Why the off season is the most important part of your career.

"There are three types of people in this world, those who make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who wonder what happened."

 The above quote couldn't be more true. Most professionals agree in that the off season is the absolute most important period in an athletes career. The off season, in my opinion, has a few different aspects to it: the recovery period, the strength period, and the developmental period. Each period is extremely important for an athlete's overall development, so lets start with the obvious one.

1) The recovery period.
This time frame is crucial for your body, especially for goalkeepers. Our bodies take a beating, even though the season is only 3-4 months long, our bodies require rest. Here is the misconception about rest, people generally relate rest with not doing anything. Putting the sport aside and focusing on other things. This is completely wrong. Our bodies should always stay active. In this period, we should focus on assisting our bodies. I used to do yoga to help relax and improve my flexibility. Not only was it calming and made my body feel brand new, but it also help me become more agile and flexible as a goalkeeper. Do your body a favor, focus on stretching, light running, cross training, and nutrition. This period should last about 3-4 weeks.

2) The Strength period.
The strength period is arguably the most important of the three phases in the off season. This is the time we begin to build our bodies. We, in theory, should be hitting the gym and lifting weights attempting to make our bodies stronger and more prepared for the beating that comes with the position. As a goalkeeper there are three areas of concentration: our core, our legs, and our upper body. We need to become more explosive and more powerful during this period. Leg workouts should include explosive movements so that our agility/quickness isn't compromised. We should work on our abs/core a minimum of 2-3 times per week to help stabilize and balance our body. And finally, we should bulk our upper body so that we can protect ourselves in the air and while hitting the ground. Eating correctly in this time period is just as essential as working out. You CAN NOT OUT WORK A BAD DIET. This stage should last about

3) The Developmental Period
This period can begin and overlap the other periods, specifically the strength period. This period starts our journey back to the playing field. I could argue this period last all year long but for this articles sake, I'll say that this period should start not later than a month before you season. Two areas where you can begin: getting touches on the ball and rebuilding your base fitness. It is time for us to begin preparing our bodies for the workload. Fitness is important. High School and College coaches will expect you to show up day one of preseason already fit. Not only that but they expect you to already have the rust off. One month (at minimum) before preseason begins, you should be running outside, sprints and long distance, while also getting your touch and comfort levels back to normal. As Goalkeepers we should also begin to introduce our bodies to the ground, start taking light shots, dive on the ground, get prepared for what's to come. What we do when no one is watching will define us as an athlete. I challenge you to work on your own. Be the best you can be. Don't settle more mediocrity. Take this off season seriously.