What Gives Women’s Hockey Canada The Edge?

Hockey Canada announced a couple weeks ago that 104 players were invited to attend Canada’s National Women's strength and conditioning camp taking place on our campus at McMaster.

While much of this camp is kept hush, hush, we sat down with McMaster's Strength and Conditioning Coordinator, Steve Lidstone, to chat about why this camp is beneficial and how he thinks athletes can stay motivated on a long journey like this one. 

What types of sessions are you leading for these women?

The athletes will be put through a variety of different training, testing, and team building activities over their five day period here. Sessions will be run by a few different coaches. 

Why is a camp like this so important?

A camp like this is an essential first step to get the athletes ready for the long journey ahead of them. It will be five days of hard but rewarding work.

With the Winter Olympics being so far away, what are some ways to stay focused and motivated during the journey?

It can definitely be a challenge as four years can seem daunting. Similar to athletes who play sports during the year, it can be demanding to keep that focus. 

Taking the journey one day at a time is always a great way to keep focused. Also keeping track of your training, so you can see your gains, can help with motivation when you see positive results. 

Storing the big picture in the back of mind is essential. Having that goal in mind whether it's to represent Canada at the Olympics, hit a PB, or play your best game, goals are great motivators. 

There are going to be days where you don’t want to hit the gym, you don’t want to be restricted to a certain diet, and you really just want to play a friendly game of your chosen sport. Just remember that you're an athlete and it will all be worth it. I see being an athlete as a privilege, not everyone has the dedication, drive, and ability to do what you do. 

What are you most looking forward to with the camp?

For those that know me, they know that I love training athletes. I’m excited to see the caliber of high-performance athletes that will be at the camp. Additionally, it’s always great to interact with other coaches, and trainers, to see how they do things. We can always learn something new.

The athletes will be in Hamilton for 5 days and all training sessions at the strength and conditioning camp are closed to the public.

Interested in taking your training to the next level? Athlete's Edge can help with that. 

5 Ways To Gain Advantage In Sport

You Want An Advantage In Sport? The Athlete’s Edge Can Help Make That Happen

Whether you consider yourself an exercise lover or athlete, we’re all looking to reach that next step, next PB, or next goal.

In both sport and an exercise program, hard work and dedication are required. But at what point do you need an extra boost?

We’re investigating this by looking at McMaster’s newest initiative.

Always innovative in research and technology, McMaster looks at training and developing athletes using a variety of their expertise.

With one of the best High Performance Area’s in the country, McMaster has developed a new program, The Athlete’s Edge, which aims to help individuals and teams improve their athletic potential. 

You want to get to that next level? Here are 5 Ways to Gain Advantage In Sport:

1.      Track Your Training

After all that training, how do you know if you’re making gains? If you don’t have a coach at your disposal, make sure you’re documenting your journey, all the while, thinking about that overall goal.

With a variety of different ways to track your progress, The Athlete’s Edge has many different tests available for both assessment and tracking. These include a movement assessment, sleep pattern and quality analysis test, developmental age & PHV; great for youth athletes, body composition test, and more.

Current client NCCH (National Cycling Centre Hamilton), has found the VO2 max test beneficial. 

2.      Fuel Your Training Right

Nutrition habits can have a major impact on sport performance. When you’re training hard, your body needs the right fuel and the right amount of fuel. Keeping track of what you’re eating and following a nutrition program is always a great idea to help you reach your potential.

In order for individuals and teams to reach their training goals, The Athlete’s Edge offers nutrition coaching to help athletes perform their best. Their nutritionist, Dianna Moulden, has worked with the Ti-Cats as well as with McMaster’s varsity teams. 

3.      Have a Sound Strength and Conditioning Program

Not just a personal trainer, S&C coaches focus on sport performance. Based on your sport, your coach will assess the type of training needed. Performance training for strength, power, speed, agility, endurance, flexibility, and more are things that may be tested and trained.

The Strength and Conditioning portion of The Athlete’s Edge is run by McMaster’s Strength and Conditioning Coordinator, Steve Lidstone, and a group of S&C coaches. With over 17 years of Strength and Conditioning experience, Steve is well versed in athletic development and has worked in both Canada and the US.

4.      Embrace Recovery

Recovery is just as important as the training itself. While your plan should include a recovery itinerary, it may change depending on your sport. Wouldn't it be nice to know you have recovery and injury specialists available in the same building as your training?

Take advantage of The Athlete’s Edge sport medicine and rehabilitation specialists, who are in the same building. Without going too far, athletes have access to the David Braley Sport Medicine and Rehabilitation Centre. Not only will athletes be able to use the cold tub, but the physicians, physiotherapists, massage therapists, and chiropractors are some of the best in the business. 

5.      Work With Your Team

If you’re participating in a team sport, team development becomes an important part of the process. Learning to communicate and trust one another becomes an essential part of the process.

Being a multi-faceted program, The Athlete’s Edge has access to ALTITUDE, which works as an enriching and educational experience to develop interpersonal relationships within groups.

ALTITUDE has worked with many different elementary schools, high school groups, McMaster students, staff, community sports teams, and more.

Already making a dent in the Hamilton community, those athletes who have joined the program have seen great gains in their performance.

To find out more information about , visit their website or check them out on Twitter and Facebook.