Weight Training Soccer: Conditioning Secrets Revealed
August 26, 2010 by AMA
Filed under Alternative Medicine
Weight training soccer is vital for sports training in today’s soccer world; you might be aware of that already, as it is required for creating tougher and faster muscles. The soccer fitness plan discussed in this article will help you prepare your players for playing soccer at a higher level.
In soccer weight training, the goal is to have muscles that are strong, fast, and have great stamina rather that to add pounds of muscle mass. Although the lower body strength is more important in soccer but we still carry on with the upper body weight trainings for overall conditioning and strength.
I recommend you begin your fitness training with the legs. It should be started with the crouching exercises first. After a light warm-up set, load the bar to a weight you think your players can get 20 reps with. Assuming that they are quite strong, therefore they should begin with 220 pounds. They have to get under the bar, with it resting across their upper back, and stand up with it.
Instruct them to step back out of the racks and stand with their feet, shoulder width apart or wider. Next they move downwards keeping hold of the bar up until their hips are just below the upper part of their knees. In weight training soccer, after coming to this point the players should quickly stand up fully and breathe out. They should be motivated to do this for 20 reps even when they are totally worked out.
They should be given a break of 5-10 minutes before switching to the leg curl machine to work on hamstrings. They are required to perform 4 sets of 15 reps each. They will be required to perform 4 sets of 15 reps on the Stiff-Legged Dead lift between each set of Leg Curl exercises. Hamstrings are vital for players speed, thus we would want them to be strong enough.
Finish the leg workouts on Standing calf-raise machine and doing 3 sets of 25 reps
Begin with using the Incline bench press, for the upper body workout.
After a warm up exercise, guide players to add enough weight so that the next set of 10 reps gets difficult. A total of 5 sets of 10 repetitions are required with the weights, while stretching their chest and shoulders, yet pausing to relax for 2 minutes in the middle of each set.
Now we move to the second workout of this session of soccer strength training which are the pull-up exercises. They should work out on their biceps and back by making their palms facing their body. Finally the upper body exercises include abdominals and performing 5 sets of 20 or more reps of leg raises. Then finish with 5 sets of 50 or more crunches or sit-ups.
In conclusion, weight training soccer is only a small part of the overall training necessary to develop great soccer players. To know more about various weight training exercises relevant to the game of soccer, subscribe to our youth soccer coaching community that has videos, articles, pod casts, and newsletters available for you.
Andre Botelho is known online as “The Expert Youth Soccer Coach” and his free ebooks and reports have been downloaded more than 100,000 times. Learn how to skyrocket your players’ skills and make practice sessions fun in record time. Download your free ebook at: Soccer Practice.
Yes You Can Achive Your Fitness Goals
It is almost the beginning of a new year and that means the resolutionists will be out in force trying to find motivation to get in shape and lose weight. Why people have to wait until January to begin exercising is rather disconcerting, as any day of the year is a good time to begin a fitness training program. Motivation is key. If you are not willing to work on your fitness today then chances are you will not be exercising much past January either.
This is what you need to do to start exercising? Maybe you have never worked out a day in your life. For those starting out, the best option is to find a safe place around your neighborhood and simply walk briskly for 30 minutes a day. You should keep working towards building the intensity. Tackling a hill as you walk, maybe twice a week, to increase the effort. Maybe you can begin jogging a few minutes at a time. You should always look to set your goals higher. Simply going out and walking the same pace day after day will not work your body well.
Many people enjoy going to a gym. There is a benefit to having so much fitness equipment at your disposal. Your motivation can increase by working out with other people. A fitness trainer can help you achieve your fitness goals. They will create a fitness plan for you and meet with you once or twice weekly. They show you how to perform the exercises and they monitor your progress. You can attend exercise classes. Some of the popular classes are weight lifting, indoor cycling, Pilates and yoga. Sports such as basketball, racquetball and swimming are also available for cross-training. If you have the interest and money then a fitness gym can be a great place to begin your fitness workout program.
If you prefer solitude to working out then there are numerous home fitness options available. There are numerous commercials on television marketing any number of home exercise equipment devices. Until you decide what your fitness goals look like then it is best to stay simple. Beginners would do well to find a good exercise DVD to start out with. As important as muscle training is, you also want to make sure you are concentrating on cardiovascular activities as well. Buying an expensive home gym is not necessary as you can get as much benefit from typical exercises like push-ups, crunches and other fitness exercises that are too many to list here. A DVD can assist you in the beginning. Working out your whole body is important.
The main thing is that motivation is what getting fit is all about. If you want to be in shape, lose weight, and/or achieve your goals of being fit, then you simply have to get out there and get moving. If you are not motivated then purchasing expensive fitness equipment or joining a cool gym will not do much good.