Movin' on Up: Stair Conditioning for Hockey Players

A solid set of stairs may be one of the best tools a coach can use for conditioning hockey players. If you live in Edmonton, Alberta long enough to get past the frigid winter temperatures and never-ending road construction, you'll find out that it's a city with many hidden gems.

One of these is the trail system that sprawls throughout the city, several of which feature steep sets of stairs that feed into the river valley. These are popular fare for Edmonton's fitness enthusiasts and I am one of the enthusiasts that absolutely loves the many stairs we have access to.

They are versatile, allowing for a wide variety of aerobic and anaerobic focused conditioning. Not to mention, the great view you get when you make it to the top, an adrenaline-inducing spoil after a hard workout. For these reasons, I often find myself programming conditioning workouts for my athletes around these stairs. After some recent research I found that there may be biomechanical similarities to skating that I hadn't explored, lending even more support to the use of this mode of exercises with hockey athletes.

 

Ground Contact Times

I first learned about the unique ground contact times (GCT) seen in skating from Anthony Donskov when he presented at the Okanagan Strength & Conditioning Conference in 2016. It was a true aha!- moment for me. Skating GCT are unique because they follow the opposite pattern of what you see when sprinting on land.

An athlete sprinting on land will display longer GCT when starting. As they accelerate and reach maximum speed those GCT's get progressively shorter (20, 21). The opposite is true with skating where the athlete displays shorter GCT in the acceleration phase and spends progressively more time with their skate blade in contact with the ice as they gather speed (14). This can have a number of implications on your training choices in the gym; particularly with what you choose to program for plyometrics/jumps.

It is outside the scope of this article, but there may be a good reason to favor jumps that require slightly longer contact with the ground, compared to traditional plyometrics that require a GCT of 0.2 milliseconds or less. Regardless, stair running may offer a specific conditioning method when we consider the previously mentioned acceleration pattern seen in skating.

Table 1.

Stride #	Contact Time (s)
2nd	0.281 ± 0.03
6th	0.348 ± 0.02

*Adapted from Stetter, Buckeridge, Nigg, Sell and Stein (2019)

As far as research investigating stair running/climbing, there isn't much in an athletic population and unfortunately nothing that I found reported GCT. I had a pretty good idea of how contact times would change based on how many stairs you take when climbing, but I wanted to see for myself. I decided to take a just jump contact mat (see picture below) with me to a stair climb workout and see if I could differentiate between running one, two, three and four steps at a time. As expected, the contact times were the shortest when running one step at a time and longest when running four steps at a time. Table 2 shows the average GCT for each variation.

Figure 2.

 

Table 2.

# of Steps Taken	Average Ground Contact Time (s)
1	0.145 ± 0.02
2	0.173 ± 0.02
3	0.253 ± 0.02
4	0.394 ± 0.04

*Contact times are an average of eight attempts at each step count across three different individuals.

Also, different sets of stairs will have different slopes, which are dictated by their rise (height of each step) and run (length of tread on each step). The two sets of stairs I use most often have a rise between 14-15 cm and a run between 35-36 cm. To put this in perspective, the typical rise and run of residential stairs is ~18 cm and ~28 cm, respectively (18).

With that in mind, the stairs I use are fairly shallow, but other locations in Edmonton and possibly stairs that you have access to may be significantly steeper. All this means is that contact times will be longer on steeper stairs and once they get to a certain height taking 3-4 stairs at a time may end up being unattainable, especially for smaller athletes.

Three stairs at a time is the most I would recommend when using stairs with similar rise and run to what was previously mentioned. As you can see in Table 2, the average GCT increases exponentially from three to four stairs; which also corresponded with a noticeable breakdown in form and rhythm. This is further supported by research from Kalamen (1968) where he found sprinting three stairs at a time produced higher power outputs when compared to two and four stairs at a time (11).

So how do we put this information on GCT into action, when using the stairs for speed and conditioning?

