is very helpful if you put some data around your fitness pursuits. This does not need to be too much, just one number is enough to measure progress, e.g. run 3km, a 400m time, a 3 rep max on two lifts, your body weight etc. From this you should apply some of the base sports science principles to develop that ability. Contrary to popular belief, fitness training isn’t just about lifting, running or pushing it really hard. If you use the right methods it is much easier than the way you would traditionally perceive making fitness developments. It can also often be done in a fraction of the training time devoted to it that you would typically expect.

Make A Move With Food – If you follow anyone who is known for their body in the health & fitness arena whenever they “get back on it” they almost always start by planning out their food. This goes against what most people do, which is usually based around exercise or the gym. So if changing your body is part of your goals then make a commitment in the area of food (or drink). You can do this by trying out a new eating regime, planning out your food for five days, eliminating a food group or trying a fasting protocol etc. The approach you use if far less important that just doing something to change things up.

Get Some Support – Too often we try and do things all on our own when it comes to health & fitness. This greatly reduces the odds of you succeeding. In motivational terms we will always do more when others are around. So to increase chances of getting results get other people involved. You can do this by hiring a trainer, forming a fitness group within your rugby friends or simply going to exercise classes. I am available here in Battersea, London and I am about launch my revamped online coaching within the next couple of weeks.

Focus On The Long Game – This email is about getting results over the next 3 months. However, I always keep an eye on the long game. So while I really want you to be looking and feeling amazing in January 2023 I also want you to be in a sensational physical shape for rugby (and life) next season and all the way out beyond January 2028.

For such long term successes it always comes back to you and your natural behaviour patterns. The key to this is the adaptability of your behaviours, in practical terms it is not just about following Plan A. It is about how else can you achieve results when things aren’t all going well. I discuss this extensively in my book, The Grand Unified Theory of Weight Loss.

You can work on this by trying out different strategies even when you have a plan that is working for you. For example, you may be loving your exercise schedule at your rugby club but you choose to join a gym for times when you are travelling and away from rugby. Perhaps you are sticking to your home food prep perfectly but you decide to try and lose fat without making any food at home for the next week to prepare you for when work is crazy busy. You could be the kind of person who always eat four times a day without snacking but you decide to try some intermittent fasting methods for times when people are staying with you and messing up your eating routine.

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Springing Into Action – You may not naturally be pumped for a new fitness drive right this minute but do not worry, the way to raise your motivational levels is through action. So simply start with the lowest level of action you are open to doing. Then after completing this you will naturally find yourself prepared to do more and before long you will have found some new motivation to raise your levels.

You can do this by simply thinking about what is the lowest level of action you are prepared to do (forget what you should be doing) and then do it!!

Photos – Here in London it has all stopped due to the Queen’s funeral. Here are a couple of photos from the events this last week or two.