Wolves are now five days into their official pre-season preparations for August's big Premier League return.

And while this week's sustained heat and humidity - prior to today at least! - probably haven't been ideal conditions for a batch of double and triple sessions, the players' efforts and indeed the shape in which they returned on Monday have impressed both boss Mick McCarthy and fitness coach Tony Daley.

Tony set the players a defined but not overly intensive regime to follow in their time away from Compton this summer, and it's one which reaped its own rewards when they returned on Monday.

"They've all had their programmes to do during the summer and have been back a couple of times to be tested including last week," explains Tony.

"And they've all come back in good shape.

"The whole idea about the summer programme and the testing is to get the players in a position where they can get the footballs out on the first day and that's what happened.

"Of course we've had to do some running but they don't want to just be plodding around the pitches for four and five days and so it's important to get some football work into them as well.

"The footballs are the incentive for the players but don't get me wrong they've got to do the fitness work as well.

"One day the emphasis might be more on the running with the football the recovery part and another day it might be the opposite way around.

"Everything is combined in the programme but all the time the players are monitored with the heart rate monitors to see how they are progressing.

"There's also the gym work that the players do but as I've said before that's not to get a body beautiful - it's with an emphasis on power and strength that is football-related.

"The lads have seen the benefits of that and it's short and sharp in the gym while the gaffer and TC (Terry Connor) give us the advice on what sort of intensity they are looking at and it's worked out really well."

The key question is - particularly given how successful last season's pre-season proved in laying the foundations for an explosive start - whether there can be any differences in preparing for the Premier League.

Tony's answer is perhaps a few changes, but nothing revolutionary.

"It's not massively different to what we did last season but we are hoping for some improvements.

"I know there's the thought that fitness-wise it's tougher in the Championship because of all the games but at the same time you've got to remember that there are players in the Premiership who are as fit if not fitter than us.

"Our aim is to better what we've done before to try and give ourselves an advantage.

"The lads are always pretty fit but it's important - especially if we're playing against the likes of Arsenal and Manchester United - that we are able to go for 95 minutes and not 85.

"It's just fine tuning to last year's programme and we certainly don't suddenly go 'OTT' because we're in the Premier League.

"But we have all got our heads together and drawn up ideas for things we have been able to do to just maybe improve the fitness side that little bit more."

After today's final session of the week all thoughts turn to the pre-season tour of Australia, with the players leaving tomorrow for the next stage of their pre-season preparations.