ninotoreS wrote:
Cardio-wise, sure, rugby is a lot more challenging than American football. There's a lot more to athleticism than just anaerobic conditioning, though.
Absolutely. But on the whole, I felt I had to be in far better shape to keep up in rugby than in football. The transition from scrum to sprint was something to get used to.
I would agree that the skill players in the NFL have exceptional skills you don't see in rugby, but that may be less about athletic ability than the rigours/necessities of the game. And while that might be true of the high end NFL players, I'd argue that the average rugby player is a better athlete than the average NFL player. The big guys at the World Cup level can grind, hit, and MOVE.
ninotoreS wrote:I played soccer competitively from age 5 to age 18, and was on the Olympic Development Program regional team for the southeast United States for four years. By the U-17 level, I was probably running something like 8 miles a game as a winger. Summer conditioning for my club team was pure hell; I used to throw up before training because the imminent misery filled me with such dread. Believe me, I know all about cardio.
If there is one thing I don't miss about playing competitive sports, it's the training until you vomit. I had one sadistic coach in college who had us do crab crawls up and down the field until we were jelly. Worked, though...we were always fresher in the fourth quarter than the other teams. I'm sure I was never training anywhere near to your level, but the level I got to was more than enough for me.
ninotoreS wrote:
So did you play rugby-union code or rugby-league code? You know there's a huge difference, right?
Canadian, so I'm a pure rugby union and CFL guy, from upbringing if nothing else. Although I'm with you the rugby league game is very entertaining. I don't agree with the "nothing creative going on" suggestion, though. I think that's only true if you look at things from the outside. I mean, I've taken British friends to American football games, and they think it's the dumbest, most turgid sport around. I don't agree, but it's a defensible opinion.
ninotoreS wrote:So you're a big dude, I take it. I imagine cardio fitness in a sport with no breaks would be especially challenging for someone 250+ lbs.
Well, coming from a sport where you only moved in ten second bursts, it sure was. Luckily I'm carrying a much more rational 220 lbs these days. I only played at average levels, and there are things that still hurt. I have no idea how much pain a NFL player must be in after a game.
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