Welcome to Dryland Training!
 
For the past month, we have been jumping straight into working on assessing where each age group is at in terms of speed, agility, quickness, and coordination. After the first session with each team, we got right into the basic movements to help your athletes succeed. At the 8U level we have been mostly working on our multi-tasking skills as well as our coordination.  Some of the exercises include partner stick catchers, single-leg hop catches with a tennis ball, and some fun games to keep them excited about dryland. 
 
At the 10U level, we get a little bit more in-depth with getting them used to the idea of a workout off the ice. Still working on our speed and mobility within these workouts. We have been doing some single-leg jumps mixed in with power broad jumps, adding a relay race to single-leg jumps to add competition, and working on sprints/quickness.
 
With 12U we are working on quickness and paying attention to the little details. We have really been trying to understand the importance of doing everything correctly the first time to ensure we can be the best athlete we can be. The exercises we do are bodyweight squat/push up, different circuits with basic movements (crunches, lunges, mountain climbers etc.), and sprints as well.
 
The 14U/16U/18U teams all are at the same stage of being able to handle complex movements with multiple directions given. We have been working on continuous exercises and extending our endurance when it comes to off and on-the-ice training. Some of the exercises include circuit days with multiple exercises like squat jumps, mountain climber burpees, and 180 jump squats with a good solid warm-up.

For more age-specific training visit https://www.usahockey.com/agespecifictraining
 
~Kinsey Saiz, Sno-King Dryland Coach