Become a better athlete in the off-season

Looking to improve during your athletic off-season? Or are you hoping to get stronger and become a better athlete? If so, give Mr. Follick’s off-season training program a try. It is a comprehensive, well-balanced program that will hit all of the major muscle groups throughout the week.

Follick is beginning his second year as an athletic trainer at Milford. He has been a coach in various sports throughout his life and also helped train athletes for more than 10 years as well, so he brings plenty of experience to the MHS weight room.

Over his years training athletes, he has seen significant improvement in the athletes that take part in his program.

He said it was, “a product of appearing consistently and believing in the program.” For students, this means they just have to show up to to the weight room as often as they can, and they will eventually see improvement in their athletic ability and strength.

The overall goal of Follick’s program is to, “build general strength among all athletes.” Some kids are not particularly active if they aren’t taking a gym class or if they are in their off season, but he is hoping that will change. He wants to improve a whole team to make them more well rounded, improved athletes.

If you have never really worked out much before or haven’t gone to the gym/weight room, and you are looking to begin or need some motivation to begin, Follick has some advice for you.

“Make small changes as you go. Don’t try to start too big. Stick with your plan and watch yourself grow. Just keep going!”

Some of the most dedicated workers in the athletic program  include, “the basketball team in general, women’s swim, men’s hockey, volleyball, and cheer,” Follick said. He also stated the ski team to be an up and coming group and Sophomore Gunnar Gustafson was an individual he mentioned to be very dedicated as well.

Even with some of these dedicated teams and people, there needs to be greater numbers for his program. Follick hopes to gain as many athletes as possible. That is because many of them will benefit from the program.

One of our student-athletes who took part in Follick’s program, Sophomore Joel Marshall, said about Follick, “he teaches good weight lifting tactics and wants to see you succeed. I think the improvement has been good for me because of his program.”

In the future, look for information online or on the announcements about a possible fundraiser for his program. This fundraiser may involve teams who compete in events, lifting competitions, and workouts. A possible date for this fundraiser has not been announced however, he is looking to hold it around January.

Follick’s program will be very beneficial to all students. Even if  you aren’t participating in any sports, you should still check it out, as it is well worth your time. If you are on a sports team, it is sure you will see improvement if you take part in the program. Any day, you can stay after school and go to the weight room and improve your athletic abilities.