Fitness ideas for noobie 15 year old winger?

Question

I just started playing rugby as a wing. I am skinny and not too fast. Any tips on how to bulk myself up and get faster?

Answer 1

How can someone who isn't fast be a Winger?

Speed, well you need to work on technique for this. If there's a local athletics club then go there and ask for help sprinting. Also do some weights, to build muscle strength. You need fast twitch muscle fibres to be fast since it's an explosive activity. So high intensity for short periods of time.

Bulking up is obviously going to mean weights and a high protein diet.

Answer 2

I spent about 10 years coaching High School kids (13-18 year olds) . Without watching you play it's hard to give tips but here are a few.

1 Dont get to obssessed with bulking up. Some people physically mature quicker than others. At your age I was a skinny "slow coach". At about 19-20 I developed quick off the mark acceleration which became one of my strenghts.Often people who "artificially or unnaturally" bulk up lose their agility,which is just as important as speed and physical strenght.

2 While out and out pace is an important quality for a winger to have, there are still some good wingers around with average speed. They get by with timing and running the right lines .... something I cant help you with in this forum.The best way to develope this is experience so get out there and go for it.

3At your age a big thing is running with confidence. One innovation I tried with success was getting the kids into hurdling at training( as oppossed to straight out out sprinting) with the hurdles placed closer together than in a proper race and at irregular intervals.If someone naturally lead with their right leg, I would get them to work on leading with their left ; or vice-versa.

Thats all I can offer.

Go for it ....good luck.

Answer 3

Powerlift, Plyometrics and wind sprints....throw some 400 meter runs a few times a week.

Make sure you eat properly and stay hydrated. You can get really strong just by increasing your water intake. You should be drinking over 80 oz. water/day if you are training.

Get a trainer to map a plan out for you - should be able to get this through school or a fitness club.

Answer 4

To work on strength - do not start on weights until you are at least 16. Your joints will not be properly developed. Instead work on excerises that use your own bodyweight. Lots of press ups, etc. But also ensure you keep the running/aerobic fitness levels high. Its no good putting on several kilos of new muscle but finding you are no longer quick enough to cover the ground. So keep the running going - work in sprint work with longer runs.

Example: start on try line, walk to 22, jog to 1/2 way, run to far 22, sprint to far try line. Hands behind head (opens up chest to make breathing easire) for 15 seconds, and repeat. Do ten of these in a session linked with a longer 2km run.

Also ensure you stretch. Keeping limbs lose will prevent injuries. To some extent pilates is also good - it works on core stabilty - important in all aspects of the game.

To work on speed you need to develop fast twitch muscle fibres.

The best way for doing this is something called SAQ drills (SAQ - speed, agiligy, and quickness) These will help you get your feet moving tto both run faster and develop a side step.

I can't describe them very easily but here is a link for this kind of drill:

http://www.saqinternational.com/index.as...

Good luck and enjoy....