Silver Ferns coach Dame Noeline Taurua is already known for her hardnosed approach to oncourt fitness - but she's about to take that mandate to a whole new level, as the NZ women try to defend their world crown at Cape Town next month.
After failing to medal at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, New Zealand shocked everyone by toppling Australia at the World Cup the following year, an achievement built on Taurua's obsession with physical conditioning.
Since then, certain players have found their elevation to the national team hampered by their inability to reach her lofty standards and captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio hints those demands aren't getting any easier.
One of the key differences that makes a World Cup tournament more challenging than other international events is the need to back up day after day.
The Silver Ferns open their schedule against Trinidad & Tobago on July 28 and face eight games in 10 days on their way to the final.
"There are not too many [rest days] at all, when you look at it that way," warned Ekenasio, who missed last year's Birmingham Commonwealth Games, failing to regain required fitness after childbirth.
"That's the biggest point you're looking at - sometimes you can come out and play a fantastic game, but you have to be able to do it again and again.
"If you can't, we just need to know at what point people are going to struggle and that's all good - it's just learning where each other are at and how we can push each other to be better in those moments."
With limited time to prepare, most teams will enter the tournament without international fixtures in their build-ups. Four years ago, Dame Noeline pitted her women against the NZ Men in a bid to raise the bar even higher, but that's simply not possible this time.
The Ferns will have to reach that next level by themselves, but Ekenasio indicates the maestro has found new ways to turn the screws.
"You can't have it just being demanding physically, without it coming to an emotional or psychological point," she said. "That's why we're pushing into really, really hard times, not just on the court.
"We're doing lots of stuff off the court to put each other in the hurt locker. I can't tell you those, but it's some really exciting stuff - stuff we've never done before, which I'm a bit nervous about, but also really excited.
"It's a space we haven't moved into before, so we're going to be really challenged and we have to find the joy in it, as well."
