A couple years ago, a player came to me because he felt like he just wasn’t fast or strong enough on the ice.

He was getting knocked off the puck, losing battles, and always a step behind.

He thought he needed to build more muscle, but after a couple of sessions in the gym, I realized something:

He was already strong.

Moved serious weight. Great form. Good engine.

The problem wasn’t effort.

It wasn’t discipline.

It was the transfer.

All that strength in the gym… wasn’t showing up in the game.

And honestly? He’s not alone.

I’ve seen it over and over again:

Players who train hard, who look like monsters in the gym, but still get pushed around when the puck drops.

Why This Happens

Most players train like lifters, not athletes.

They chase bigger numbers:

More weight. More reps. More muscle.

But hockey and most sports don’t reward size. It rewards output — how quickly and powerfully you can move.

And real athletic movement happens in three phases:

1. Eccentric (lowering or absorbing force, like loading into a stride)
2. Isometric (holding tension, like bracing before contact)
3. Concentric (exploding out — like a sprint, shot, or hit)

Most workouts only train the last one.

And when you skip two-thirds of what makes up an athletic movement you miss out on the gains that matter most.

Here’s where to start.

Step 1: Train All Three Phases

If your muscles only know how to lift, but not how to absorb or stabilize, your strength won’t translate to the ice.

That’s why players who crush it in the gym still get knocked off balance, lose puck battles, or feel sluggish on their first few strides — because they’ve only trained one-third of what real movement needs.

We fix that by training each muscle phase for two full weeks:

• Weeks 1–2: Focus on eccentric training — slow the lowering phase of every lift (3–5 seconds down) to build control and force absorption.
• Weeks 3–4: Shift to isometric work — hold key positions (like the bottom of a squat) for 2–3 seconds to develop stability and joint control.
• Weeks 5–6: Finish with concentric power — move with max intent, explode out of every rep, and train the nervous system to fire fast.

You don’t need fancy equipment.

You don’t even need to change your exercises — just how you execute them, and when.

We do this program with every athlete that comes through our doors.

By Week 6-8, you’ll be stronger, faster, and more durable. Not because you got bigger, but because your strength finally became usable in the game.

Step 2: Don’t Just Train Heavy, Train Explosive

This is where most players go wrong.

They treat the gym like a grindhouse: move as much weight as possible, as slow as it needs to be, and “push through it.”

And while heavy lifting builds muscle and max strength, it doesn’t build the kind of explosive power you need on the ice.

A heavy squat that takes 4 seconds to grind up, isn’t preparing you for a stride that lasts 0.25 seconds.

I see this all the time:

Players who are insanely strong on paper, but their nervous system has never been trained to fire fast.

And if you don’t train fast — you don’t move fast. Simple as that.

What to Do Instead:

Add 1–2 explosive sessions per week into your training.

This doesn’t mean max effort lifting — it means max intention and velocity.

Here’s how:

• Superset a heavy lift with a fast movement, like a squat paired with a broad jump.
• Add resisted sprints, banded jumps, or med ball throws to your lower or upper body days.
• Use light-to-moderate loads and focus on moving as fast as possible with good form.

It doesn’t take much, but it does take consistency.

Step 3: Cycle Your Focus Every 2 Weeks

Here’s the part that brings it all together:

If you time your off-season right — and follow this progression step by step — you’ll hit the season feeling faster, more powerful, and ready to dominate.

Over the first six weeks, you’ve trained all three muscle phases — eccentric control, isometric stability, and concentric power.

Each block is built on the last, stacking strength in a way that shows up in your stride, shot, and contact.

But now it’s time to bring it all together — and peak before you head back for your season.

Weeks 7–8: French Contrast Phase

This is where your training shifts into high gear.

We take all the strength you’ve built… and teach your body how to use it at full speed.

French Contrast is a high-performance method that combines four key elements:

1. Heavy lift (strength)
2. Plyometric jump (elastic power)
3. Assisted/overspeed movement (nervous system activation)
4. Explosive sprint or throw (real-game transfer)

If you want to read a full breakdown on French Contrast Training, you can check that out here.​

The Bottom Line

Lifting more doesn’t matter if it doesn’t show up in your game.

Train all three phases. Move with intent. Time your off-season to peak when it counts.

Do that, and you won’t just feel stronger — you’ll play like a completely different player.

That’s all for this week.

Tony

P.S. If you want a proven plan to follow, the Pro Hockey Academy maps it all out step by step. You can check that out here.​