DWAYNE’S WORKING OVERTIME!
AS the nation prepares to enter a fourth week of lockdown, strength and conditioning coach Dwayne Peasah is gradually getting used to the challenges posed by the unprecedented current climate.
The former Salisbury player turned sports scientist is on a mission to ensure Non-League players follow the same health and fitness programmes that those in the professional ranks are treated to.
Through his company, Max Fitness, Peasah has been providing one-on-one training to a number of up-and-coming Non-League players such as Weymouth’s Jordan Ngalo, Salisbury defender Alex Lafleur and Wimborne Town’s Antonio Diaz.
But with all players currently confined to barracks in self-isolation, Peasah has had to tweak his programmes to factor in nutrition and regimes that can be carried out at home.
“It has certainly been a bit tricky but I am in constant communication with everyone,” he told The NLP.
“We have had to move to home based methods and different conditioning ideas, it is all about keeping the players fit and fresh.
“I think the main thing is to still try and maintain a day-to-day routine. For example, if you are a player who has been used to training two or three times a week during the season, it is important to maintain that intensity.”
Through Max Performance, Peasah is attempting to close the gulf that exists between Non-League and the professional game with regards to player development and lifestyle coaching. “When I was first starting out in the industry I did a placement at Bournemouth,” Peasah explained. “It made me realise just how vast the support systems in the pro game are. Even in an academy you have a technical coach, a psychologist, a nutritionist.
Methods
“When I met Non-League players coming through the ranks I discovered they hadn’t had the chance to benefit from any of this so I started the company to try and provides these services.
“I have seen trialists come into professional teams from NonLeague and you can tell just by looking at their movement that they haven’t had the same fitness and nutritional support network.”
At the tender age of 26, Peasah has big plans to progress in the sporting world and has lofty ambitions for how far Max Performance can go.
“I am currently working almost entirely in football and it is the sport that I love the most but the long term goal is to move into different sports and really bring my ideas and methods into a broader category,” he continued.
“I want to work with a range of athletes and give them the opportunities that those at the very top of their field have.
“This kind of assistance can help give people that extra edge which can be the difference between success and failure in any sport.
“Many people don’t realise that in doing things slightly differently they can improve their performance by such a large degree and get the best out of their talent and reach the heights of their potential.”