Nat Fyfe says he is healing well from shoulder surgery and is set to return to training in a full capacity after the Christmas and New Year break.

The brilliant midfielder was playing for the Australian International Rules team in a practice match against a NSW GAA team in Western Sydney on 18 November when he injured his right shoulder diving for a mark in the closing minutes of the final term.

He had his first running session at Fremantle headquarters on Tuesday.

“I’ve been in the gym the past week doing some cross-training work and weights work and starting to strengthen my shoulder,” he said.

“Today I was able to get out and have a run around and from here I’ll progress towards Christmas and hopefully join back in with the main group after Christmas.

“It’s feeling really good. The surgery went really well, no complications, and at this stage everything is on track for a return on January 5.”

Fyfe told 6PR on Monday night he wasn’t returning any quicker than the club had expected from the injury.

“It’s an AC joint, which is a grumpy injury, more than anything,” he said.

“We opted to have a little bit of surgery on it. It’s one of those injuries that a number of guys across the competition would have injured. You can have the surgery or you can play without it.

“I had the surgery, I will be out for five weeks and I’ll be back ready to go.”

Fyfe said he’d be using the pre-season to continue improving his ability to play as a forward.

“I think the next progression for me is to be a dominant forward player as well as a midfield player,” he said.

“You look at the likes of Patrick Dangerfield and how dominant he is when he goes forward.

“I sneak forward at times, but that’s certainly something I’m going to work on during this pre-season, if need be to play as a forward.”

Press the photo to see more shots from Tuesday's weights session. Photos: Michael Wilson