Linebacker Luke Kuechly's Brutal Pre-Season Strength Workout

by A.C. Shilton   

NFL stars like Carolina Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly start training for the next season as early as April. And by the time they hit August's training camps, they're going full-tilt in the weight room to not just get fit for the coming games, but to build strong bodies that last for seasons.
As camp approaches, Kuechly, a three-time All-Pro, splits his week between heavy lifting and explosive power work, followed by tons of lean protein (Kuechly just joined the board of Eat The Bear, a sports nutrition company that’s also based in North Carolina). “Putting on weight and keeping it on is important, so I’m a big post-workout protein and branch-chain guy,” he says.
His other secret weapon — besides protein — is this workout, designed by Panthers strength and conditioning coach Joe Kenn. "This routine challenges every muscle in Kuechly’s upper body," he says.
While Kuechly and his teammates are physical beasts, their workouts (like this one) don't focus on building a one-rep max or pushing the biggest weight possible. “What’s heavy for me when I lift, probably isn’t actually a lot of weight,” says Kuechly.
We doubt the 6'3", 240-pound linebacker's weights are unimpressive, but Kenn explains that the team focuses on heavy but submaximal loads because the real focus is to develop long-term muscle function (so they can play longer) rather than hitting a number that looks amazing on paper. “Most football players enter the pro ranks after a structured college program that is geared toward improving the one-repetition maximum of several foundational movements,” he says. But, “as the NFL athlete’s career longevity increases, we feel it’s beneficial for our athletes to handle submaximal loads for longer periods of time and handle higher loads longer into their careers.”