One of the more interesting things you can do is mirror the acceleration pattern seen on the ice. This can be done by starting with one stair at a time, transitioning to two stairs at a time and then finally three stairs at a time.

Similar to skating, when stair sprinting with these transitions, the athlete will start with shorter contact times and progress to longer as they gather speed. Below are two different examples of how you can execute this. The first video shows the transition happening every six stairs, so that the athlete evenly distributes the flight of stairs to each pattern. The second video shows a transition from one, to two, to three steps happening much faster, which correlates better to what truly happens on the ice.

Here, the transition from one to two stairs at a time happens after the third step and the transition from two to three after the fifth step. This is similar to what Stetter and colleagues (2019) reported in that a high caliber skater will typically reach the gliding phase of their sprint, and in turn, longest GCT, by their 6th stride (20).

 

Transitional Stair Sprint

 

Skating Specific Transitional Stair Sprint

Joint Angles and Range of Motion

When sprinting on ice a skater will display a greater range of motion about the hip and knee at max speed compared to the acceleration phase (3). The same pattern emerges when you can visualize the differences between one, two and three steps at a time when running stairs (Figures 2 & 3). Furthermore, a skater will display an increasingly more aggressive trunk angle as they reach max speed and as you can see from the pictures below, a similar progression happens in the transition between one, two and three stairs taken when sprinting (13, 23). Figure 5 also effectively displays how max speed skating and three stair sprinting require similar knee, hip and trunk angles. These similarities lend even more support to the specificity that can be achieved when conditioning hockey players on stairs.

Figure 3.

Figure 4.

Figure 5.

Dynamic Correspondence

In light of the recent article by Laakso and Schuster (2020) regarding the dynamic correspondence of hang power cleans to skating starts, I feel that it is important to address this principle with other methods of choice for strength and conditioning hockey players. With each of the criteria you want to question if the training exercise is similar or superior when compared to the sporting movement. My intention here is to do a quick hit on each criterion, but not go into extensive detail on what each entail.

If dynamic correspondence is something you want to explore, I strongly recommend the article by Laakso and Schuster mentioned above, as well as the article from Suarez and colleagues, and of course the Supertraining text where the concept originated (12, 23, 25).

Amplitude & Direction of Movement

Do you see similar ranges of motion, joint movements and athlete orientation in skating and stair running?

The similarities in lower body and trunk angles seen in Figure 5 are a testament to how stair running mimics skating ROM, but there are two aspects of this to call out. First, you can clearly see that the knee reaches a greater degree of extension in the stair sprint, compared to the skating sprint. The lack of full knee extension during skating has been observed by several researchers, but the kicker here is the evidence of higher caliber skaters reaching a greater knee extension than their lower caliber counterparts (3, 13, 19, 24). Therefore, reaching a greater degree of knee extension in your training activities can be considered beneficial.

Secondly, exercises like the Hang Power Clean, Front Squat and Sprinting have many similarities to skating in terms of their amplitude and direction of movement; however, one thing they do not achieve is the movement seen in the frontal plan with skating, specifically with external rotation and abduction at the hip (12). This is something that can be accomplished in stair sprinting simply by widening the athlete's stance and having them focus more on a lateral push-off (see video link below). This variation can be included in most types of training sessions on the stairs, ideally when the athlete is in a specific preparation phase.

 

Stair Sprint with Lateral Push-Off Emphasis

Accentuated Regions of Force Production

Is force production throughout the range of motion (and joint angles at which maximal force is produced) similar between skating and stair running?

In skating peak force is achieved at roughly 30° of hip flexion and 40° of knee flexion (4, 12). In stair climbing there appears to be a significant amount of individual variation for hip joint moments, but peak force appears to be generated at noticeably similar joint angles as those seen in skating (5, 16). Keeping in mind that the research referenced for stairs involved the participants walking one step at a time, there may be a difference in accentuated regions of force production when sprinting stairs. EMG measurement from stair climbing shows that it is a quad dominant activity, much the same as skating (4, 5).

