This Ronan O’Gara fitness session with Racing 92 looks like torture

It's probably the worst time of the year for rugby players.

The rugby season is edging closer upon us with every passing day, but you can be guaranteed that this is the slowest time of the year for the majority of our professional rugby players. Rugby players enjoy their off-season, some of them too much so, and when they rejoin their clubs for pre-season training, these lads who have let themselves go; they'll have lots and lots of work to do. Rugby players work like animals when they're in training, some of them are capable of over-indulging. They've been flat out in pre-season training for the last few weeks now, and are approaching where they want to be, but in order to get there they've been performing physical training that's all kinds of difficult. They're flat out in the gym, turning that fat back into lean muscle, and they're out covering every blade of the grass on the training field with shuttle runs, intervals, fartleks, sprints and every type of running drill you can think of. Ronan O'Gara has been French side Racing 92's assistant coach since 2013, and looks to be in charge of whipping some of these boys back into shape in the pre-season. In true Cork and O'Gara style, the former Ireland out-half is working them like dogs. https://twitter.com/RonanOGara10/status/898434187098636288 The boys look out on their feet in the morning sunshine, and are sweating the t-shirts off themselves. On the left is Argentine second row Manuel Carizza, while New Zealand prop in the middle right, Ben Tameifuna looks to be feeling it the most. Nenagh man Donnacha Ryan, who joined O'Gara in France last year is looking away from the camera to spare his blushes. We can imagine O'Gara and partner in crime Dan Carter have had some wild sessions in store for these lads. https://www.instagram.com/p/BXnp_HxF3k5/?hl=en&taken-by=dancarter_ Those dreaded hill-repeats... https://www.instagram.com/p/BWpraD7ldso/?hl=en&taken-by=dancarter_ Squatting for days. https://www.instagram.com/p/BWsKN4ilfSe/?hl=en&taken-by=dancarter_ Damn shuttle runs. https://www.instagram.com/p/BXSTnkuj2V8/?hl=en&taken-by=racing92 The grind never ends. https://www.instagram.com/p/BXNsNstj3Xr/?hl=en&taken-by=racing92 An uphill battle. https://www.instagram.com/p/BXvO0-nAgTF/?hl=en&taken-by=bernardleroux678 Nearly there boys.