The gym.
Some people love it, some people hate it.
In the modern age of GAA it seems like being in the gym is essential, it is no longer just enough to be relying on your skills.
The hard work off the pitch has to be done, diets and gym programmes down to a T if you want optimal performance.
Gearoid McInerney is a man for the gym, all you have to do is look at him.
The Galwayman collected September’s Player of the Month award after his performance against Waterford and when speaking to reporters afterwards he emphasised that as the GAA season comes to a close he likes to get inside the four walls of a gym and bulk up:
“I always like this time of year for putting on a bit of body mass and then cutting it down through year,” The 2017 All-Star nominee said.
“In terms of weeks to being back playing you don’t have too many to do that so I like to take the opportunity to get back to the gym side of things and not so much the hurling kinds of side of things that comes later on because you get plenty of that.
“You need to take your breaks too but I like getting back the gym nearly straight away.”
The 27-year-old spoke of the importance of gym work in his and everyone’s’ game:
“I really emphasise my strength and conditioning so that’d be a big side to my game.
“I don’t think there’s a ceiling on it….there’s no ceiling on how much you can improve, you kind of need to be better next year to be the same as this year in a way so we have to really strive to go through that ceiling. There are no limitations there really.”
And perhaps McInerney, a player that has largely regarded as snubbed as a Player of the Year nominee, spilt a secret on his constants improvements and it is all about the bigger picture:
“I have no problem doing something today that will benefit me in two months time rather than benefit for it tomorrow, if we were playing a match tomorrow and I had to do an extra few runs this morning or I had to do a gym session I’d do it I wouldn’t care how it would come off tomorrow I’d just be thinking of how it would in two weeks time.”
Dublins James McCarthy and Galways Gearóid McInerney have been confirmed as the PwC GAA/GPA Players of the Month for September in football and hurling. Pictured is Galway hurler Gearoid McInerney being presented with his PwC GAA/GPA Player of the Month for September by David McGee, right, and Markets and Strategy Partner, PwC and Uachtarán Chumann Lúthchleas Gael Aogán Ó Fearghail at the PwC offices in Spencer Dock, Dublin.