Dynamics of Effort

Is the force velocity profile seen in skating similar to that seen in stair running?

The information covered previously on ground contact times in skating and stair running supports the fact that the effort required when sprinting stairs is similar to, and may exceed, that which is required in maximal skating, and they both require a significant amount of lower body strength in order to achieve the ideal force and velocity profile.

Rate and Time of Maximum Force Production

Is the rate of force production and power outputs seen in skating similar to those seen running stairs?

Rate of force development is a key factor in achieving high skating velocities and the same can be assumed for the attainment of high velocities when sprinting on stairs (4, 12). Unfortunately, there is little research reporting force and power values for stair sprinting, but based on the biomechanical correspondence reported previously, I assume that stair climbing would at least be similar to skating. One way to achieve higher rates of force development, when training on the stairs, would be to add resistance to the athlete. I have experimented with carrying my 30-pound son on my back, but most of my athletes don't have 30-pound son, so they haven't done stair running with loads yet.

A study by De Koning and colleagues (1992) reported a power output of ~1300 watts during the start in speed skating (6). This power output is significantly lower than those reported by Harris et al., (2014) where they found an average power output of 1500 watts when sprinting one stair at a time and 2350 watts when sprinting two stairs at a time (10). Although there are disparities in how power was calculated in these two studies, the power outputs may be higher in stair sprinting.

Regime of Muscular Work

Are the muscular actions displayed during skating similar to those seen in stair running?

The gait patterns seen in skating and stair running are similar in nature, but one of the biggest differences from a muscular work aspect is the stretch shortening cycle (SSC) actions displayed in stair running. In stair running, much more energy is stored and released through the plantar flexor muscle tendon unit (MTU) compared to skating (5, 16). This is a good example of where this lack of dynamic correspondence makes one wonder if it would actually be a good thing. Would training the SSC actions in the lower limb contribute to reduced contact times on the ice? The limited use of the plantar flexor MTU in a skate boot leads me to think no, but it would be interesting to find out. Either way the added work at the ankle joint, in a population that is typically riddled with ankle mobility limitations, isn't a bad thing.

Although the dynamic correspondence in some criteria are more robust than others, it is clear that the use of stair running and sprinting can offer value to your training program, if you decide to use them.

Implementing Stairs into Your Program

A number of factors will dictate how and when you can utilize stairs in your programming including location, size, weather, and time of year. Typically I will only bring my hockey athlete's to the stairs in the off-season, but this year has been an exception. With several shut-downs, we used the stairs more than ever between the months of September and March. When we do finally get back into a normal annual plan, the program below is one I may use to periodize the conditioning piece of an off-season with the inclusion of stair running. Keep in mind this would be for a Canadian University player whose off-season will typically run from February/March until the end of August. Depending on the start date of your training program, the off-season will run anywhere from 22-26 weeks. For this example, I will lay out the conditioning over five phases.

Phase 1

Anaerobic Alactic Power: Timed sprints in the gym. 4-6 reps. Done on Monday prior to resistance training.

Aerobic Capacity: 30-45 minutes on the stairs. Typically done at a set with ~240 steps. The athlete alternates between walking two steps at a time and jogging one step at a time on every set. Done on Tuesday and Thursday.

Phase 2

Anaerobic Alactic Power: Timed sprints in the gym. 4-6 reps. Done on Monday prior to resistance training.

Aerobic Power: 15-21 minutes on the stairs. Typically done at a set with ~130 steps. The athlete will execute these at a significantly higher tempo than the aerobic capacity session, by running two steps at a time on every set and jogging down at a faster speed. At the beginning of this session I will also touch on Alactic Power by having the athlete complete 4-6 maximal stair sprints (20-30 steps) taking three steps at a time.

