While most students do not have to worry about being on campus until 8 a.m. at the earliest, for the past couple months Kean’s athletic teams have been gathering in the Harwood Arena before the sun rises in order to train under the football coaching staff.

For years now, football head coach Dan Garrett has been leading a spring semester program featuring two workouts a week that begin exactly at 6 a.m. and last approximately an hour. Garrett believes the early nature of the workouts on top of the exercise itself strongly benefits the athletes.  

“Your level of comfort is not the reference point for what you need to do.  It’s harder — harder to wake up, harder to walk across campus in the cold.  It’s not supposed to be easy,” Garrett said.  “My job is to not make it easier, but to develop a mental toughness that will help them in life.”

This year, the workouts began on Jan. 30 and ended on March 27. They were initially supposed to end on March 8, but were extended after the end of spring break due to the cancellations caused by the weather.  

Garrett designed the workouts with a focus on plyometrics and agility training.  While the program was originally designed to condition the football team in their off-season, other Kean teams such as field hockey, softball, women’s volleyball, and men’s soccer have also been attending in order to take advantage of the intensive conditioning.

Over 160 athletes frequented this year’s workouts, a number Garrett said was larger than the turnout from past years.  The intermixing of teams allowed the different factions of Kean’s athletic program to train as a community in ways that wouldn’t have been possible otherwise.  This gave the athletes an opportunity to build group pride and develop essential team culture and chemistry.  

“The culture precedes positive results. Culture is not just one thing; it is everything,” Garrett said.

Vikki Stec, an upcoming senior majoring in physical education and a key player and leader in the women’s volleyball lineup, was one of the main advocates for her team’s decision to begin attending these workouts.  

“We decided to do 6 a.m. workouts because with the team’s crazy school and work schedule, this was the ideal time that everyone could make it,” Stec said.

Stec said that although the workouts challenged her team, she believes they were beneficial in preparing them for returning to their sport.

"The workouts included a lot of jumping and agility. What volleyball player wouldn’t benefit from all of that? All of the workouts were high intensity and really mimicked some movements we actually do in volleyball,” Stec said.

While these workouts are completely optional for out-of-season athletes due to NCAA regulations, the athletes in attendance have made them a priority and view them with the same mindset as any other team commitment. 

“Coach Garrett’s 6 a.m.’s definitely push you past your comfort zone. Each week gets harder and harder which constantly shows your improvement,” Stec said.  “If you can handle Coach Garrett’s planks and posture holds, you can do anything.”

With the beginning of their spring seasons fast approaching, these 6 a.m. workout veterans can look forward to showcasing the strength and discipline this program developed in them. “In competitive collegiate sports, the margin of error is razor thin,” Garrett said. “Hard work is a given, but your habits will make or break you.”