Make your own equipment!!! I started my career as an assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach at the University of Utah in 2000 before moving back to Canada in 2002. I have worked for Level 10 Fitness Inc. Since my return, I have learned the value of the dollar when it comes to purchasing equipment for the teams and athletes we work with. If you are fortunate enough to work as I did with teams that have an unlimited budget, by all means go crazy! If not, here are some simple tools you can create for your rugby teams for the fraction of the price listed from retailers. Although we work with rugby athletes from the age of 12 up to the national level and professional ranks, we still have to struggle with budgets and ensuring that these athletes get the best bang for their buck. We also have to ensure that we are engaging our athlete s and that we have the ability to offer them specific movements and patterns that will help increase performance. I have listed some simple tools that you can start to look at gathering for your teams and will place them into categories of use. Item List and potential uses: Simple black board or sidewalk chalk. Cost is minimal. Used for marking weight room floors for agilities, quick foot and reaction drills.
Football Shoulder Pad Strapping. Cost- Approximately $40 per 25yd Role (cut into 1-1.5 meters in length). Used for resisted running, strengthening exercises and static stretching. Duct Tape. Cost-$3-5 per roll. Used to mark off areas on the floor for agilities, ladder drills and other quick foot drills. Truck or Tire Inner Tubes and Play Sand or Gravel. Cost-Free to $10-$30 each. Cut inner tube in to appropriate size and fill with play sand or gravel and seal ends with duct tape and adhesive. Used for power and strength movements such as: lunges, squats, step ups, squat jumps and throws.
Ropes. Cost-They can run into the hundreds of dollars, but some ship yards and schools are always looking to get rid of them. Used for tug of wars, climbing and general strengthening. May also be used to anchor into tires for pulling/rowing movements or anchored to a sturdy structure for rope drills as seen below. Note: When cutting the ropes, wrap electrical tape in about a 6 inch span around the area you would like to cut. Use a knife or saw and cut through the tape to avoid fraying. Tires. Cost-Usually free. Contact any heavy duty tire shops or heavy equipment operators. Used for flipping, throwing, towing, pushing. You can drill out a hole (about 3 inch in diameter) and tie a knot through it for pulling and rowing movements. Towels. Cost-Cheap or free. Used for partner strengthening drills and on gym floors as it can slide and be used for shoulder/hip stability and general strengthening. (Similar movements as you would use a stability ball for).
Boxes. Cost-Cheap or free-can usually find left over two by fours and plywood (1 inch minimum). Boxes may also be substituted by using grandstands or bleachers for basic plyometric and strengthening movements. Rugby Balls. Cost-Cheap or already supplied. Used the same as a foam roller and can be used for some strengthening exercises as you would a stability ball such as; hip lifts and curls, single are rugby ball push up or single leg hip lifts. Tennis Balls. Cost-Cheap or free. Can ask tennis clubs and instructors for old balls as they usually get thrown out. Used for hand eye coordination, agility and reaction drills and for trigger point and rolling work.
PVC Pipe. Cost-Minimal. Used for rolling and self massage. Can be covered with yoga matting and secured with glue. Cut to desired length. If you work with a high school or local club team it is understood that your budget is minimal when it comes to purchasing equipment outside of your rugby needs. We also have to consider the number of athletes involved and the efficiency of the equipment we buy. In the past, I have worked with the national U-20 team and currently work with Capilano and UBC RFC which have me dealing with between 30 and 100 athletes at a time. Obviously the coach to athlete ratio is fairly poor here, but with some inventive thoughts and a small budget, we can ensure that all the athletes are getting value out of what we are doing. Sure, at times this is not the best case scenario, but we can still offer an intense training session that will help increase; strength, speed, power and work rate with limited equipment. Don t get caught up in the hype that there is one piece of equipment that is going to help your athlete s achieve a desired result (especially if it costs thousands of dollars). Start canvassing your schools and neighbourhood for equipment that can be salvaged and used for your teams. You will find that your
team will love doing something other than repeat sprints and most importantly gives us the ability to include more competition into our training sessions. There is no one device that will help your team achieve success, it is the progressions and combinations of movements that will enhance your teams athletic potential If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact me at joe@level10fitness.com. My next article will include some different ideas on work to rest ratios and how to incorporate some of these drills into your practices. Yours in Strength, Joe McCullum