Aerobic Power: 10-16 reps of 100 meter tempo runs. Typically done on a track or grass. The athlete will focus on solid upright running form and run in the range of 70-75% speed. Done on Thursday

Note: If using a smaller set of stairs, say 30-40 steps, you can train aerobic power in the form of intervals on this day instead. This would involve running repeats on the short set of stairs for two minutes, resting for one minute and repeating for 5-7 reps. Done on Tuesday.

Phase 3

Alactic Power: Timed sprints in the gym. 4-6 reps. Done on Monday & Wednesday prior to resistance training.

Aerobic Power: 14-20 reps of 100 meter tempo runs. Same description as Phase 2. Done on Tuesday.

Repeated Sprint Ability (Anaerobic Alactic Capacity): This will require a larger set of stairs, ideally one with multiple flights. For example, one set that I use often has ~240 steps broken up into ten separate flights. On a set of stairs like these the athlete can sprint up every flight taking three steps at a time and resting for 10-15 seconds in between each flight. This is followed by a 2.5-3 minute rest, then repeated for 3-6 reps. At the beginning of this session I will also touch on Alactic Power by having the athlete complete 4-6 Transitional Stair Sprints. Done on Thursday.

Phase 4

Alactic Power: Timed sprints in the gym. 4-6 reps. Done on Monday & Wednesday prior to resistance training.

Aerobic Power: 18-24 minutes on the stairs. Same description as Phase 2. At the beginning of this session I will also touch on Alactic Power by having the athlete complete 4-6 Skating Specific Transitional Stair Sprints.

Repeated Sprint Ability (Anaerobic Alactic Capacity): Completed on a set of stairs that is 20-30 steps in length; the athlete performs 3-6 maximal sprints, ascending and descending the stairs as fast as possible. This is followed by a 2.5-3 minute rest, then repeated for 3-6 reps. The athlete will take two or three steps at a time depending on the slope of the stairs and size of the athlete.

 

Repeated Sprint Ability Stair Training

Phase 5

Alactic Power: Timed sprints in the gym. 4-6 reps. Done on Monday & Wednesday prior to resistance training.

Repeated Sprint Ability (Anaerobic Alactic Capacity): Same description as Phase 3. Alactic Power is trained at the beginning of the session with 4-6 Skating Specific Transitional Stair Sprints. Done on Tuesday.

Aerobic Power: 18-24 minutes on the stairs. Same description as Phase 2. At the beginning of this session Alactic Power would also be incorporated by having the athlete complete 4-6 Skating Specific Transitional Stair Sprints. Done on Thursday

Lactic Power: 20-30 seconds of an all-out effort, followed by 8-10 minutes rest for 3-6 reps. This could be done on stairs if you had a long enough set available, but may be better suited for an Assault Bike, as the level of fatigue that is achieved with these intervals may lead to loss of footing and possibly falls on the stairs. The rest periods are long, but necessary, the mobility and core work can be programmed within the reps to make an efficient use of the time. Done on Saturday.

Note: If the athlete was on the ice 2-3 days a week during this time, the conditioning plan would have to be adjusted. Either the Aerobic Power or Repeated Sprint Ability would be removed depending on the athlete and the specifics of their situation.

This is obviously not a one size fits all approach and how you program will depend on many things, but the main intention of sharing the plan above is to acquaint you with how I implement stair running into my hockey athletes training. One factor that needs to be considered in every phase of your conditioning plan, is how often the athlete is on the ice and what those sessions look like. If they are very skill orientated and low intensity, then you have much more freedom with how you condition them off the ice.

However, if they are doing power skating and/or game-like sessions, then you will most likely have to pull back off the ice. In those scenarios it is best to decide what energy systems are being stressed the most on the ice and let that dictate your conditioning plan off the ice. Finally, if you do decide to include some stair running for conditioning in-season, it is probably a safe bet that aerobic power will be the quality which is receiving the least amount of stimulus on the ice (22). The terminology and strategy that I used in the plan above was influenced by the two review articles from Girard and colleagues (2011) as well as the writings of Anthony Donskov and Joel Jamieson (1, 2, 7, 8, 9).

