Bills in top shape this season.

The players arrived at the Buffalo Bills organized team activities in top shape and they plan to come to camp that way as well. All have been working hard in the off-season in preparation for a playoff run in 2004 with new head coach Mike Mularkey.

The team began an intense work-out program this spring that has them all looking bigger, faster, and stronger.

"I've been working hard everyday," wide receiver Josh Reed said. "I pride myself in staying in shape and that's exactly what I plan to do going into
Reed is just one of the many players who participated in the off-season program. The team is separated into three groups for conditioning. The offensive and defensive linemen are grouped together, followed by the wide receivers, quarterbacks, defensive backs and kickers, while the last group contains linebackers, tight ends, and running backs.

Each group then rotates through exercises developing strength, conditioning, and flexibility. The idea is to help players develop conditioning and lifting habits that will aid them during the season. The team participated in the program four days a week for five hours a day throughout spring.

"The players really responded to our program this off-season," said Rusty Jones, director of physical development with the Bills. "We did some new things. We added some Olympic-style lifting and a few other exercises. The players are in great shape."

This program was just one of many implemented by Jones this off-season with the assistance of Brad Roll, the Bills new strength and conditioning coordinator. The conditioning department also had the players working on a strict diet focused on trimming fat and building muscle mass.

"Athletes can't do the low-carb diets," Jones said. "They need their energy and they need carbohydrates. We're able to test their metabolism here and each player works around that number."

Jones explained his diet in detail. He said that it is player specific.

"We sit down and measure the amount of calories each player would burn if they were just sitting around all day," Jones said. "We then take that number and mold the diet around that. Each diet is pretty much the same."

Jones said it is very important to eat healthy all three meals during the day. Breakfast is crucial to ensure everyone gets the day started correctly. But Jones said that dinner can sometimes be the killer. Most people in America tend to overeat at dinner because it is more of a social event, but Jones said that can be fixed. As long as each player follows the guidelines they will be able to stay in shape.

"We're trying to preserve or increase your fat-free mass," Jones said. "We assign certain dinners to the players. The whole system is done by computers. By knowing what they can and can't do, a player can reach his desired goal."

However, the diet is not the only reason the players are in shape. Roll has fit in nicely to a conditioning staff that is among the best in the NFL.

Along with strength and conditioning assistant John Allaire and strength and conditioning intern Jim Arthur, Roll has been monitoring the players' progress in the weight room. He has helped in introducing a new lifting scheme to accent programs that have kept the Bills one of the league's best conditioned teams.

"The main emphasis of the strength part of the program is on Olympic Style Lifting," Roll said. "The focus of this style of lifting is on flexion to extension movement done at a high rate of speed that revolve around the explosive parts of the body."

Jones said this team has worked hard, just like every other team has over the past 20 years. But he said this team has benefited from updated programs.
"This team is in great shape," Jones said. " With the improvements in technology and training programs in the past few years, this team has really taken advantage of that. They're probably as fit as any team ever because of the progress and the evolution of conditioning programs."

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