indykrap Posted January 7, 2020 Share Posted January 7, 2020 (edited) Hi all, Wondering about your advice on taking time away from the ice, and how you plan for it and manage it. I've got a little bit of a knee/hamstring issue from the past that's been brought by back to backs (playing sunday/monday for the past few months), and it's been throwing my game off. Decided to take the next two weeks off, which will also double as a good mental break as I haven't been playing like I'd like to this year with all the injury stuff. Anyone else do the same? Feels weird to be away, but also like it will be good for me physically and mentally. Would love to hear advice on what you do during the time off (i.e. gym stuff/yoga/stretching) Edited January 7, 2020 by indykrap Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coopaloop1234 Posted January 7, 2020 Share Posted January 7, 2020 Time away to heal and mentally recover is always beneficial. I play a fair amount and really only get Christmas break and season breaks as my rest times where I don't play any hockey. Though I'm thinking of taking this summer off for the first time in years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunnyman666 Posted January 7, 2020 Share Posted January 7, 2020 This post made me think about time off. I may take the next two weeks off or not. I played like absolute garbage after playing (for me) lights out. Mind the skill level where I had skated after the lights out is horrible. But my fear is that I will decline worse after not playing. But taking time away could be great for you, and I don’t want to discourage you. We are in two different places. You would benefit, I believe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indykrap Posted January 7, 2020 Author Share Posted January 7, 2020 42 minutes ago, coopaloop1234 said: Time away to heal and mentally recover is always beneficial. I play a fair amount and really only get Christmas break and season breaks as my rest times where I don't play any hockey. Though I'm thinking of taking this summer off for the first time in years. Yeah, for some reason both my league game and pickup both continued throughout the christmas break! While I love to play, I was definitely hoping for at least one of those off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BadAngle41 Posted January 7, 2020 Share Posted January 7, 2020 @indykrap I know exactly what you mean. Like you... during my league session I have Sunday games... then have regular pick up skates both Tuesday & Thursday. At one point I had been asked to partake in a Monday skate as well... and after just a few weeks of 4 skates (3 of which back to back)... I cut the Monday one out. My body just needed to recover. My body was just tired... and playing tired tends to reinforce bad habits. Even being back down to 3 a week... with a day off (or two) between... there are occasions where maybe I'm just not feeling it... physically or mentally. I just try to give the organizer a heads up in enough time to get a fill in and I take the night off. While neither of us have practice time to work out technical kinks... we're also not reinforcing the bad habits I mentioned before. Taking a break can be a good reset. I find too that when coming back from a break I do a better job of keeping things simple... and usually stop more pucks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dualshowman Posted January 7, 2020 Share Posted January 7, 2020 The older I become, the better I feel about (and after taking) breaks - sometimes a week, sometimes more. I've decided on quality over quantity, although old habits die hard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seagoal Posted January 7, 2020 Share Posted January 7, 2020 (edited) I too highly encourage time off, especially dealing with physical discomfort. I think it's just good to step away from something we love so much so that we can miss it and maybe not take it for granted. The older we get especially we have to be more strategic about our time on the ice. I play regularly on Sunday (league) and Tuesday (pickup) . I get emails for Monday nights all the time and yes, I want to play, but in the long run it's sometimes not worth it. Similarly leading up to a weekend tournament I'll find subs the week before. We have to think big picture and not get carried away by short term indulgence. Being away for months due to injury is different. I know I'd likely be depressed if out that long. But for just a couple of weeks, you'll be fine. Just hang out on here more Edited January 7, 2020 by seagoal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mik Posted January 8, 2020 Share Posted January 8, 2020 14 hours ago, indykrap said: Yeah, for some reason both my league game and pickup both continued throughout the christmas break! While I love to play, I was definitely hoping for at least one of those off. When you still love to play, but start thinking like "I wish we had Christmas break" then it is time to take a rest. It will definitely help your game, both physicaly and mentaly. I used to play the whole year, even in summer, without any breaks...now I don´t play games minimaly two months in the summer. I still go to ice practices with friends or some team, but only when I´m in mood to do so, e.g. once per week. btw. When I´m off for more than week, I usualy go to train with some team, to be on ice and catch some pucks. Just to not feel rusty before game.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indykrap Posted January 9, 2020 Author Share Posted January 9, 2020 On 1/8/2020 at 4:51 AM, mik said: When you still love to play, but start thinking like "I wish we had Christmas break" then it is time to take a rest. It will definitely help your game, both physicaly and mentaly. You're right on the money with this! I swear, some days it's so easy to get caught up in things that I forget it's supposed to be a fun activity. When it stops being fun or I just want a break, it's okay to do that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indykrap Posted January 21, 2020 Author Share Posted January 21, 2020 Just got back on the ice last night for a game after two weeks off. Fortunately there was no game before us so had 30 minutes to play and get it together! ...got scored on by the first shot (screened a bit by defence, but I'll own that one) and played decently well to a 4-3 win. Felt better/looser/more relaxed out there, and the mental break really helped. Physically the issue (IT band) seems to be better, and going to physio tomorrow to work it out. Thanks all for the advice and encouragement - really needed that break, but also really needed the encouragement to do it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scythe Posted August 12, 2021 Share Posted August 12, 2021 This is something I've decided to do. Yesterday really sucked at a pick up session. I've noticed I haven't had fun the last few times I've gone out there and may just take the rest of the summer off. Never really liked summer hockey as much as fall and winter anyway tbh. Pickup really sucks too when people decide they don't even want to try. I stand there and can't help but shake my head. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaveByRichter35 Posted September 4, 2021 Share Posted September 4, 2021 I now know the feeling regarding the summer ice break. This was the first summer where I didn't care to miss a game. I just had no drive to get myself up to go. No desire. We just started our summer season playoffs so we'll see how it goes here on out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coopaloop1234 Posted September 7, 2021 Share Posted September 7, 2021 On 9/4/2021 at 5:37 AM, SaveByRichter35 said: I now know the feeling regarding the summer ice break. This was the first summer where I didn't care to miss a game. I just had no drive to get myself up to go. No desire. We just started our summer season playoffs so we'll see how it goes here on out. It's fun to look back on this thread and see how naive I was that I'd just take the summer off. COVID kind of forced many of us to take a break lol 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indykrap Posted September 7, 2021 Author Share Posted September 7, 2021 2 hours ago, coopaloop1234 said: It's fun to look back on this thread and see how naive I was that I'd just take the summer off. COVID kind of forced many of us to take a break lol No kidding, haha. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
insertnamehere Posted September 7, 2021 Share Posted September 7, 2021 7 hours ago, coopaloop1234 said: It's fun to look back on this thread and see how naive I was that I'd just take the summer off. COVID kind of forced many of us to take a break lol Yup. I think for me it was March 2020-June 2020 and then November 2020-April 2021 and again in May 2021-June 2021. Really though it was a good thing for me, as I needed to take time off to recover from a torn adductor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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