Conclusion

With the exception of two papers, it appears there has been very little research done on stair sprinting since the development of the Margaria-Kalamen stair climb test for anaerobic power (10, 11, 15, 17). I see merit in a study done on the kinetics and kinematics of stair sprinting, or at least something a little more scientifically robust than a just jump mat and a cell phone camera!

The fact that stair walking, running and sprinting combines a significant amount of muscular endurance work (repeated concentric muscle contractions when ascending and eccentric muscle contractions when descending) with energy system development, makes it a unique training stimulus (16). For this reason, I see great value in doing aerobic capacity work on stairs early in an off-season. I think the combination of aerobic and muscular endurance work can set the athlete up with a strong base that they can carry through the rest of the summer and proceeding competitive season; provided it is maintained with some microdosing throughout the rest of the year.

For similar reasons, I feel ascending and descending stairs, for fitness development, is a very functional mode of exercise for the general population. When you consider the fact that there is an additional requirement of power and coordination, when compared to walking on flat ground, it can be particularly valuable for the aging population (5, 16). The ability to combine many different fitness parameters into one, makes stairs a very efficient mode of exercise.

I also just love getting outside with my athletes. Scheduling days outside of a windowless gym on a beautiful sunny day has to be good for the mental health of everyone involved, and that value shouldn't be underestimated. If you have yet to use stairs in your training program, I hope what I covered in this article convinces you to try them out this summer.

-------------------------------------------

Joel Jackson, M. Sc., CSCS

Joel is the strength and conditioning coach at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Alberta and the co-founder of Competitive Thread, a company that provides on-ice speed testing technology. You can find him on Twitter (@joeljacksonsc) and Instagram (@jackson_joel)

