Clone of Ask the Experts - Fitness

Answers from John Shepherd:

Q.I’m 15 years old and play football (soccer). I’m really looking for ways to improve my training which will improve my performance. Can you give me some soccer related things I can do to improve my strength, speed and endurance? I also need some advice with core strength exercises.

Click here to - View all questions for John Shepherd

Answer: I’ll assume that you are an outfield player, as the conditioning (training) required for a goal-keeper would be very different to what I am going to describe.

Soccer is primarily a stop, start, speed game. It mainly uses what sport science calls ‘anaerobic’ energy. That means that your training should reflect this. It is equally important that the skill element is never forgotten - being the fittest player on the pitch will be beneficial, but this will be of little use if you have as much ball control as a mountain goat!

You are at an age when you can start to train seriously. I have provided a couple of workouts/exercises that you could perform.

1) Football specific agility, speed, specific endurance and skill circuit

START

* zig zag in and out of cones
*
*
*
*
*
* --->
-------------------------------------------------------------
I      I     I     I     I     I     I     I     side step through floor agility ladder R -------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                        <-----
-------------------------------------------------------------
I     I     I     I     I     I     I     I     side step through floor agility ladder L -------------------------------------------------------------

*

Sprint 20m

*

Perform 3 x 10 crunch sit-ups

Perform 20 left/right side foot passes to coach or against wall

I     I     I     I     I     I    

Perform fast low double footed bounces over low hurdles (or lines)

Simulate 20 headers whilst jogging 30m

Take 3 minutes’ recovery and repeat

Floor ladders can be purchased from specialist sports retailers, but you can make your own 20 rung ladder using tape or sticks. The distance between the rungs should be about 35cm and they should be 30cm long.

2) Core stability and hamstring strength exercises for football

You wanted exercises to improve your core strength. Most mainstream fitness abdominal and back exercises, such as sit ups, crunches and back extensions will be fine. However, you should make sure that you include exercises with a rotational element, such as sit-ups with a twist.

I have provided an extra bit of information for you. Hamstring injuries are some of the most common in football. It is therefore important to specifically strengthen them, so they can withstand kicking and sprinting.

Try the following exercise:

Nordic hamstring exercise

Kneel, and get a training partner to hold your heels down. Lower your body toward the ground using your hamstrings to prevent you from falling. Keep your hands out in front of you to brace yourself if gravity takes over. Note this is a very tough exercise, approach it with caution. If you can only hold for 1 second to begin with, this is fine, with practice you’ll be able to hold for longer.

Good luck with your training