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Programming
7 November, 2023

In 2007, as a 13-year-old, I would’ve run 50 miles a day if you told me it would make me a pro rugby player….

(Sadly, my training wasn’t much better)

I needed to take my training seriously if I wanted to go pro, but there was scarce information out there.

Today, we have the opposite problem.

Unqualified opinions flood social media, leading young rugby players down the wrong path.

The aim of this article is to give young rugby athletes a compressive guide to strength training from a coach that has worked with 1000’s of rugby players, from young kids to international stars. This is the ultimate guide to strength training for young rugby players. I hope it serves you well.

Article Index:

What should my goals be as a Young Rugby Player?

Your number 1 goal as a young rugby player should be to develop your rugby specific skillset.

However, in the modern game, exceptional physical outputs are expected to reach the top of the game. So, where do you start?

Strength underpins a lot of physical qualities, strength indirectly improves:

  • Speed
  • Power
  • Conditioning
  • Whilst reducing your risk of injury

Obtaining a solid foundation of strength should be your primary aim.

However, to avoid becoming a powerlifter. You need to ensure that your strength training is supplementing other qualities like speed, power, and conditioning – not taking away from them.

What exercises should I do as a Young Rugby Player?

S&C coaches will often refer to the “fundamental movement patterns”.

Instead focusing on muscles, focus on movements. This will help develop strength, muscle, and mobility in the fundamental patterns of human movement.

Fundamental Movement Patterns:

  • Bilateral Squat: Goblet Squat, Front Squat, or Back Squat
  • Unilateral Squat: Lunge, Split Squat, or Step-Up
  • Bilateral Hinge: Romanian Deadlift, Trap-bar Deadlift, or Deadlift
  • Unilateral Hinge: Single-leg Romanian Deadlift, SL Hip Thrust, or SL Back Extensions
  • Horizontal Push: Push-ups, DB Bench Press, or Bench Press
  • Horizontal Pull: Inverted Row, DB Row, or Cable Row
  • Vertical Push: Landmine Press, Overhead Press, or Push Press
  • Vertical Pull: Chin-ups, Pull-ups, or Lat Pulldowns
  • Core: Hanging Leg Raises, Roll-outs, or Dead-bugs

As a rugby athlete, we’d add a few other categories:

  • The Yoke: Plate Neck Flexion, Plate Neck Extension, or Harness Extensions
  • Loaded Carries: Farmers Carry, Zercher Carry, or Suitcase Carry
  • The Tires: Calf Raises, Seated Calf Raises, or Tib Raises
  • Frontal Plane: Goblet Lateral Lunge, Copenhagen’s, or Landmine Lateral Lunge
  • Hamstrings Robustness: Nordic Hip Hinges, Nordics, or Swiss Ball Hamstring Curls.

“What about speed and power exercises?” you ask:

Although developing a base in these strength exercises should be your primary objective, speed and power exercises should supplement the programme. Include:

  • Acceleration: Sprint distances sub 30m
  • Top-end Speed: Sprint distances above 30m
  • Change of Direction: Practice 1 v 1’s
  • Bilateral Jump: Broad Jump, Vertical Jump, Lateral Jump etc
  • Unilateral Jump: SL Broad Jump, SL Vertical Jump, SL Lateral Jump etc
  • Plyometrics: Bounding, Hurdle Jumps, Zig-zag Bounds etc

What should my training split be as a Young Rugby Player?

Rugby players should never follow bodybuilding splits (i.e., chest day, back day, arm day…). You’re an athlete – train like it.

Nevertheless, as a young athlete, you should be biased towards strength. For this reason, the full-body split is our go-to for players. Full body training builds competency and strength in the fundamental movement patterns, due to the relatively high frequency of exposure.

For most athletes, we’d recommend 2 full-body session in-season (see below), and 3 full-body sessions during your off-season. Keep at least 48hours between these sessions, and avoid performing them the day before a game.

Strength Standards for Young Rugby Players:

At JT Performance, we use physical performance standards to guide our programming.

They not only provide a carrot to chase but allow you to logically progress your goals based on your current capabilities. For example, in the early stages of your career, your training program won’t be highly specialised to your position, as the priority should be to build a good base of athleticism (the training for a prop won’t look that different from a winger).

Here’s Level 1 and 2 of the JT Performance Pathway:

*If you want to see the advanced contact athlete standards – click here.

Example Strength Programs for Young Rugby Players:

How do we pull all this information together? Here’s examples of training plans for level 1 and level 2 athletes.

