West Vancouver Minor Hockey Association

The Coach - Posture

When we mention posture in hockey, we often use the term ‘hockey position’. To fully comprehend the impact of how various and overall postures affect a players ability to execute a skill, there are some basic principles recognized by sports training professionals that we will outline at this time.

The human brain does not process individual muscle functioning mechanisms when we move. Instead it has a sensory capacity called proprioception which looks at the whole body and everything it does and sends messages to the muscles through nerves to act and react. Proprioception starts to develop the moment we are born and is a major factor in our ability to move. Children develop the ability to determine where they are in space before they have the capacity to understand language ­ as evidenced by their ability to walk before they can speak or take instruction on how to do it. The ability to ‘feel’ is all they have to make the neurological connections and coordinated movements necessary for motion. We as coaches can accelerate the learning process if we are able to convey what it is an athlete is suppose to feel.

Muscles never work alone. They always work in various combinations. There is always an opposing (or reciprocal) force applied. A reciprocating force can dominate the initiated force if the reciprocating muscle is stronger or the segment is heavier. Reciprocal limb movements are just what the name suggests and are very important to efficient movement. Muscle and joint structure functions in various ways, depending on the work they are doing. Muscles will act as a stabilizer, as a prime mover or a neutralizer, and others will work isometrically to anchor a body segment, and antagonistically to create or counteract a torque motion. All of these occur instantaneously, and simultaneously and thus it can be said that the body works as a reflex organism. A static contraction occurs when a muscle contracts but stays the same length - as opposed to a dynamic contraction where the muscle changes length.

There are numerous external forces acting on us as well as the internal forces. Gravity is the main external force in nature. We must counter-act these forces to move. Simply defined, a force is a push or pull. We produce and incorporate various forms of energy to accomplish this feat. Muscles alone are actually relatively inefficient at turning energy consumed into net work performed (25% is considered maximum). Other ways to create motion, or force on an object by another, include momentum (potential energy), deformity (the ability to utilize the energy produced from a tension and recoil effect), and unweighting.

The force of gravity measured is your body weight. Unweighting is the reduction of weight on a force producing mechanism (base of support). This is accomplished by moving the center of gravity (the point where an object would suspend on it’s own) outside the center of mass (the geometric center of the object). Here’s an example: a person weighs 100 lbs. The force being exerted on the bottom of their feet when in a neutral (upright) posture is 100 lbs. Therefore, to move they need to apply a force at least equal to that weight. If they lean to one side, gravity pulls straight down and the bottom of their feet now only need to produce X amount of force to move because some of the weight has been displaced. The person takes advantage of his upper body posture to make it easier to push with the legs because there is less weight to push. When we are laying down, our backs are under 25% of the weight of standing up!

If you think of a sprinter in the starting blocks ... he is leaning forward. When the gun sounds he stands up and would fall over if he didn’t get his legs underneath himself. This force is what helps to propel him forward. You could say he creates an angle of trajectory. The advantages of developing the ability to accumulate counteracting forces and releasing them under control are obvious to a hockey coach. Examples of unweighting, potential energy and deformity can be felt with simple cross-overs. One reason we tell players to move across the ice is because you can generate great speed if you get a good lean into a cross-over stride, especially if you get a little spring into it as well. The recoil and tension release is not as obvious in forward skating, or whenever the player doesn't use unweighting (by standing to upright) or looses/doesn't create momentum.

We are taught as coaches that there has to be a shift in weight for momentum to occur. What this actually means is that there is a transfer of energy from one body segment to another. The energy created can be stored (accumulated) and transferred or released. During this transfer there is ample opportunity for what are called ‘energy leaks’. Weak links occur mainly because of a poor distribution of body weight due to an improper reciprocal limb or segment movement. The body’s primary concern is to counteract gravity to protect joints. It will use energy and recruit muscles to decelerate and adjust body segments to balance this force. This will reduce the production of power (rate of doing work) in prime movers because they will automatically act to balance the body and stabilize. The relationship between energy consumed and power produced is very important to a coach instructing in technique as 70% - 80% of the total force produced comes from segmental energy transfers. It is possible to shift body weight without transferring the energy with it. Energy never gets 'wasted', it has to go somewhere.

