Returning to Dodgeball Safely

A three-part special with Alex Harrison

Dodgeball is making a long-awaited return! For most of us it has been at least a year since we last played a competitive game. So, it would be silly to go straight back into your first training with the intensity that you last played with. Your body is used to being nice and sedentary from lockdown and will be extremely vulnerable to injuries if you jump straight back into training at full intensity. You need to ease yourself back in to mitigate any potential injuries. 

So that’s why we’ve put together a three-part special with two-time World Champion & 11-time European Champion Alex Harrison, to help guide you back into training safely.

So, why have we asked Alex?

It’s fair to say Alex is one of the most experienced dodgeball players in the world, who has been playing for well over 10 years at the highest level. This includes for England Lions and more recently Team GB. Anyone that knows Alex will know the reason he is such a consistent performer at the highest level is because of the amount of physical preparation he does to prevent injuries and enhance movements specific to dodgeball. We couldn’t think of anyone more fitting to help us write this guide!

What to expect:

The aim of this three-part series is to help you return to dodgeball safely. And more importantly, give you an in-depth understanding of how to prepare your body for the stresses and strains that dodgeball puts on your body.

PART ONE will be a return to throwing guide that specifically concentrates on building up your throwing load gradually so that when the restrictions loosen on the 21st June you will be at a stage where you can hit the ground running.

PART TWO will focus on how to warm up thoroughly before taking part in training sessions or doing any kind of throwing. This will also include an example warm up that you can use at your sessions.

PART THREE is all about working on proprioception (the body's ability to perceive its own position in space to you and me!) and stability. During lockdown your body will have forgotten your dodgeball movement patterns and limitations, and while it relearns these, you are at risk of injury. So we have put together simple drills to help you get accustomed to the right movements again and build up the stability you will need moving forward. 

So there you have it! Stay tuned to our socials and website where we’ll be releasing all three parts of the series. 

Got any tips you’d like to share? We would love to hear what you’re doing to get ready to return in the comments section below!