IT was one of the hottest weeks on record in Adelaide last week and for Port Adelaide's players there was no letting up on the track.

Senior coach Ken Hinkley knows exactly how hard it was for his playing group as they pounded the hard turf of Alberton Oval throughout the week, including on several days that peaked above 45 degrees.

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Although players were managed more acutely throughout the searing conditions, the club's fitness program didn't let up.

Why would it when your fitness philosophy is based on getting the most out of heat training?

It's why the Power pursued the consistent warmth of the Arabian desert in Dubai last November.

Hinkley told Adelaide radio station FIVEaa he was happy to be a member of the Power's coaching panel last week while his players did the hard yards on the track. 

He is confident they will reap rewards from training in the tough conditions.

"I'm glad we were the coaches and not the players, because it was quite stifling to be out there," Hinkley said.

"We were out there for four out of the five days and you just know and appreciate how hard it must be for the players.

"[But] we can't afford to [let the players off the hook] because of where we are in our program - we're just back from Christmas and we had a bit of a later start to the pre-season."

January is typically hot and dry for the traditional football states South Australia, Victoria and Western Australia.

It's for that reason teams look to maximise their workload on the track, according to Hinkley.

"You ask every club and they'll say weeks two, three and four of January are the most important - we just can't afford to miss the mark with them," Hinkley said.

"The players do recover quite quick, albeit from the heat it's a bit different."

Hinkley also said the new recruits - particularly trade bounty Matt White and Jared Polec - had quickly found a place at Alberton and were beginning to show their worth to the club on the track.

He was also happy with the way the Power's draft picks had adapted to life in the AFL system.

"Matty White and Jared Polec ... have both come and fit well into our program," Hinkley said.

"Every [AFL] program is slightly different so they've had some adjustments to make.

"They've both been training really solidly and hopefully giving themselves a great opportunity to be available at the right time.

"Our first-year players have come in, and like every first year player you bring into your club they've done about 65 to 70 per cent of the full program.

"They can't do more than that and you've got to be mindful of that.

"Even Ollie, who played every games last year, didn't do the whole pre-season like we did the rest of the boys."

Port Adelaide's first game will be an intra-club trial between its Power and Magpies sides at its annual family day on Saturday 8 February.