A strong work ethic during the offseason has made for a less punishing start to 2017 for the playing group, according to midfielder Kieren Jack.

The Sydney Swans ticked off their first training session of the season on Monday morning under hotter than expected conditions at Lakeside Oval.

The temperature gauge may have read 24 degrees but the sun had other ideas as the players were put through a series of drills to brush off any cobwebs and get the legs moving again.

It didn’t take long however for the players to pick up where they left off given each had tailored programs during the break to help keep them in shape in preparation for the upcoming year.

Jack says the schedule allows for enough leisure time but, due to the professional landscape of modern AFL football, demands players to be in good condition for when they reported for duty.

“Gone are the days of coming back and having a brutal session first up,” he said.

“Today was more of a skills session, purely skills, that’ll be a huge focus for us this pre-season.

“The game gets more professional every year. Everyone’s already pretty fit, everyone’s well, we’ve got pretty good numbers out on the track which is always a good sign.

“Everyone has come back in good shape. We know it’s a long pre-season but we all know what we’ve got in front of us.”

Jack relinquished his role as co-captain in December, alongside Jarrad McVeigh, making way for Josh Kennedy who became the Swans’ first stand-alone skipper since Stuart Maxfield in 2005.

Despite stepping back, Jack will remain in the leadership group and continue to impart his invaluable experience and knowledge.

“It will be little bit of a different approach but I’ll naturally still bring some of the things Jarrad and myself have done during our captaincy,” he added.