ACE PERFORMANCE BLOGS

Most private health insurance funds cover sports physiotherapy — but what you can claim, how much you receive, and how to maximise your benefit varies significantly. ACE Performance Melbourne explains what athletes need to know.

Sports science was once reserved for professional athletes. ACE Performance Melbourne brings the same data-driven testing and programming used at AFL and NRL clubs to every athlete who walks through the door.

Speed is trainable at any age — but the methods that work for juniors are different from adult training. ACE Performance Melbourne explains how to develop genuine sprint speed in athletes aged 12-18 without risking injury.

Knee injuries are among the most common and most complex to manage in sport. ACE Performance Melbourne outlines what a proper knee injury assessment and rehabilitation program looks like for athletes.

Athletes on the mid-north coast of NSW now have access to Melbourne-standard integrated sports rehabilitation and performance training. ACE Performance Coffs Harbour delivers the same model trusted by Football Victoria and the Australian Open.

Shoulder injuries are among the most complex to rehabilitate in sport. ACE Performance Melbourne explains the phases of shoulder rehabilitation and what return-to-sport looks like for throwing, contact, and overhead athletes.

Exercise physiology is one of the most underutilised tools in athlete rehabilitation. ACE Performance Melbourne explains what exercise physiologists do and why their role is central to the integrated rehab model.

Rugby union and league demand a rare combination of maximal strength, explosive power, and repeated sprint capacity. ACE Performance Melbourne builds periodised S&C programs for rugby athletes at all levels.

Soccer fitness is not just aerobic. Speed, power, and injury resilience are what separate athletes at NPL level and above. ACE Performance Melbourne explains what a proper soccer S&C program looks like.

Basketball requires explosive power, lateral speed, and the ability to repeat high-intensity efforts. ACE Performance Melbourne outlines the strength and conditioning principles that build better basketball players.

Netball demands explosive speed, reactive agility, and exceptional landing mechanics. ACE Performance Melbourne outlines the key physical qualities every netballer needs to develop — and how to build them safely.

A complete AFL pre-season strength and conditioning program built on the same principles used at VFL and AFL clubs. ACE Performance Melbourne details the key training blocks every footballer needs.

One of the most frustrating aspects of sports injury is the uncertainty around recovery time. Doctors and physios often give ranges — "six to twelve weeks" — that feel vague and unhelpful. Understanding why those ranges exist, and what actually determines where your recovery falls within them, helps athletes approach rehabilitation with clarity rather than anxiety. WHY RECOVERY TIMELINES ARE RANGES, NOT DATES Tissue healing is biological. It does not operate on a fixed schedu

If you are a coach, PE teacher, or sports science graduate looking to specialise in speed and agility development, formal certification is one of the most valuable investments you can make in your professional development. Speed is the most marketable skill in team sport coaching. Athletes and clubs at every level want faster players. Coaches who can credibly develop sprint speed and agility — and demonstrate results with data — are in high demand. WHAT A SPEED AND AGILITY CO

ACL injuries are devastating. Six to twelve months of rehabilitation, significant financial cost, and — perhaps most damaging — the psychological burden of watching your team compete without you. The good news is that ACL injury risk is genuinely modifiable. Research-backed training interventions consistently reduce ACL injury rates in high-risk sports. THE MECHANICS BEHIND ACL INJURIES Most ACL injuries in football occur during deceleration, landing, or change of direction —

Melbourne has no shortage of gyms. But for athletes who need more than general fitness training — who need structured, periodised programming built around their sport, with qualified coaches and measurable outcomes — the options narrow quickly. Here is what to look for when choosing a strength and conditioning facility as a competitive athlete. QUALIFIED COACHING STAFF The most important factor in any S&C gym is the qualification and experience of the coaches. Look for ASCA (

Pre-season is the most important training period of the year. The physical foundation you build between October and February will determine how you hold up across a twenty-plus game season. Done correctly, pre-season training produces peak performance at finals time. Done incorrectly, it produces the first soft tissue injury of the year before Round 1. THE PURPOSE OF PRE-SEASON Pre-season has two goals that must be balanced carefully: building physical capacity and managing i

Most athletes train by feel. They work hard, they follow a program, and they hope the results will come. Sports performance testing replaces hope with data. It tells you exactly where you are, exactly where you need to be, and exactly what needs to change to get there. WHAT DOES SPORTS PERFORMANCE TESTING MEASURE? At ACE Performance, our testing battery is tailored to the athlete and their sport. Standard measures include: Sprint Speed and Acceleration — Timed over 5m, 10m, a

One of the most persistent myths in sport and fitness is that teenagers should not lift weights — that resistance training will stunt growth, damage developing bones, or cause injury. This belief is not supported by the scientific evidence. In fact, the evidence points in exactly the opposite direction. Supervised, age-appropriate strength training is one of the most beneficial things a developing athlete can do. It builds stronger bones, reduces injury risk, improves movemen

Hamstring injuries are the most common soft tissue injury in Australian football. They are also among the most frequently mismanaged — which is why recurrence rates remain stubbornly high across all levels of the game. If you have injured your hamstring playing AFL or VFL football, this article explains what a proper return-to-play protocol actually looks like — and why rushing the process almost always makes things worse. WHY HAMSTRINGS KEEP REINJURING The primary reason ham