Summer workouts set tone for year full of fitness and good health, success on the field

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PENDLETON — Pendleton Heights High School athletes David Stahly and Tristin Ross were dripping with sweat as Ross was trying to lift some serious weight during a recent morning workout.

Printed on the back of spotter Stahly’s shirt, in bold letters, was: “TRUST THE PROCESS.”

When the sun is coming up, hundreds of athletes in the South Madison Community School Corp. are rising with it.

Waking up at the crack of dawn isn’t exactly something teenagers want to do during summer break, but the early start is where the grind begins for local athletes looking for gains on the playing field.

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Workouts with weights and conditioning drills are only part of a summer athletic enhancement program for Arabian athletes. The off-season program is designed to get athletes in top physical and mental shape for the upcoming 2018-19 sports seasons.

Jed Richman, strength and conditioning coach, has been working with the students the past two years, trying to help them become more complete athletes, body and mind, while building a team concept for the Arabians.

As athletics have become more sports science-based, district officials are tapping into the knowledge to help local athletes reach their physical and mental potential.

Richman, who is also the Arabians’ head football coach, along with the school’s other head coaches and assistants, lead morning and evening summer workouts with district athletes.

Students who get up early to participate in the program also are building self-discipline, and creating bonds between the athletes and coaches from other sports, Richman said.

Summer critical for conditioning

Blake Fesler, Pendleton Heights High School 2018 graduate, is a former Arabian outside linebacker who is prepping to play for Hanover College this fall.

Without the summer workouts he went through as an Arabian football player, he never would have been able to get to the next level, he said.

“All my numbers went up with every single lift,” Fesler said. “Coach Richman’s program has changed me and basically every single program in the school.”

Fesler not only saw gains lifting weights, but those morning workouts helped him improve his speed, timing and outlook for his physical abilities.

The off-season is the time for athletes to work hard so they can be in shape by August for fall, winter and even spring sports, Richman said.

“It’s not just lifting,” he said. “It’s training — training these kids both mentally and physically.”

Richman came to Pendleton Heights after spending time at Carmel and Lawrence Central high schools, where he saw how committed those programs were to building the complete athlete.

Having healthier athletes starts with them being as fit as possible year ’round.

“Fatigue causes issues all the way around,” Richman said.

Commitment to athletes

South Madison, along with many other school districts around the state, has upped its commitment to keeping student athletes healthy by preventing injuries. That starts with better, year-’round training.

One of the keys to changing the athletic culture at Pendleton Heights and implementing new ways to get athletes in top shape was getting all athletes, not just football players, involved.

So far, buy-in from the athletes has been solid, Athletic Director Chad Smith said.

When Smith became school AD, one of his first goals was to build a stronger strength and conditioning program.

Smith was tired of watching Arabian athletes, who, despite working hard, were getting physically dominated on the field, he said.

Smith hired Richman two years ago and, with his help, started working on changing the athletic culture at Pendleton Heights, and it’s paying off, he said.

This past year the school captured sectional and regional victories and had state performers throughout the school’s athletic programs.

Richman is executing the vision Smith had by sharing strength, health and fitness tips with athletes.

It’s been fun, Smith said, watching the excitement the athletes have even on summer days as they head into the weight and conditioning room.

“They are very competitive with each other, and that’s fun to see,” Smith said.

While many people think of football players as the type of athlete hitting the weight and conditioning room year ’round, the Pendleton Heights summer enhancement program attracts baseball, softball, track, soccer, volleyball, golf, cross country and tennis players.

The high school athletes meet as a group from 6:30 to 8 a.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays for workouts and discussions on related subjects such as nutrition.

Early morning workouts allow the older athletes to have the rest of the day to focus in on their specific sports and down time later in the day to enjoy the summer.

District coaches also hold workouts in the evenings for middle school- and elementary school-age athletes who are just beginning to get involved in sports.

Lifelong lessons

The lessons learned through the athletic enhancement program can be used throughout life and not just during a high school sports career, Richman said.

“We want to win a bunch of games, but we also want to help develop young people who want to live right by working hard and learning some discipline,” Richman said.

The enhancement program also allows for some fun, while getting in good shape.

Pete Gorga, assistant coach, got a kick out of encouraging athletes to hit it hard during a recent workout by telling them if the football team wins state this year, they can take turns shaving off his mustache.

The comment prompted the athletes to dig harder during a balance, endurance drill.

Every program plotting success needs talent, but the road to success starts with athletes working their tails off, Richman said.

Well-trained athletes can narrow the gap on the field against a more-talented opponent by out-working them. That lesson can be carried over into an adult life, Richman said.

The athletic enhancement program is designed to develop stronger athletes to help them finish, bend, move and just work their bodies and minds better.

“You can’t cheat winning,” Richman said. “You’ve got to train to consistently win.”

Fesler agrees. He said the off-season workouts not only helped him excel at high school but prepared him for what’s to come in college.

“I know it’s going to be tougher there, but what we do at Pendleton really makes you year ’round,” Fesler said. “It’s so much better than anything we’ve ever had before at the high school.”

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