Squash Tip 2: Get into a routine!

This is my training day. Whatever training you are doing try to get into a routine. It will help a lot. I wake around 7.30am and have a large breakfast (a smoothie or milkshake with fruit plus six pieces of toast and cereal. During a training period I normally feel tired and stiff. This is normal. It’s important to get motivated and work out what you want to achieve in a training session.
On arriving at the club I warm up by running for five minutes and stretching. I then hit alone on court for a while and stretch for another 15 or 20 minutes. Then I start on a session with some of the guys in our squad. Physically we work hard. Nearly all the movement is from the T, exploding off and pushing back to it again. Our routines are based on what we want to do in a match situation and we are aware of this mentally. We’re not just practising shots, we’re training and disciplining the mind.
Then we start condition games (games with special rules that let us concentrate on something we’ve been practising. Just before lunch we do abdominal exercises and a good warm-down and stretch. After lunch we might have a little nap.
The afternoon session might consist of interval training on the bike. I try to think of hard rallies in a match when that extra push is needed. Again I will stretch before and after the session and do some abdominal work.
I eat early in the evening and try to relax for a couple of hours with something totally unrelated to squash.
Later in the evening I stretch for about an hour, preparing myself for the next day. I get to sleep early. I deserve a rest and my body needs to recover.