The Rectangle – flanker cardio program

The Background

How important is endurance for flankers?

Rugby is classified as an anaerobic sport. That is, it requires many bouts of high-intensity work in succession. A lot of research has been done during the 2000s on the relative effort levels of rugby players during a game. In the study linked to above, the researchers found that during their tested game, the average player covered 6,953 m during play (83 minutes). Of this distance, 37% (2,800 m) was spent standing and walking, 27% (1,900 m) jogging, 10% (700 m) cruising, 14% (990 m) striding, 5% (320 m) high-intensity running, and 6% (420 m) sprinting. To summarize, rugby requires athletes to replicate medium to high intensity efforts for the duration of an 80 minute game. Between these efforts, the athletes are usually standing or walking.

This repetition of high-intensity activity makes rugby different to endurance sports in which competitors will perform one extended period of work at moderate intensity with slight fluctuations depending on race conditions. For more on the energy requirements of a game of rugby, checkout this excellent work by the IRFU. In it, they explain that although rugby players need high levels of aerobic fitness, they shouldn’t train the way endurance athletes do. From that article:

It is often suggested that an enhanced aerobic endurance capacity will enable players to meet the energy demands needed in the later stages of a game. However, few sports go non-stop from beginning to end. Game activity is likely to be disrupted by a ball going out of bounds, by fouls, breaks during play, by injuries to players and the interval break. It is not a question of whether the player can last the game rather it is a question of how well the player can reproduce over the 80 minutes the high-intensity bouts of activity that are required of him during play.

So what does this all mean for a Flanker? Do you need aerobic fitness or don’t you? Without much doubt, the higher your level of aerobic fitness, the better your body is going to be able to cope with anaerobic stress. The guys at BokSmart in their definitive work, Periodization in Rugby, cover this topic extensively:

… rugby players need a high capacity of maximum oxygen absorption to minimize oxygen debt resulting in the multiple anaerobic bouts occurring during the game. The more oxygen that can be transported to the muscles during recovery times, the quicker the excess lactic acid can be metabolized to reproduce ATP necessary for muscles contraction. Therefore, the highest VO2max rugby players can develop the better. The aerobic capacity of a rugby player is like the foundation of a house, the stronger the foundation the more solid the house is above. In rugby, as in many other team sports, nothing significant will be achieved without a strong aerobic base.

Aerobic fitness, anaerobic training and Vo2 Max

While its clearly important for flankers to have a high level of aerobic fitness, if you’re looking to make gains in this area, doing long runs is probably not the best way to train. A better option is to focus on replicating bouts of moderate, high-intensity and sprint intervals, with sufficient rest between efforts. This form of anaerobic training will still provide aerobic gains, while at the same time replicating the conditions within a game of rugby. The flanker cardio program below is designed specifically for running, but if you’re more comfortable on an ergo, you could also work with the rowing for rugby we published earlier last year or incorporate a cardio program before rugby training.

One of the best ways to track how your anaerobic training is effecting you aerobic fitness is with a Vo2 Max test. These tests come in a variety of forms, the most common of which is the classic ‘beep test’. Others include the ‘Cooper Test‘, developed during the Vietnam War by the US military in which athletes are asked to run as far as they can in 12 minutes. As therugbyblog.com explains,  “…the fastest way to reach your cardiovascular potential is to run intervals at a speed that elicits your VO2 max… this pace is equivalent to 3,000-meter pace or the fastest effort you can maintain for about 8 minutes.” 

If you intend to use the flanker cardio program outlined below, we highly highly recommend taking several measurements of your Vo2 Max before you begin and then again after 2, 4, 6 and 8 weeks of using the program. This is the most effective way to determine whether your aerobic fitness is being positively effected by your anaerobic training. Get out there and beep test, guys!

Increase your Vo2 Max with your diet

Last week, we talked about the All Blacks diet during last year’s rugby world cup. In it, we explained that the ABs have modified many of the nutritional principles used by endurance athletes including the use of a LCHF (low carb healthy fat) diet on days when they’re not playing. Besides the ability to kick your metabolism into a ketogenic state, it seems that there could also be aerobic benefits to using a LCHF diet. Again, from therugbyblog.com :

“Research conducted at the University of Maryland Medical Centre shows that you can increase your V02 Max from the comfort of your kitchen. Studies found that consuming a lot of fish such as salmon, herring, rainbow trout and tuna can improve lung capacity since they’re high in omega-3 fatty acids which have been shown to reduce inflammation in the lungs.”

If you’re looking for dietary supplements that have the potential to increase your muscular endurance, checkout either our post-rugby or an No2 booster. Depending on your metabolism, either of these compounds might provide you with endurance benefits.

What does a true Vo2 Max test look like?

Beep tests are pretty evil things. And Cooper tests take a huge amount of mental strength. So if you’re not interested in doing either of those, there’s always the option of performing a true Vo2 Max test on a treadmill and all hooked up to a bunch of wires. To see what this is like, we turn to the Northeastern University Men’s Rugby Team, who together with their school’s Human Performance and Exercise Science Lab can complete a Vo2 Max test in < 2mins.