Level 1 Athlete:

DAY 1/2/3

Warm-up: 5minutes skipping (both bilateral and unilateral spring), 5minutes mobility, and then 5 minutes of plyometrics, short sprints, or unilateral jumps (i.e. hops and bounds) within different planes of motion.

A1) Goblet Squat x 3 x 10

A2) Broad Jump x 3 x 5

A3) 3-Step Neck Progression x 3 x follow video guide

-Rest 90-120s

B1) Push Ups x 3 x AMRAP

B2) Inverted Rows x 3 x AMRAP

B3) Calf Raises x 3 x AMRAP

-Rest 90-120s

C1) Romanian Deadlifts x 2-3 x 15 (light, practice form)

C2) Goblet Lateral Split Squat x 2-3 x 6/side (focus on mobility, not weight)

-Rest 90-120s

D1) DB Farmers Walk x 2 x 60seconds

D2) Dead-bugs x 2 x 5-10/side

-Rest 90-120s

*Optional arms/shoulders at the end (get a pump)

How to pick what weight to use:

  • Make sure you have perfect form before you consider adding load.
  • For lower-body movements add 2.5-5kg per week, until you hit the level 1 strength standards.
  • For upper-body movements and farmers walks add 1.25-2.5kg per week, until you hit the level 1 strength standards.
  • For bodyweight movements, aim to add 2-5 reps per week until you hit the level 1 strength standards.

Level 2 Athlete:

DAY 1

Warm-up: 5minutes skipping (both bilateral and unilateral spring), 5minutes mobility, and then 5 minutes of plyometrics, short sprints, or unilateral jumps (i.e. hops and bounds) within different planes of motion.

A1) Bilateral Squat i.e. Back Squat x 3-4 x 5

A2) Bilateral Jump i.e. Lateral Jump and Stick x 3-4 x 3/side

A3) The Yoke i.e. Neck Progression x 3-4 x follow video

-Rest until fully recovered

B1) Horizontal Push i.e. Bench Press x 3-4 x 5

B2) Horizontal Pull i.e. DB Row x 3-4 x 8/side

B3) The Tires i.e. Seated DB Calf Raises x 3-4 x 12-15/side

-Rest until fully recovered

C1) Unilateral Hinge i.e. Single-leg Romanian Deadlifts x 2-3 x 6-8/side

C2) Frontal Plane i.e. Goblet Lateral Lunges x 2-3 x 6-8/side

-Rest until fully recovered

D1) Loaded Carry i.e. Suitcase Walk x 1-3 x 30-60seconds

D2) Core i.e. Roll-outs x 1-3 x 5-12

-Rest until fully recovered

*Optional arms/shoulders at the end (get a pump)

DAY 2

Warm-up: 5minutes skipping (both bilateral and unilateral spring), 5minutes mobility, and then 5 minutes of plyometrics, short sprints, or unilateral jumps (i.e. hops and bounds) within different planes of motion.

A1) Bilateral Hinge i.e. Deadlift x 3-4 x 5

A2) Bilateral Jump i.e. Broad Jump x 3-4 x 3

A3) The Yoke i.e. Neck Progression x 3-4 x follow video

-Rest until fully recovered

B1) Vertical Push i.e. Push Press x 3-4 x 5

B2) Vertical Pull i.e. Chin-ups x 3-4 x 5-10

B3) The Tires i.e. Single-leg Calf Raises x 3-4 x 12-15/side

-Rest until fully recovered

C1) Unilateral Squat i.e. Bulgarian Split Squats x 2-3 x 6-8/side

C2) Hamstring Robustness i.e. Nordics x 2-3 x 3-6

-Rest until fully recovered

D1) Loaded Carry i.e. Zercher Carry x 1-3 x 30-60seconds

D2) Core i.e. Side Plank x 1-3 x 30sec/side

-Rest until fully recovered

*Optional arms/shoulders at the end (get a pump)

Day 3 (before or after rugby training)

Perform 2-5 reps of 20-30m sprints.

*Only perform if you didn’t get much sprint training within training. It’s fun to race your teammates with these.

How to pick what weight to use:

  • Make sure you have perfect form before you consider adding load.
  • For lower-body movements add 2.5-5kg per week, until you hit the level 2 strength standards.
  • For upper-body movements and farmers walks add 1.25-2.5kg per week, until you hit the level 2 strength standards.
  • When you can’t progress weekly, switch to progressing biweekly i.e. week 2 you increase the load, week 3 you master the load, week 4 you increase the load…
  • If you’re looking to do this program 3 x week (off-season) – repeat session 1.

I hope this article on strength training for young rugby players provides you with the information I needed as a young athlete.

In return, all we ask is that you share this with your fellow players, and follow us on social media @jtperformance__