Netball Match » Netball Fitness http://www.netballmatch.com Spreading the word that Netball is really the beautiful game Sun, 06 Feb 2011 21:08:08 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 What netballers can do in the off-season to stay on the ball http://www.netballmatch.com/2010/07/what-netballers-can-do-in-the-off-season-to-stay-on-the-ball/ http://www.netballmatch.com/2010/07/what-netballers-can-do-in-the-off-season-to-stay-on-the-ball/#comments Fri, 02 Jul 2010 11:12:45 +0000 admin http://www.netballmatch.com/?p=590
Wii Fit

Photo courtesy of Keith Williamson via Flickr.com

With so many summer leagues and tournaments to play in and netball tours to go on, for many of us it’s possible to play netball virtually all year round with hardly any break at all. This may suit you, especially if you’re still young, springy, nothing hurts yet and you don’t know any better.

Do yourself a favour and take a break from netball to give your mind and body a rest. You don’t want to risk becoming bored with your favourite sport. Notice I say a break from netball not from being active; no reason not to keep your fitness levels up. Participate in other sporting activities that test your mind and body in other ways (playing Wii Fit games does not count!)
For instance, I’ve decided not to play in any summer leagues this season to give my knees a rest (although I have said I will fill in if my club are desperate) but I’m keeping up with my weekly yoga and boxercise classes. Yoga is fantastic for strengthening and toning your whole body and I would highly recommend it. The boxercise class is a pretty intense session of boxing and circuit training and you box with both women AND men which is very challenging.  I’ll also do some cycling and I have good intentions to add in some running and possibly some simple weight training…that’s the plan, anyway.
It probably won’t be long before your pre-season training starts so all the more reason to make the most of your time away from netball. But don’t go to the other extreme either and end up doing nothing; avoid spending the whole summer partying non-stop, eating junk and not getting enough sleep. Unless of course you’re still young, springy, nothing hurts yet and you don’t know any better.
What do you do in the off-season to make sure you’re fresh and raring to go for the next season? Please leave a comment or share any tips you may have.
]]> http://www.netballmatch.com/2010/07/what-netballers-can-do-in-the-off-season-to-stay-on-the-ball/feed/ 0 How to stay fit for netball over the Christmas holidays http://www.netballmatch.com/2009/12/how-to-stay-fit-for-netball-over-the-christmas-holidays/ http://www.netballmatch.com/2009/12/how-to-stay-fit-for-netball-over-the-christmas-holidays/#comments Wed, 23 Dec 2009 23:10:25 +0000 admin http://www.netballmatch.com/?p=465 Traditional mince pies

Traditional mince pies. Photo courtesy of Nick J Webb at Flickr.com

It’s that time of year again when most of us go on the “seefood” diet – you see food and eat it (an old joke I know). There seems to be food on offer everywhere you go and you can easily end up eating and drinking to excess.

There’s usually no netball training or matches during the Christmas holidays, so your body gets dealt a double blow – you’re exercising less and eating a lot more. End result: you lose some fitness and gain unwanted pounds that you’ll be keen to shift come January 1st.

But when you do resume your regular exercise programme after a break, the first session back can seem a lot more effort than usual and you can end up with sore and aching muscles the next day. How to avoid this? Whilst, I don’t expect anyone to wake up on Christmas morning and bash out a few hundred sit-ups, try to do a little something over the festive period. Why not go for a swim or a run with a friend (weather permitting – we have snow in the UK right now) or try to attend fitness classes at your local sports centre.

Alternatively, there are lots of things you can do at home: knock out a few of those aforementioned sit-ups and add in some press-ups, dig out those hand-held weights that have been gathering dust under your bed or maybe even practise some gentle yoga to keep those muscles toned and supple. And, don’t forget to keep up those exercises I mentioned in last week’s blog post too.

Will I be practising what I preach? I will certainly try but I’m not promising anything! I do plan to keep going to my regular Boxercise class which will certainly help to burn off some of those mince pies but I shall be happy when netball training starts again too.

What do you do to maintain your fitness level during the holidays? Leave a comment on the blog to let everyone know your plans and how you get on.

Thanks for reading and Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Hope to hear from you in 2010.

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