There's no spring ball this year for Michigan football, and most players have left the Ann Arbor area as classes have moved online and workouts are being done remotely.
The Wolverines are taking a unique approach to staying in shape and building off of a productive set of winter workouts. U-M strength and conditioning coach Ben Herbert discussed it on the In The Trenches podcast with host and former U-M All-American Jon Jansen.
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On The Challenge Of Making Sure Players Stay Up With Their Workouts
"I think the key for us at this point has been, fortunately, the type of winter that we were able to have," Herbert said. "Our guys were very locked in, they were very in tune with refining all of the things that they needed to refine. That varies from position group to position group, individual to individual and then some of the things that we wanted to work on collectively as a team.
"The tone that they set in the winter, fortunately for us, was very positive. It has created momentum into this situation. The attention to detail and the participation with a very high percentage of the team, has been very good.
"The job for my staff and I is to make sure that we give them clear, concise information. And, that we’re flexible. Different guys have different resources. As this thing nationally has changed, from day to day, week to week, different guys’ access have changed to different things, so we’ve been very flexible, very competitive in making sure some guys that have weights, they have programs that reflect a variety of things that they can do developmentally.
"From a training standpoint, to continue to progress, and in the worst case scenario, sustain the gains and sustain the positive things that they did in the winter.
"Some guys have virtually nothing other than their body weight, which, you know, there’s a lot of things that we do in our program where your body weight is a powerful tool when used the proper way. So, we’re making sure that we give them the tools and the insight and the information for them to then administer what they need to administer to be sharp and be prepared when we go back to work together as a group in Schembechler Hall.
"We don’t know when that is and quite frankly, that is not at the forefront of our minds. What’s at the forefront of our minds is what we can do today to be the best that we can be and to do everything that we need to do to sustain our level of preparation. And, we just take it day by day until we get the green light, and then we’ll be back to something that feels a little bit more normal. In the meantime, we’re embracing the current situation, and we’re moving full speed ahead."
On The Challenge Of All Communication Being Online Now
"One of the cool parts for me is that this is not my preferred way to work with guys and do business," Herbert began. "I really enjoy that face-to-face, and being able to be around guys and to feel the energy and just to partake in what takes place on a day to day is very important for what we do. But at the same time, we talk.
"We referenced multiple times throughout the winter, a person’s ability to be comfortable when they’re uncomfortable. I told the team early on, as soon as this thing got started was, this is an opportunity for me. I don’t prefer cell phone communication. I don’t prefer email. I don’t prefer doing something virtual. But, my preference is out the window. What I prefer to do has no bearing on what I’m going to do and how I’m going to attack the situation.
"I don’t get caught up in what’s ideal or what I like or any of those things. What we need to do is embrace the current circumstances. That’s what we’re going to do wholeheartedly, and our job is to create the best plan for our program to continue to move forward and to continue to grow in the most creative ways we can do that, and that’s what we’ve been focused on."
On How To Keep Players Engaged For As Long As This Current Situation Lasts
"I think that’s one of the unique challenges of this situation, is doing something for two weeks is one thing," Herbert said. "Doing it for who knows how long is something totally different. We have a plan … My goal is to make sure that as we plan, I look at, ‘What does a training window for 20 weeks look like?
"We have no clue what the timeframe will be, but there are things that you know you don’t want to run out of ideas. How do we creatively administer things from training block to training block, which now we currently look at it in two week windows? Making sure that we have a long term plan, making sure that we have a short term plan and most importantly, how well does our short term plan morph into a mid-range or a long term plan? It has to morph and transition well so that all of the sudden, you’re seven, 11, 14 weeks in — Do guys have the habits that you set early on? Are they now ingrained, which will give you momentum as you continue to go full speed ahead?
"That’s the key is ingraining habits early on, getting guys into the new normal and get them accustomed to doing certain things, and then making sure you have creative ways to give them new challenges, not just mentally but physically, so that they stay engaged. That’s one of the keys."
On Designing Specific Nutritional Plans For Each Player
"There’s such a good foundation laid prior to this, with a lot of guys," Herbert said. "A lot of the guys, specifically in the winter, there was a level of emphasis on certain things. So, those guys and all guys just in general in terms of fueling the body and taking care of your body, strengthening your immune system, what your nutrition is, what your hydration habits look like, what your sleep is like, it’s all been a continuation.
"Our guys have been very in tune. [Performance dietitian] Abigail O'Connor, her ability specifically during these two weeks, the response that she has gotten from guys, in terms of how they share their meals and how she organizationally creates what she has created, is very impressive. She is very in tune with what guys do on a daily basis, how they do it. And their level of communication is outstanding thus far. I imagine as we move forward it will not only sustain, but can even get better."
On How The Players Are Dealing With The Unknown That Is The Coronavirus Epidemic
"The guys that are at the forefront of the football team, the guys that have been around, that have been exposed to what a game day looks like, what an offseason looks like, what a spring ball looks like, what adversity looks like … we have a really good group at the forefront that is going to set the tone," Herbert said. "We want to make sure that those guys understand we are in any and every way going to support what they need, making sure that they set the tone for the little things that take place on a daily basis. Guys holding one another accountable, and making sure that it’s a support. It’s 100 percent a support mechanism that we all have for each other. You’ve got the young guys that haven’t even joined our program, that we’re going to join the program in May and June, that are already now engaging and doing some things with guys on the roster.
"Guys have been really supportive of each other, and we’re really supportive of the guys. It starts with those guys at the top, and then it trickles down. They want it to be contagious, and they have been very contagious in a positive way with the younger players and among themselves. Everybody needs that support and that encouragement. It’s not just old guys giving it to young guys, it’s old guys giving it to old guys, young guys giving it to young guys and it’s a real nice blend of guys supporting one another, and guys challenging one another to our standard, which is what you want and what you need to have."
On If This Situation Has Brought The Team's Bond Closer Together
"Yeah, I know one thing that it’s done for sure is it’s enhanced the level of engagement with my staff and the players," Herbert said. "We do it so often face to face, when they’re in the building, specifically when you’re fueling the body or they’re training or they’re in there with the sports medicine staff, we have a chance to interact a lot with those guys face to face. But, now we can take that a step further, and we’re in a world of group chats, group texts, where there’s a lot of different things that have come up in a positive way through this kind of communication, that I wouldn’t even have thought of.
"It’s just taken the communication and taken the activity of all of us, my strength and conditioning staff, that includes Abigail O’Connor and what she does nutritionally with these guys and then the different guys and how we all interact on a day to day basis. Constant communication throughout the day, day in and day out. There’s never a day where an entire group is not in communication with one another at a variety of points throughout the day. That communication has just been able to take another step in a little bit of a different realm. It’s been cool to be a part of it and it’s been cool to witness."
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