Introduction

1  The fitness curriculum for regional rugby academy players defines the minimum fitness training competencies that are expected of players of this calibre.  This is one of the flagstones as part of the "England Way" of developing elite rugby players.

2  The fitness curriculum is not a training manual, nor in any way a prescription for one method of training for all rugby players.  It is designed solely to set out the minimum acceptable competencies in the various fitness attributes, and encourages a creative approach to achieving these standards.

3  Fitness standard levels for Academy players will be constantly reviewed and refined as the data from the FAST testing programme grows.  These standards form a related but quite separate requirement to these competency-based standards.

Fitness Attributes

4  Fitness training competencies relate to the agreed rugby fitness attributes tested via the FAST fitness testing protocols, namely:

• Strength
• Power
• Speed
• Agility
• Endurance

     Plus

• Post-training recovery behaviours

Strength & Power

5   Strength training for young players is arguably the most important element of the fitness curriculum.  No other fitness area can be so constructive or destructive to a player''s career depending upon its implementation.  It is critical that young players receive appropriate coaching advice to promote safe and effective lifting techniques in the weights room.  Only then will the performance enhancing and injury reducing effects of strength training be realised.  Strength and conditioning coaching awards are now available via 1^st4Sport.

6   Strength and power are written together in the fitness curriculum for good reason.  For 95% of rugby players, of any age, their maximum power is limited by their maximum strength.  Improvements in the latter will have beneficial effects in power and speed, and this is especially true for young players.  Hence, the competencies for power training can be viewed as the same as those for strength training, and are listed below.

(N.B. Competencies for those power training exercises that are not based on weight training, such as jumping and bounding exercises, are covered in the section on Agility training).

7   Strength training in the fitness curriculum leans heavily on exercises borrowed from the sports of weightlifting and power lifting.  Traditional strength training methods are founded on these exercises.  Young players should aim to be able to display competent techniques in the following exercises:

• Overhead Squat
• Power Snatch
• Power Clean
• Jerk
• Back Squat
• Front Squat
• Deadlift
• Stiff-legged or Romanian Deadlift
• Good Morning
• Lunge
• Bench Press
• Bent-over Row
• Shoulder Press
• Pull-ups
• Side Plank
• Bird-dog
• Curl-up

And, in addition,

• Safe techniques on all machine based exercises, e.g. Leg Press

8   It is not expected that all players will use all of these exercises all of the time during their rugby playing career.  However, it is important that all players are coached to become competent in the execution of these exercises with light loads.  Only then will players be able to train safely, unsupervised, in gyms local to their homes.

9   In the pursuit of strength improvements, it is typical for players to favour one training exercise over another – the Bench Press is typically ''King'' in this regard.  To off-set the risk of players developing imbalanced strengths in their basic movement profiles, we encourage strength and conditioning coaches to keep a close eye on the following movement ratios exhibited by their players, and to prevent players from moving too far away from them:

Speed

10   Ninety percent of the quickest Academy players are likely to be those who will benefit the least from technical coaching of their running mechanics.  Their speed improvements will tend to happen within the natural maturation process and as a product of their strength training.  The competencies listed below are aimed more at those individuals whose basic running form is compromised, and their maximum running speed poor.

11   Young players should aim to be able to:

• Execute a well-coordinated 3-pt start, with contra-lateral arm and legs working together (left arm, right leg drive together)
• Demonstrate good acceleration mechanics, which involve:
  
• Driving the arms from the shoulders, not the elbows
• Running with dorsi-flexed ankles (90º angle) to decrease ground contact time
• Running with a high stride rate
• Running with a stable pelvis
• Running comfortably with an inclined torso, which aids acceleration and ease of handling.

12   Young players should also be adept in the safe use of speed training apparatus such as:

• Bungee resistance, working with partner
• Bungee assistance, working with partner
• Sled resistance, training alone.

13   Finally, young players need to:

• fully understand that speed training is an intense, high quality, activity that requires adequate rest during, prior to, and after its use.  As such, players should be coached and adhere to these principles when conducting speed sessions.

Agility

14   Many of the competencies required for Speed training also hold for Agility training, particularly with regard to good acceleration mechanics.  They are listed here again for the sake of clarity:

• Driving the arms from the shoulders, not the elbows
• Running with dorsi-flexed ankles (90º angle) to decrease ground contact time
• Running with a high stride rate
• Running with a stable pelvis
• Running comfortably with an inclined torso, which aids acceleration and ease of handling.

15   In addition to these principles, the ability to decelerate is also critical to rugby players.  Hence, during the deceleration process, players should demonstrate the ability to:

• Reduce the height of the body''s centre of gravity and,
• Increase their stride rate and, consequently, reduce their stride length.

16   One of the most crucial facets of agility is the ability to change direction at pace.  While some players will inevitably be able to do this better than others, and with a variety of footwork patterns and deceptive actions, young players, should aim to be able competently to:

• Step to the left or the right, explosively, when running at pace.

17   Young players should also be adept in the safe use of agility training apparatus such as:

• Ladders
• Mini-and full sized hurdles
• Poles and cones.

18   Finally, young players may experience some form of jump training (plyometrics).  While such forms of training can be extremely beneficial to players, their use requires the same attention to detail as all other forms of ''high force'' training, such as strength training.  As opposed to describing a training system for plyometrics, and encouraging certain ''safer'' training practices before others this document will describe the basic movement competencies any young player should aim to be able to perform, before taking part in high intensity jump training sessions:

• A co-ordinated counter-movement when vertical jumping, where the arms are used effectively to increase jump height
• Stability at the ankle, knee, hip and in the low back when landing on two feet after performing a vertical jump (or lineout)
• Stability in landing on either foot, when performing a vertical jump
• The ability to land on a flat foot, with a dorsi-flexed ankle, when performing a series of hops or bounds
• The ability to hold a neutral lumbar spine when performing a series of hops or bounds.

Anaerobic Endurance

19   The ability to maintain a high work rate cannot be overstated when playing rugby.  To ensure that young players develop their endurance capacities, it is critical that they perform regular sessions that stress the anaerobic energy system.  To do so safely, especially in sessions that will tax the player very hard mentally as well as physically, will require the following competencies:

• The ability to construct and perform a suitable warm-up for any unsupervised anaerobic session.
• Competent in the use of all c.v. equipment:
• treadmill safety
• correct saddle height on bike ergometers
• excellent technique (leg/back dominant) on rower.
• The ability to construct and perform a suitable warm-down after any unsupervised anaerobic session.
• The ability to hydrate knowledgeably before and during such training and to rehydrate appropriately afterwards.