Building home gyms, FaceTiming trainers part of staying ready for Chiefs’ newcomers
With the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic spreading across the country, Chiefs coach Andy Reid is among the numerous Americans adjusting to social distancing and working at home.
The NFL continues to keep teams away from facilities during the coronavirus outbreak and numerous areas around the nation, including the greater Kansas City metro, are under shelter-in-place orders.
With that in mind, Reid said during a Thursday teleconference that his base of operations is in his home basement while he goes about preparing for the upcoming football season.
Reid is not alone in confronting this new normal. Terms like improvising, adapting and overcoming also apply to three of the Chiefs’ recent free-agent signings: offensive lineman Mike Remmers, defensive back Antonio Hamilton and quarterback Jordan Ta’amu.
“Every single team is dealing with this right now, so that’s a situation that everybody has to deal with,” Remmers said Thursday during a teleconference. “I know, personally, I’m training pretty hard right now. I’m doing everything I can to make sure I’m ready for whenever this whole thing starts up. I’ll be good to go.”
The trio won’t have the benefit of the Chiefs’ usual offseason workout program, which was scheduled to begin April 20. With that access now canceled, players won’t have access to the Chiefs’ training facility and weight room.
Remmers, who projects to compete immediately for a starting job at left guard, said staying in shape has meant getting creative and making use of technology.
“Last week, I went out and tried to buy as much workout equipment as I possibly could,” Remmers said. “I had to swing through several Dick’s Sporting Goods to make a little home gym in my garage.
“I’ve been FaceTiming my trainer that I’ve been working with for years now, so we just FaceTime every day and I just do my exact same workout in my garage. Basically, I’m doing my exact same program that I’ve been doing and kind of continuing doing that.”
While he’s not around his friends or workout partners, Remmers found plenty of good in his current situation.
“It’s been really good for my family and I, just having a lot of family time, just having a lot of fun,” Remmers said. “My kids are loving it.”
Ta’amu, who is currently in Oxford, Mississippi, said he has a workout gym in his garage. All nearby training facilities closed.
After lifting weights, the signal-caller moves outdoors with a small group to keep his arm loose.
“I have two or three guys that I take to the park over here and kind of throw,” Ta’amu said.
Hamilton says being away from a training facility hasn’t hurt his preparation too much, as he works with a personal trainer and has access to weight equipment in his home.
Given his current setup, the defensive back believes he’ll be ready and in shape when the Chiefs eventually come together again to train as a team.
“I’m still able to maintain and improve my physical conditioning as well as mental,” Hamilton said. “I’m still able to get everything done.”
In the meantime, it remains to be seen if the NFL’s organized team activities (OTAs), which typically start in late May and run through mid-June, will start on time or be delayed as well.
For now, the new Chiefs are taking advantage of every opportunity to stay ready. The future will take care of itself.
“Everyone’s got to adjust and just make the most of the time we got,” Remmers said.