References

1. 8 weeks out. (2021). Retrieved from https://www.8weeksout.com/
2. Bishop, D., Girard, O., Mendez-Villanueva, A. (2011). Repeated sprint ability -- part II: Recommendations for training. Sports Medicine, 41(9), 741-756. doi: 10.2165/11590560-000000000-00000
3. Budarick, A.R., Shell, J.R., Robbins, S.M., Wu, T., Renaud, P.J., & Pearsall, D.J. (2020). Ice hockey skating sprints: Run to glide mechanics of high calibre male and female athletes. Sports Biomechanics, 19(5), 601-617. https://doi.org/10.1080/14763141.2018.1503323
4. Buckeridge, E., LeVangie, M.C., Stetter, B., Nigg, S.R., & Nigg, B.M. (2015). An on-ice measurement approach to analyse the biomechanics of ice hockey skating. PLoS ONE, 10(5), 1-16. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0127324
5. Chang, B-W., Khan, M.I., Prado, A., Yang, N., Ou, J., & Agrawal, S.K. (2020). Biomechanical differences during ascent on regular stairs and on a stairmill. Journal of Biomechanics, 104, 1-5. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiomech.2020.109758
6. De Koning, J.J., Groot, G.D., & Van Ingen Schenau, G.J. (1992). A power equation for the sprint in speed skating. Journal of Biomechanics, 25(6), 573-580. doi: 10.1016/0021-9290(92)90100-f
7. Donskov, A. (2016). Physical preparation for ice hockey: Biological principles and practical solutions. Bloomington, IN: Author House.
8. Donskov, A. (2020). The gain, go, grow manual: Programming for high performance hockey players. Bloomington, IN: Author House.
9. Girard, O., Mendez-Villanueva, A., & Bishop, D. (2011). Repeated sprint ability -- part I: Factors contributing to fatigue. Sports Medicine, 41(8), 673-694. doi: 10.2165/11590550-000000000-00000
10. Harris, K.B., Brown, L.E., Statler, T.A., Noffal, G.J., & Bartolini, J.A. (2014). Effect of one- vs. two-stair climb training sprint power. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 28(11), 3100-3104. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0b013e3182a20f42
11. Kalamen, J.L. (1968). Measurement of muscular power in man. Doctoral dissertation, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 1968.
12. Laakso, L.A., & Schuster, J.G. (2020). Dynamic correspondence of the hang power clean to skating starts in men's ice hockey. Strength and Conditioning Journal, 1-8. doi: 10.1519/SSC.0000000000000618
13. Lafontaine, D. (2007). Three-dimensional kinematics of the knee and ankle joints for three consecutive push-offs during ice hockey skating starts. Sports Biomechanics, 6(3), 391-406. doi: 10.1080/14763140701491427
14. Majumdar, A. S., & Robergs, R.A. (2011). The science of speed: Determinants of performance in the 100 m sprint. International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, 6(3), 479-493. https://doi.org/10.1260%2F1747-9541.6.3.479
15. Margaria, R., Aghemo, P., & Rovelli, E. (1966). Measurement of muscular power (anaerobic) in man. Journal of Applied Physiology, 21, 1662-1664.
16. McFayden, B., & Winter, D.A. (1988). An integrated biomechanical analysis of normal stair ascent and descent. Journal of Biomechanics, 21(9), 733-744. doi: 10.1016/0021-9290(88)90282-5
17. Minetti, A.E., Cazzola, D., Seminati, E., Giacometti, M., & Roi, G.S. (2011). Skyscraper running: Physiological and biomechanical profile of a novel sport activity. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 21, 293-301. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0838.2009.01043.x
18. Residential Stair Codes: Explained. (2018, Oct. 2). Building code trainer. Retrieved from https://buildingcodetrainer.com/residential-stair-code/
19. Shell, J.R., Robbins, S.M.K., Dixon, P.C., Renaud, P.J., Turcotte, R.A., Wu, T., & Pearsall, D.J. (2017). Skating start propulsion: Three-dimensional kinematic analysis of elite male and female ice hockey players. Sports Biomechanics, 16(3), 313-324. https://doi.org/10.1080/14763141.2017.1306095
20. Stetter, B.J., Buckeridge, E., Nigg, S.R., Sell, S., & Stein, T. (2019). Towards a wearable monitoring tool for in-field ice hockey skating performance analysis. European Journal of Sport Science, 19(7), 893-901. doi: 10.1080/17461391.2018.1563634
21. Stetter, B.J., Buckeridge, E., von Tscharner, V., Nigg, S.R., & Nigg, B.M. (2016). A novel approach to determine strides, ice contact, and swing phases during ice hockey skating using a single accelerometer. Journal of Applied Biomechanics, 32, 101-106. http://dx.doi.org/10.1123/jab.2014-0245
22. Spiering, B.A., Wilson, M.H., Judelson, D.A., & Rundell, K.W. (2003). Evaluation of

cardiovascular demands of game play and practice in Women's Ice Hockey. Journal of

Strength and Conditioning Research, 17(2), 329-333. doi: 10.1519/1533-4287(2003)017<0329:eocdog>2.0.co;2

1. Suarez, D.G., Wagle, J.P., Cunanan, A.J., Sausaman, R.W., & Stone, M.H. (2019). Dynamic correspondence of resistance training to sport: A brief review. Strength and Conditioning Journal, 41(4), 80-88. doi: 10.1519/SSC.0000000000000458
2. Upjohn, T., Turcotte, R., Pearsall, D.J., & Loh, J. (2008). Three-dimensional kinematics of the lower limbs during forward ice hockey skating. Sports Biomechanics, 7(2), 206-221. doi: 10.1080/14763140701841621
3. Verkhoshansky, Y., & Siff, M.C. (2009). Supertraining (6^th ed.). Rome, IL: Verkhoshansky.