Method To The Dubs Madness?

It is well known, that at different stages of the season, the Dubs opt for training sessions at the crack of dawn. At exam time, this is seen as a better plan for the students who can then go and focus on their studies for the day. It also cuts their panel's travel time as they do not have to deal with Dublin's rush hour traffic.

Of course, I have no delusions that Belgium's hurlers or footballers are going to be taking up such a programme a few of us are tempted to sample its delights. Since January, the gym we use has been rammed with the new years resolution crew and they have yet to lose their enthusiasm.

I usually head with Crusher and Ger but since Christmas we've all been busy at work so it has been hard to beat the evening rush. To have any kind of satisfactory session, you'd need to wait until after 8 which kills your evening. On a more pitiful point, I find the recovery from a tough session takes longer now and can impact how you feel at football/hurling training the following day.

To counter this, myself and Ger hit it early this morning, arriving shortly after 7am. The place was deserted and we could rattle through our session in 37 minutes. The quality was good and I left the place buzzing and it carried me through the day without hassle. The early morning doesn't bother me as I would normally be at work between half seven and a quarter to eight anyway. This morning I was still able to make it in before nine.

What I found must interesting was the impact it had on my behaviour. Last night I realised how important it would be to eat properly as I would need to have sufficient energy for the session. Biscuits etc were off the menu. The impact of what I ate today was even greater though. Normally, I’d have a fair bit of rubbish over the course of the day, consoling myself that I'd burn it of that evening. However, having had a good session this morning and feeling the positive benefit on the body, I couldn't look at anything sweet thing all day. Essentially, it created some badly needed self-regulation of my eating habits.

The other benefit is that it gives us around twelve hours more recovery time before tomorrow night’s session. Of course if we went tonight we would be able for the session tomorrow but I'm sure our performance would be inhibited.

It also gives a welcome free evening. With hurling and football occupying three nights a week from the end of February, it becomes difficult to fit three gym sessions in and still manage to have some free evenings to yourself. By throwing one early morning session into the mix, you can change the whole dynamic of your week.

I’m a believer. The future is bright, the future is blue!!!