The NAB AFL Academy is in America on a two-week high performance training camp. Highly rated Victorian forward Jaidyn Stephenson will be writing a daily dairy for AFL.com.au from the tour, detailing the squad's activities. Here's his first update.
Day one: Monday, January 16
Melbourne to Bradenton, Florida
The tour started with an extremely long journey over to Florida, which saw us boys from Melbourne head to Brisbane and then to Los Angeles. We then had a few hours to kill at LA airport before catching another flight to Orlando and then a two-and-a-half hour bus trip to the IMG Academy in Bradenton.
I was pretty excited about heading over to see the facilities that we'll be training at over the next week or so at the IMG Academy. I had done research on the internet about the place and seen some of the pictures of the grounds, but was keen to see it in person.
A fair few of the boys struggled to get any sleep on the 35-hour trip but luckily I got in my eight hours on the main flight. I set my phone time to match up with the time in Florida and tried my best to avoid jetlag.
By the time we got into the IMG Academy it was pretty late, but we don't have a lot of time to rest up as training will kick off early tomorrow morning.
Day two: Tuesday, January 17
Bradenton, Florida
The group was pumped to get into some training this morning and despite the long trip over to the US, spirits were high throughout. It was a craft session, so we focused in on the fundamentals with an emphasis on kicking and tackling.
It's been great to get to know our new head coach Luke Power, who I idolised as a youngster barracking for the Brisbane Lions.
I was pretty young when he won his premierships with the Lions, but he was always a favourite of mine alongside Jonathan Brown. I was a bit in awe of Luke and starstruck when I first met him on our way to the camp in Darwin in late November last year.
After training we had Jerry Angelo speak to us, who was the general manager of the Chicago Bears in the NFL along with various other roles in the NFL. The main thing that I took out of his presentation was that we are privileged, and not special, to have this opportunity. There are a lot of blokes who can be given this chance to train overseas with the Academy and take it for granted, but we're lucky to be here and should make the most of it, while being humble.
On the field I like to use my pace to my advantage, so it was good to spend an hour with Loren Seagrave this afternoon. He's a world-renowned Olympic sprint coach, and he gave us tips on how to find a way to improve our speed in minor ways without changing our normal technique too much.
It was actually very hard to get around some of the movements he was making us do, and we looked a bit awkward at times, but there was definitely a difference.
The jam-packed continued after our session with Loren, with the group going through a 'speed dating' interview session with the 13 clubs that have sent over recruiters to monitor the trip. I think it's great to have them all here – they aren't always at every one of your games across the year, so it's a good opportunity to showcase what you've got.
Spotlight on: It's been good to have four of the Irish hopefuls training with us. It would be hard for them kicking the Sherrin for the first time, but their intensity on the track was great and they really threw themselves into the tackling drills. Stefan Okunbar was especially into it, just ask Tom De Koning who got taken out in a big tackle.
Stephenson trains under sprint coach Loren Seagrave's supervision. Picture: Callum Twomey 
Day three: Wednesday, January 18
Bradenton, Florida
I had a lighter start to the day as some of the other boys went through their club interviews. However, we still did have something to prepare in the morning as we cooked a group of recruiters breakfast.
I've got four teammates in my lodge – James Worpel, Brayden Crossley, Jarrod Brander and Nathan Richards – but we left most of the cooking to James, who enjoyed whipping up some scrambled eggs for Dom Ambrogio (Gold Coast), Stephen Conole (Brisbane Lions) and Chris Liberatore (St Kilda). It's another way for us to get to know them – and vice versa – in a relaxed environment.
The big breakfast prepared us for a main training session at the IMG Academy. Our main focuses for the day were contested ball, ball movement and 'Maxwell blocks'. The final one is a tactic Luke has named after former Collingwood skipper Nick Maxwell, who made an art of blocking an opponent to open up space for teammates.
