The Off-Season Edge: How to Train Like a GAA Athlete (Not a Gym Tourist)

⚡ Why January Always Kicks Your Arse!

If you’ve lost a yard of pace since the summer, picked up a bit of a belly, and keep saying “I’ll sort it after Christmas” – this is your wake-up call.

Because in ten weeks’ time, you’ll either be the one setting the pace at pre-season or the one gasping at the back wondering where it all went wrong.

Every year between October and Christmas, too many lads and ladies hit the gym but train like tourists.
Random circuits. HYROX sessions. 5Ks that make them tired but not faster.
And then January hits.One or two people turn up lean, sharp and powerful. Everyone else spends six weeks trying to catch up.

Let’s make this year different.

🧠 My Story: From Tight Hamstrings to Smarter Training

I’ll hold my hands up – I made all the mistakes I’m about to call out.

Back when I was playing GAA, I trained hard but wrong. I hammered circuits, ignored mobility, skipped recovery and thought being wrecked meant I was improving.

My hamstrings were like piano wires. I couldn’t touch my toes. Eventually it caught up with me – chronic back pain, three bulging discs, and game over.

But here’s the twist.

I’m fitter now at 40, than I ever was playing GAA. Leaner, stronger, more explosive, and pain-free.

Not because I’m training harder – but because I’m training smarter.

That’s what I teach lads and ladies in their late 20s and 30s to do now: train like an athlete, not a tourist.

🚫 Why Most People Get Off-Season So Wrong

Let me guess where you’re at right now.

- You’re still training – but you’ve lost a yard of pace.
- You’ve a bit of belly from summer.
- You keep saying “Sure I’ll sort it after Christmas.”

The problem is simple – none of what you’re doing right now is actually making you better on the pitch.

👉🏻 Random circuits build fatigue, not explosiveness.👉🏻 HYROX-style training conditions you to be average at everything.👉🏻 Endless 5Ks kill top-end speed.👉🏻 Crash diets in January tank your energy and leave you hanging in pre-season.

You might be fit… but you’re not football fit.

Football fitness isn’t about jogging for 5K. It’s about accelerating, changing direction, winning collisions and repeating it for 60 minutes.

🧪 The Science Bit: Why This Hits Harder After 30

Once you pass 30, your fast-twitch muscle fibres – the ones that make you explosive – naturally decline faster than your endurance capacity.

That’s why 5Ks feel grand but sprints feel harder.

That’s why you can run all day but have lost those first three steps.

You can’t fix that with more conditioning. You fix it with power.

This isn’t about age catching up with you.

This is about training smarter for where your body’s at now.

🆚 Gym Tourist vs GAA Athlete

This is where most people go wrong.

Gym Tourist:

- Follows random workouts
- Trains to get tired
- Measures success by soreness
- Shows up in January behind

GAA Athlete:

- Follows a structured plan
- Trains for speed, power and purpose
- Measures success by performance
- Shows up in January ahead

Which one are you? And more importantly – which one do you want to be when that first pre-season whistle blows?

🧭 What Actually Works: The 10-Week Off-Season Edge

Off-season is when you build the engine. Pre-season is when you fine-tune it.

Here’s what actually works:

1. Power FirstShort, sharp, explosive work – sleds, trap bar deadlifts, split squats, box jumps, med ball throws. Not 20-minute AMRAPs.

2. Sprint Mechanics20-metre bursts, acceleration, deceleration, change of direction. This is how you win ball.

3. Smart NutritionStart now with a small calorie deficit. Keep your protein high. Drop the belly without losing strength.

4. Recovery Is a WeaponSleep, mobility and stress management matter more at 30 than they ever did at 22. Ignore this and you’ll leave gains on the table.

👉🏻 You don’t need six bootcamp sessions a week. You need 3–4 well-structured sessions done right.

💥 Real Results From Real People

Last October, one of my clients messaged me – 31, midfield, 8kg over their playing weight.

We ran a 10-week power-focused block with smart nutrition and consistent recovery.

By Christmas, they’d dropped 7kg. Sprint time improved by 0.4 seconds.

They felt like an athlete again.

While everyone else was dying in pre-season, they were flying.

That’s the difference ten weeks makes when you’ve got a plan.

⏳ Why Now Matters

Right now, you’ve got ten weeks until Christmas.

Ten weeks to:

- Drop 5–8kg of fat
- Build explosive power
- Regain speed
- Turn up in January ahead of the pack

The difference between you and the person who starts now?

Ten yards and a few kilos.

💬 Objection Time

You might be thinking…“Ah sure I’m grand, I’m still training.”

Sound. But let’s be honest – 5Ks and random circuits won’t make you faster in January.

You know that. I know that.

There’s a difference between maintaining fitness and actually levelling up your performance.

Learn how to train like a Gaelic athlete – not a CrossFitter, not a gym tourist – and why strength, speed, and recovery should drive every off-season session. From sled pushes to Jammer presses, I’ll explain how to train with purpose, not ego.

🎧 Listen now – Episode 16: The Off-Season Edge – How to Train Like a GAA Athlete (Not a Gym Tourist)

🚀 Want to Be Ahead, Not Behind?

I’ll build you out a fully customised off-season training plan for your goals and weak points in my online and/or in-person coaching.

✅ Structured training✅ Personalised nutrition✅ Weekly check-ins✅ No fluff. No random circuits.

I don’t have much availability for in-person coaching right now, plus online coaching is near capacity too since it’s fully personalised by me.

Don’t miss out.

📩 Email me at info@templetownsc.com and let’s chat about your goals.

If it’s a good fit, we’ll get started. If not, I’ll point you in the right direction.

This is the window. Ten weeks.

You either build the edge now – or you chase it all season.