By Kayleigh Cronin from Activate Fitness

Want to gain a sharper edge this off-season and be a stronger, faster, and more powerful athlete in 2023? If the answer is yes, then join Activate's 2023 pre-season programme.

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The majority of athletes will want to enter the pre-season:

- Fitter, able to withstand the hard sessions ahead
- Bigger and stronger, so they can handle and dominate the knocks, bumps and contacts
- With greater speed, so they can outrun the opposition.

That is where we come in.

Why Activate, Why Now?

Over the last number of years, the 'season' of any given sport has changed drastically. Now, amateur sports people are expected to train all year round as professionals do. The off-season used to mean putting your feet up, these days it means you can put yourself to (smart) work, honing in on any weaknesses in your armour. Athletes who choose to take it easy and not enhance their athletic performance are at an immediate disadvantage when the season begins.

It is often athletes who are most serious about their sport that are least likely to 'take it easy' during any stage of the season. They are often the ones who are first back to the gym or pitch after a season ends, usually with a generic programme in hand. These training programmes are usually given to every player on the team, regardless of any individual needs you may have and you are left to your own devices to get through it. Many athletes are willing, or do, put in the hard work that is required, but often the effort being put in is not transferring into the results that are deserved from the amount of work being put in.

If it was as easy as a generic training programme (mostly terrible .pdf docs), we'd see resilient, powerful and confident athletes everywhere come day one of the season. But we don't because it's not as simple as a tick box programme or finding the latest circus trick exercises on social media. Do we expect a goalkeeper to cover the same sprint distance as a corner forward in a match? No. Do we expect a corner back to cover the same total distance as a midfielder in a match? No. So why do we expect the same programme to work for every player, regardless of playing position, individual needs and so on?

Through testing and a needs analysis, we will determine what area of your individual game needs improvement and put a plan in place that will allow you to gain a sharper edge this off-season.
 

What Are We Offering?

We are offering an eight-week pre-season programme to any Gaelic footballer or general sport enthusiast. We are aware that some seasons are still ongoing, therefore the earliest start date is November 21, and the latest start date is December 12.

If you want to level up this year, you'll want to consider having a fully integrated system for developing your athleticism. Allow us to put in place a system for you, working with a master's qualified Strength & Conditioning Coach who has considerable inter-county playing experience, supported by some of the best in the business in S&C, Physiotherapy and Nutrition.

A system that ensures when it matters, you are ready.

Testing & Assessment
Gym
Conditioning
Recovery
Physio (if required)
Nutrition
Accountability
Support

For more information follow our Facebook page, or email me at kayleigh@activate.ie.