It was one of those enjoyable sessions that was hard (particularly in the warm Florida sun) but we got through it together. Darcy Fogarty and Jack Powell were two of the standouts for the day, I thought, with their presence and influence on the action.
We had nothing planned after dinner but a group of us play cards every night, a tradition that began in our first camp in the academy, back in September 2015. Kane Farrell, Joel Garner, Patrick Naish, Aidan Quigley, Lachie Fogarty and new addition Hayden McLean make up the pack and we're a pretty competitive group, particularly Naishy, who takes it really seriously and hates to lose.
Spotlight on: While Aaron Darling can't be on the track to train with us after having a knee reconstruction late last year, his dedication to his rehab in the gym and even on the sidelines has been uplifting for the group.
Recruiters watch on as the Academy members train in Florida. Picture: Callum Twomey
Day four: Thursday, January 19
Bradenton, Florida
We had a follow up with Loren Seagrave to start things today, with a focus on acceleration this time. Often young athletes are told to get their knees up to increase their speed, but Loren said it was more a matter of pumping the thighs and getting your foot back on the ground as soon as possible. He said that you can't push off he ground when you're in the air, which made a lot of sense.
The group had a quick craft session, where Charlie Spargo's class really stood out. Charlie's consistency, ability to find the ball and great footy smarts make him a really good player, and I'm looking forward to playing with him in April when we come together with the Academy against VFL sides.
After that we hopped on the bus to head to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' facility. I follow the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL, but I was keen to see how a club's facilities over here compare to home. I found everything had a purpose in their building – even right down to the shape of the roof in the locker room, which was curved so that noise would travel from one end of the room to the other.
One of the best things about being a member of the Academy is having access to professionals who can help in different areas as a player. Tonight we had a presentation from our dietician Helen Duong, who is travelling with the group.
I'm keen to put on a little more size this year after adding 13 kilos last year in about three months so that I can compete with the likes of Luke Davies-Uniacke and Cameron Rayner, two of the bigger midfielders in our group who know how to use their body to their advantage.
Spotlight on: A lot of the boys have been stocking up on gear from the IMG store, including Patrick Naish, who bought a t-shirt. It cost him $45 USD, and I asked if he paid extra tax on that as you do over in America. Naishy replied "No, I paid cash", which amused everyone.
The AFL Academy members pose for a group photo at the IMG Academy in Florida. 
Day five: Friday, January 20
Bradenton, Florida
Part of the reason we come to the IMG Academy is to be involved in the Gatorade Sports Science Institute, which has a base at the facility.
Our time with them has included going through a VO2 max test, which measures the maximum amount of oxygen your body is able to use during exercise. We also have to supply urine samples each morning.
At today's main training session I was part of the group to be sweat tested, which required patches to be stuck to my arms to record sweat loss and hydration intake. We'll get the results back when we return to Australia but it was an interesting exercise to be a part of.
I'm using the camp over here to set myself for the year ahead, where I'm aiming to become the best player I can be. I don't know where that limit is, but I'm going to work my hardest to find it. Having played most of my TAC Cup footy for the Eastern Ranges up forward in the past two years, I'd like push into the midfield this season to show my versatility and help get the Ranges into finals contention.
There was a buzz around the group after training today as we were heading to Orlando to see an NBA game between the Magic and the Milwaukee Bucks. It was the first NBA game I've been to and I thought the atmosphere and the entertainment for the crowd was amazing.
After an exciting Magic win, we had the privilege of meeting Australian NBA star Matthew Dellavedova, who had a quick chat to us. Brayden Crossley was especially rapt to meet 'Delly', and Delly even praised the moustache Brayden has been rocking all trip.
The main message from Delly was that even if you don't get drafted, don't give up. He had to go through the 'D League' to finally crack at the top, and is now a championship winner. It was a good end to what has been a busy few days.
Spotlight on: The taller boys all stepped up during training today, especially Nathan Richards and Connor Ballenden who trained at a high standard and also lifted intensity with their talk and encouragement.
