Former SAS trainer and current strength and conditioning coach for the Sydney Roosters NRL team, KEVIN TOONEN, takes us on his fitness and nutritional journey and shares his top tips on preparing and building a body for combat…
Kevin Toonen is one of the hardest working strength and conditioning (S+C) coaches in Australia right now. Formerly a S+C coach for the Special Forces, Kevin is now training the Sydney Roosters and is also an expert for an up-and-coming sports micronutrition brand PILLAR Performance. Here he gives us an insight into his daily life.
TRAINING
When it comes to building a body for combat, the same goes for elite soldiers as does for athletes. You need to build a strong base of strength and aerobic conditioning. From there you have the ability to produce power and speed. Sadly, you can’t rush things and try and circumvent training principles — as the saying goes, you can’t run before you walk. The biggest mistake is the “need” to make things look sexy for no reason. What you should focus on is getting strong so you can have power and then you can work on speed. By being strong you will have a bigger engine in which you can do more things with and this will build a robust human ready for combat!
THE SYDNEY ROOSTERS
Training wise, our sessions depend on the day of the week and the game turnaround. For example, we will train a bit harder if we have 12 days between games than if we have six days between games, as we don’t want to burn the guys out. They tend to train two to three times per day unless it is a rest day. They will generally do a session with me and two sessions on the field.
Most of the guys will do the same S+C workout but the weight they lift will depend on their field position and physicality, and some of the guys will have specific training needs that I will cater for. For example, if they are recovering from injury or specifically need to strengthen up a particular area of their body I will have a session for them. With me, they most do strength and power lifting however we often have one or two endurance and conditioning sessions per week too. However, I don’t need to do too many of those because they are training on their field as well. Here is an example of a power/strength session that I do with the Roosters:
Power/Strength Session
● Warmup
● Then 4 x 3 Power Cleans / 35-40% 1Rm
● 2 mins rest between sets
● Then 5 x 3 Box Squats @ 85% 1Rm
● 3 mins rest between sets
● Then 4 sets
● 8 x Weighted Cossack Squat (each side)
● 5 x GHD Hamstring curls
● 30m heavy Farmers Carry
● Then recovery/meal/rest
NRL Nutrition
Our big goal right now is to ensure the guys don’t lose too much weight, especially as we are all living in a resort at the moment in the NRL Quarantine Bubble. They are training a lot as we near the finals, so weight loss is the biggest worry that we have outside of iwnjury. We are lucky that in the hub we have a kitchen who we can send the boys nutritional requirements to ensure they have everything they need — we don’t always get this when they are in their own home. In general, the food they eat consists of rice, potato, sweet potato, various meat options and salad – and we have a lot of it.
We also have protein shakes for them to have throughout the day, and each of the guys takes micronutrients. The PILLAR Performance range is our range of choice as it was developed by NSW Waratah player Damien Fitzpatrick so the products are batch-tested to ensure the boys never test for a banned substance, which can occasionally happen with off the shelf vitamins, believe it or not. A lot of the products also promote healthy joints which is important if you are doing a contact sport such was rugby league. Magnesium, zinc and Motion Armour are the key ones I recommend, however some of the boys will be recommended different supplements depending on their needs and concerns.
SLEEP, NUTRITION & RECOVERY
With my athletes, the key for me above all else is sleep, nutrition and recovery. Yes, they train hard both with me and their footy coach, too, but if they don’t sleep and eat well, then it doesn’t matter how hard or good their training program is as they won’t be able to recover enough day-to-day or week-to-week. Nutrition wise, ensuring they are eating a well-balanced, protein-rich diet is important. Protein is the building block for the entire body and therefore needs to keep getting replenished, especially if you are training hard.
When you train, your muscles tear as that is what helps them repair and grow, this makes eating protein even more important. Aside from the macros, the micros are extremely important as they assist with reducing inflammation, balancing and boosting antioxidant levels and much more. You can eat things like sprouts, leafy greens and utilise spices such as turmeric and cumin, but I always recommend supplementing as well – because the boys train hard and it will take a while for the sprouts to work their magic.
PILLAR Performance supplements are good for athletes as they are batch-tested by HASTA (Human and Supplement Testing Australia) which make them safe for athletes to use (as they won’t test positive for banned substances) and they also have a bunch of innovative products including MOTION ARMOUR that focuses on joint health and mobility which are essential for an athlete.
Sleep wise, aim for eight hours. Recovery wise, nutrition and sleep will both help you recover, of course, but add a few more things to your routine such as stretching, foam rolling, using a massage gun, getting a massage, seeing a physio, Normatec boots, cryotherapy — whatever works for you. These items will all help your muscles recover and they will also help to flush some inflammation out of your body. Obviously a soldier won’t always get the benefit of using all of the above tools and techniques depending on where they are in the world, but an athlete or fitness enthusiast should prioritise this.
THE DAILY RITUAL
I wake up every day and the first thing I do is think about three things that make me happy about my day – this primes my brain! Then its coffee time and off to the gym. From there I have breakfast and take my supplements and get into my work day. During the day I stretch, roll and hydrate constantly, then I’ll have some lunch and, if I have time after work, I’ll get another session in — this one is mainly off-feet conditioning.
After dinner I will work until about 7:30pm where I switch off the computer and do something I like. This might be reading a book, watching a movie or playing the guitar (I’m not good) for 30 minutes up to an hour. I like to then prep my following day, get things ready and then think about three things I enjoyed about my day — again, this little habit is one of the best things I have done as it forces me to look for the good. I prime my brain for a positive bias in life. Bedtime is cold shower, lights off and eight hours of good sleep. Weekends don’t really change except maybe I will have one or two more coffees.
Kevin’s Day On A Plate
My day looks the same seven days per week — I like to keep things simple and after so long as a performance coach I know what works for me. It goes…
PRE-TRAINING IN THE MORNING: I have a strong, long black as pre-workout.
BREAKFAST: I always have my breakfast after training as it’s a time thing. For breakfast I have four to five poached eggs with either some bacon or a cup of oats.
LUNCH: This is chicken or red meat with some rice or a big plate of salad and then I’ll also usually have a protein shake about an hour afterwards.
THROUGHOUT THE DAY: I hydrate consistently – three to four litres of water per day, along with my normal regime of PILLAR Performance’s zinc, magnesium and fish oils.
DINNER: Always a smaller meal than lunch as I don’t need as much energy, but I keep it higher protein and less carbs.
Developed by NSW Waratah player Damien Fitzpatrick, the PILLAR Performance range is Kevin’s supplements of choice. These products are batch-tested to ensure the athletes he trains never test for a banned substance, which can occasionally happen with off-the-shelf vitamins. For more info go to: pillarperformance.com.au
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