We operate as three-dimensional beings. There are three planes (eight quadrants) and corresponding axes that make this a reality. Each body segment is located inside a plane continuum. Within that context, only the middle 60% of the range of motion (ROM) is capable of producing any useful power outside of what it takes for the muscle to function. The 20% on either end are useful only to facilitate the transfer, or release of energy. This is normally called the follow-through. The transfer of energy (follow-through) is critical between multi-joint segmental movements (left to right or lower to upper etc.), not just at the end of the movement chain sequence. About 1/2 of the work to be done by the legs can be saved by utilizing the passive stretch and recoil effect of muscles, ligaments, synovial membranes (joint capsule enclosures), and elastic connective tissue! The initial force and direction applied by a muscle (push or pull) is also critical and must be made within the middle 60% ROM to maximize the energy to power ratio. The player who doesn’t start in the right place cannot finish in the right place without major compensations in movement, or without expending energy. The angle of pull is important so that no over-rotations at joints occur causing unwanted torque. More muscle fiber can be recruited and a higher velocity contraction made when the angle of pull is along a single mechanical axis. Think of the arm on a backhoe … it goes out, it comes back.

These are only some of the key factors that affect an athlete’s ability to execute skills ­ and I've only given basic descriptions and explanations here. Read as much as you can on human kinetics - it will only help you. Now let’s look at how we can use this knowledge as minor hockey coaches.

Given that players wear protective equipment and move at great speeds, it is difficult to observe much of what they do. It is therefore advantageous to develop a vocabulary with the player in terms of what they feel. It is essential that the coach present a model of excellence. Don’t expect perfection, but strive for excellence. As is the case with any area of learning, the student’s task is made easier if they have a model to copy. The use of pictures can be beneficial for the player to get a visual image of what the end goal is (pictures showing players in action works great). Presenting a model of excellence also helps in that the player does not have to rely solely on you for information - they can draw from the teaching of others, or make conclusions on their own. I like to use "ready ... set ... go" for our skill execution focus. The 'ready' is the player getting into position - reading the situation ... getting the body turned in the right direction, etc. The 'set' is the player setting his posture and 'locking down' or stabilizing, and the 'go' is just pulling the trigger and letting the execution go like dominos after the first one gets knocked over. Reducing the time and effort between ready-set-go is your ultimate goal with skill execution.

The player must be made aware of the concept of establishing an anchoring system. The lower half of the body has the benefit of being able to push against the ice to apply the opposing force necessary to produce power. The demands of the upper body in hockey are like no other sport ­ especially since the two extremities are often called upon to perform completely unrelated tasks i.e. the bottom half skates while the top half handles the puck. If a player does not make this distinction, he will have a difficult time of trying to perform skills that require upper and lower body separation such as shooting in stride. It is imperative the player feels which muscles are going to operate as the platform for the action. In other words, it has to push or pull against itself. You can use the analogy of a sling shot or a bow and arrow. There is one part of the sling shot that stabilizes and one part that does the work. If the sling shot handle is limp, there is little chance to generate any power - the two forces will counter each other. The same thing happens if you stand up on an air mattress in the water and try and dive off. The mattress will probably go farther than you. The recruitment of muscles for the stabilizing platform is essential for initiating movement, and is the most important factor in the player’s ability to experience mobility, agility and balance - all of which add to the players ability to generate power.

Posture is important to ensure that the player can initiate, change, or continue a movement in the most advantageous position within a given range of motion. Movement ultimately involves a shifting of weight and the transferring of energy back and forth from one side to the other (balance), and from the lower segments to the upper etc. A tall spine is important in that many muscles in the trunk segment are attached to the spine and rely on its positioning for stability. Without core stability, the player forfeits the ability to use these muscles to push or pull against. The trunk functions as a link system for the energy transferred from one side to the other. Your core area effectively becomes a base of support (or a weak link). The hips are considered part of the trunk. Shunt muscles are muscles that support and stabilize - they are most effective with static contractions. These muscles are generally not as large as prime movers (spurt muscles) such as biceps. In the trunk area especially, stabilizing muscles are basically endurance based. Being smaller in stature makes it more difficult for these muscles to raise their endurance threshold. This is mainly because they are slow-twitch, and are unable to intake large volumes of oxygen and to store excess glycogen. As such, poor body posture over-taxes them and they fatigue quickly. Being smaller also reduces their dynamic contraction distances and thus their range of motion and contraction velocity.

All muscles have slow and fast twitch fibers. The amount of each determines the capability of the muscle. If a muscle is used a certain way, it will get conditioned in that manner. What this means is that proper posture and skill execution promotes the proper development of fast and slow twitch muscles to ensure they remain functional as stabilizers and movers. Improper use will 'trick' them into thinking they can do a job that they can't do effectively.

