While weight training is a popular recreational activity for everyday people, it also has a very important place in professional sport. In most sports, a strong, lean physique is required for athletes to compete at the elite level, making it a priority of professional sporting clubs across the world. The AFL is no different, as clubs work to ensure the development and maintenance of player’s bodies.
Young gun Brandon Ellis is nearing the end of his first season at Richmond. After being picked at number 15 in this year’s draft, the 19-year-old has played all but one game of the Tigers 2012 campaign. He was rewarded for a consistent season with a Rising Star nomination in round 17. Ellis is seen by many to have an “AFL ready” body, largely due to his weight training routine throughout his junior years at West Coburg and Calder Cannons. Upon arriving at Punt road, the running defender has returned to the gym to continue working on a physique that can withstand the rigorous demands of the AFL.
Today I spoke to Brandon to get an inside look at weight training at Tigerland.
You started taking your footy pretty seriously a couple of years before you were actually drafted. This involved hitting the gym to add some size to your frame. Give us an insight into your weight training and nutrition during this time.
Because I had to put on size I wouldn’t do too much cardio to make sure I was in a calorie surplus. I hit the gym four times a week and did a lot of strength exercises – bench press and dumbbell bench press for example. The three main muscle groups I worked was chest, back and legs. I wouldn’t do arms or shoulders too much because they’re being worked with the bigger muscle groups. I saw legs and glutes as being pretty important.
After being drafted you had a customary physical assessment at Richmond. They would’ve told you what you needed to work on and given you a weight-training program. Tell us what they recommended.
I’d put on quite a few kilos with my training so when I got to the club my skinfolds were pretty high – I had a high percentage of bodyfat. The club said that they wanted me to maintain my body shape because I was pretty solid. But they wanted me to lose some fat and add some lean muscle, which I did with their help. I’ve focused on that all year and I’ve achieved some pretty good results. The program they gave me involved a lot of strength training, normally working three sets of 6-8 repetitions. I was doing exercises such as heavy bench press until failure.
We have a heat chamber down at the club so they put me in there a lot for cardio sessions. When I got down to 81 kilograms they just put me in the gym to get a lot stronger.
How many times a week are you in the gym at the club? Does it differ between the off-season, pre-season and the season proper?
Pre-season we’d be in the gym Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, so 4 sessions a week. We’d do three upper body and two leg workouts, on alternating days. During the season our weight training depends on what day our game is on but we’d do maximum three sessions a week. The mid-season workouts are all about maintaining, not putting on size. This is because all that work is done in the pre-season.
The off-season is a bit different. When the season ends we get ten days off – when we’ll do nothing at all. Then we have a set six-week training program where we’ll do three running sessions and three weights sessions per week. They want us to get away from the club so I’ll probably train at my local gym and do a few runs around Princes Park.
Talk us through a typical mid-season weights session at Tigerland.
Yesterday, for example, I did some upper body and a bit of legs. Bench press is a massive exercise at Richmond, they smash us on that. For back, we’d do bent over rows, chin-ups and pull-ups. Then we’d do some explosive exercises, such as pushing a barbell up and catching it. That’s basically all we do for upper body – it’s not much but it’s enough to maintain.
For legs, we’d do a lot of single-leg squats and single-leg deadlifts. Earlier in the week we’d do leg training with weights but sessions later on in the week would just be bodyweight exercises.
Does the club recommend any supplements?
Not really. That said, we do use some Musashi products, bulk protein powders mainly.
There’s a gym junkie in every team. And there’s also a guy who’s pushing a bit more than everyone else. Who’re those figures at Richmond?
The gym junkie would have to be Angus Graham, he’s always there. The other one is probably Matthew Arnot, he’s a first year player and he’s just a bull. He loves the gym; he’s always doing circuits and tensing in the mirror.
Put It On The Bar 