TACTICSWORKOUT 1 WORKOUT 2
POWER SET:
Squat jump
with weight
Using similar set-up to
the back squat. Pick a
weight that uses 30-50
per cent of the load
used in the force set.
Jump as high as
possible with the load,
land softly, reset, and
repeat.SPEED SET:
Vertical jumps
Using no load except
your own bodyweight,
jump as high as
possible.POWER SET:
Bench press throw
On a Smith machine load
the bar with a weight
30-50 per cent of your
one-rep max. Perform
a bench press then
release (throw) the bar at
the end of each
repetition. Catch the bar
and repeat.SPEED SET:
Medicine ball throw
Standing in front of a wall use a one-arm
shotput throw to heave a 10kg medicine
ball as hard as possible in front of you.
Complete 6 reps
on each arm.Barrett was not a natural sprinter. “I’ve had
to work hard on my speed in the gym and do
a lot of plyometric work,” he says.Nicholas Gill, the All Blacks strength
and conditioning coach (nicgill.com),
recommends “contrast training” to
build speed and power. This involves
performing a heavy, slow-tempo strength
movement immediately before lighter, faster
moves for the same muscle groups.Do up to six reps of each exercise in the
workouts below. Rest for 1-2 minutes then
progress to the next move. Do three rounds
of each workout.FORCE SET:
Barbell front
squat or back
squat with weight
Pick a weight that
allows you to do 4-5
reps with full range
and neutral spine.FORCE SET:
Bench press
Pick a weight that
allows you to do
only 6 reps.ILLUSTRATIONS:SONNYRAMIREZ/ILLUSTRATIONROOMSPEED & POWER
Black players. They’re indoctrinated with the
belief that, if selected to play, it’s their duty
to leave the shirt in a better place for the next
man to wear it. Representing the team is to
be a proud flagbearer for a sport that defines
their national identity. That’s why Graham
Henry described any All Black defeat as akin
to “losing a member of the family”. It sounds
like morbid hyperbole. But speak to Barrett
and it suddenly seems more like a simple
statement of fact.
Barrett’s win percentage for the All
Blacks is 89 per cent (he’s lost just four of
his 53 games). And yet it’s those losses that
continue to haunt him. “It’s not a feeling any
All Black wishes to experience,” he says. “It’s
the feeling that you’ve let down the jersey,
the legacy and everyone back home. That’s
just how you feel when you set such high
expectations.”
“After a loss you can bottle up that feeling
and use it as fuel,” he continues. “But it
shouldn’t take a loss to learn. The key is
how do you keep that drive when you’re
winning?”
It’s a question that’s acutely relevant
for Barrett himself. He’s already won the
World Cup and the World Player of the Year
Award (the fifth straight All Black to claim
the title). Meanwhile at club level, he scored
the most individual points last season in
Super Rugby as his Hurricanes team clinched
their first title. Barely halfway through his
career, Barrett has already won practically
everything the game has to offer.
Yet when it comes to rugby, Barrett
refuses to believe in the concept of
“enough”. He’s still desperate to improve,
determined to achieve his potential. “I want
to win every game,” he says quietly. “I want
to try and be the best player I can be. I want
to be satisfied with my performance, week in,
week out.”
That’s why, rather than bask in past
accomplishments, Barrett is always scanning
the horizon for the next challenge. It comes
this month at the ANZ Stadium: the first Test
against Australia in the Bledisloe Cup. “It’s
not just another game,” he insists. “It’s a
game the whole team and the whole nation
gets really excited for because that rivalry
goes back a long way and we know the
importance of winning that Bledisloe.”
Barrett pauses for a second then adds
a remark that’s decidedly ominous for
any Wallabies fan given it comes from the
key player of the best team on the planet.
“Obviously,” Barrett says matter-of-factly, “It
goes without saying where our motivational
levels are at...”
Beauden Barrett is a Tudor Brand Ambassador
for the new Born to Dare campaign