When you are going to teach a specific manoeuvre or action, such as a tight turn or backhand shot, it will help if you perform the skill first and make up a check list of key points. This can be done any time. Include any sensation you feel, such as where you feel the pressure on the bottom of your feet, which muscles are the primary workers, how much total momentum are you creating with your forward motion, which segments stabilize or neutralize, etc. Creating a stabilizing platform will allow the player to relax while performing feats of strength. Make note of the direction of push and pull so as not to create rotations or unnatural joint angles. Ask yourself: “when and where in the sequence is the player going to generate the most power? Where is he most likely to leak energy because of incomplete follow through or weight shift, etc.”?

The activity of the head is a particularly key observation, as the brain is the heaviest organ in the body (the helmet makes it even heavier). An unbalanced head or moving the head unnecessarily will cause a reciprocal action that is unlikely to benefit the player. In many cases, the player will tilt or ‘toss’ their head, which essentially causes a chain reaction to the shoulders, and forces them lean off axis. Simply monitoring a player’s head will correct many problems.

When teaching a skill, try to rely on the player’s sense of proprioception as well as your visual observations. Work from the outside in as well as the inside out. People learn and understand different ways, so anything you can give the player may help ­ there is no such thing as a mute point! Keep your instruction simple in terms of the language that is appropriate for the student, and don’t over analyze, but don’t oversimplify either - get your point across. Try to correct one problem at a time, and correct the right thing. In most cases you may only need to adjust one or two things to make a big difference.

Start with the initiating posture and move to identifying and clarifying the role of all of the body’s segments ­ then returning to an optimum posture. If the neck and/or ankle joints are rotated, the entire body will be miss-aligned. Correct any form of reciprocal inhibition! Eliminate any unnecessary movement, which commits energy in that direction and adds to the recovery time because the body must decelerate. Work on segmental stopping. This sounds simple but if a player can’t maintain control and keep a stable base with the ability to decelerate or change directions under control, then quickness is going to work against him and may even cause injury. Create strong pushes and pulls against the ice with proper weight distribution, joint angles, and skate edge control, and a solid foundation of support for upper body function. Make sure they take full advantage of momentum and not rely solely on their muscles. One common and particularly defeating practice is for a player to try to create momentum by twisting and swinging the trunk and head, or swinging a body part in the direction (or opposite direction) they’re trying to go. They have experienced the sensation of creating momentum, and try to do it by swinging their arms and lifting their skates off the ice. Arm movement can be a benefit or a hindrance - there is usually no middle ground.

An interesting paradox is that if a player wants to accelerate movement past the point of what their strength will accommodate, they must relax to the point where their muscles are not actually moving them in the sense of work performed. It happens that the player begins to 'float' because he isn't trying to push himself with his muscles - instead ... that energy is spent maintaining posture and accommodating momentum. To do this, he must have good overall technique and be totally relaxed, which means he is not being inhibited in any way. There is just a free flow of movement and energy and the player feels as though he is falling - or he becomes unweighted giving him the feeling he is basically weightless. He can 'effortlessly' move when he finds this sweet spot, speed up his stride frequency or change direction because he doesn't have to initiate every movement - his momentum does that for him and he merely channels and steers the energy in the direction he chooses. If you have a player who has good technique, you can help him get faster and faster if you can show him how to relax and 'let go' in this manner.

Watch that the player breathes correctly. They should be taking controlled breathes and not holding their breath or panting. Make sure they are not making multi-plane movements from what should be single plane movements. Single plane movements have the potential to create more explosive power. This means you have to evaluate the players body position in relation to the direction that they are moving. Shorter explosive moves within the optimum percentage of the ROM will get the best results. Accumulate energy and release it under control! You can see this happen with players that use a big wind-up for a simple straight ahead wrist shot. They rotate their top shoulder and bend over or drop their head so that they can load or 'crank up' their lower arm. Stabilizing with the buttocks and back/shoulder and chest muscles while digging down and pushing with the arms and skates will give them something the push against so that a shorter stroke with stick speed and a good follow-through can be used. Again ... accumulate energy and release it under control. Make sure they maintain a tall spine for core stability. This is what we call executing from a position of strength.

Part of the art of coaching is to organize and present complex principles in a manner that is easy for the student to understand and practice. Taking a scientific approach to studying movement will give you an insight into the mechanics of skill. The challenge for the coach is to evaluate the player and identify which key points to stress. This is a quote from the legendary Paul Bryant: “No coach ever won a game by what he knows. It’s what his players have learned”. The diagrams included will help you see some of these points. One diagram shows body segments and the other shows segment planes.