Fitness and Strength

How to Boost Confidence When Playing Soccer

By Parker & Walsh 3 Comments

soccer dribbling confidence skill

Confidence is an important ingredient of becoming a better soccer player. Without believing in yourself and your abilities, it will be much more difficult to achieve your potential on the pitch.

But what does that mean in a practical sense? What can you actually do to improve your confidence in your own game?

This article will focus on four things to work on that we’ve found to most significantly improve your confidence in soccer: improving fitness, completing passes, juggling, and building the habit of dribbling a soccer ball everywhere.

One of the best ways to boost your confidence in being fit in soccer. Fitness improves your touch, your communication skills, and your overall enjoyment of the game. First, fitness improves your touch because when you are fit you are better able to move your feet to get yourself in the correct position to receive the soccer ball, which is across your body. Receiving the ball across your body means that if the pass is coming from your left, you receive the ball with your right foot facing the direction you are attacking. Receiving the ball across your body allows for you to see the entire field and pick out the right pass to complete every time, which in turn will give you confidence.

Fitness improves your communication because you will have the energy to communicate with your teammates. Talking on the soccer field takes a lot of work and energy. You and your teammates should be communicating the entire match because the game is free-flowing and the ball is constantly moving. When you are tired, your energy is spent on running and trying to focus on your touch instead of communicating with your teammates to break down the opposing team or stop the other team from scoring.

Fitness also improves your overall enjoyment of the game. The average professional soccer player runs between 7 and 9 1/2 miles in a single, 90 minutes match. This a lot of running, so if you are not fit to complete this amount of running, soccer is going to be hard and not as fun for you. Struggling make runs late in games or keep up with your mark can be extremely frustrating.

Another way to boost your confidence is to complete your passes, especially your first pass. The secret to completing your first pass to play a simple pass the way you are facing. A simple pass is a short pass on the ground where there are no defenders between the ball and your teammate. If you play the way you face, you will not have to turn and find a pass: you should already have a passing option in your line of sight. Completing passes is a big confidence-booster and allows your team to keep possession. Trying to force a difficult pass right off the bat can lead to a lost ball and frustration among you and your teammates.

Juggling can boost your confidence because it’s another tried and true way to improve your touch. Juggling helps you concentrate on each touch and make sure it’s a good one because you need to keep your ankle locked and kick the ball appropriately. Also, juggling helps put a little pressure on you with each touch as you reach a goal or personal record, and dealing with that pressure in a casual situation will help once you’re out in the pitch. Being comfortable manipulating the ball is very important and juggling helps that greatly.

Lastly, working on dribbling a soccer ball everywhere you can will also boost your confidence. Building a habit of dribbling in your backyard, around the local park, or even in your house will help you learn to manipulate the ball in tighter spaces without having to think about it. The more you are comfortable with the ball at your feet without having to look down and stare at it, the better you will be. Your head will be up allowing you to find your open teammates and see defenders coming. This is advice that goes beyond your formal soccer practices and games: by dedicating yourself to working on your dribbling when you have a few spare minutes can help take you to the next level, and after the habit is ingrained in you you’ll see a significant improvement in your confidence level.

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Soccer Workout Challenge: Push-Ups, Abs and Bodyweight Squats Circuit

By Parker & Walsh 1 Comment

4253058200_14bc87db2d_z Working on your fitness is crucial to becoming a complete soccer player. But soccer fitness does not just mean pounding the pavement putting in mile after mile of running.

You need also need to work muscles including your core, shoulders and legs. Push-ups are a great workout. Not only do they work your chest, shoulders and triceps, but you need to engage your core, quads and glutes to keep your body straight as you lower your chest to touch the ground and lock your arms out at the top to achieve perfect form.

Famous NFL player Herschel Walker is one athlete who understood this well: he would routinely do hundreds of push-ups and sit-ups a day instead of lifting weights in the gym. In addition to push-ups, crunches and bodyweight squats are great exercises to add to your routine, and the big benefit is that you can do them at home or anywhere else you have a little space. No need to travel to a gym or buy any equipment.

Your Workout Challenge

Our challenge for you is to perform a circuit of push-ups, crunches and bodyweight squats with a total of 25 reps every day for one month.

A “circuit” means that you perform a chosen number of reps for each exercise (pushups, crunches, bodyweight squats) one after the other in quick succession with no rest, if possible. If you feel you do need to rest, try to keep it under a minute.

This challenge may sound easy to you, but it will give you a mental challenge as well. It takes commitment to stick to any routine for a whole month without slipping even once. Can you commit to accomplish this goal? Once you succeed, you’ll be able to continue that dedication to more advanced workouts. Once you accomplish your goal of 25 reps of push-ups, crunches, and bodyweight squats, you could bump the number of reps up per day to 50, 75 and then 100. But I guarantee you will feel stronger at the end of the month with this challenge.

Here are a couple of circuit routines you could try to help you accomplish your goal of 25 reps a day and eventually 100 reps a day.

Get the reps done any way you want – You can perform as many circuits of the three exercises as you want until you reach the number 25 for each exercise. For example, you can perform 5 circuits of 5 reps. You could perform 2 circuits of 10 reps with one circuit of 5 reps. You can perform one circuit of 15, 10, and then 5 reps. You could even just perform one circuit of 25 reps.

Pyramid circuit – A pyramid circuit is a great way to get in a lot of reps in a short period of time and also allows you to learn to keep proper form while fatigued.

A pyramid circuit will have a top number, such as 5, 6, or 10. You start by performing one rep of each exercise (a pushup, a crunch, and a bodyweight squat in our example). Then you go to two reps for each. Next you do three reps in the circuit. You work your way up to the top number of reps in the pyramid, and then you work your way back down to 1. To total 25 reps, you would do a Pyramid 5 (increase number of reps from 1 up to 5 and then back down to 1.)

No matter the details of your circuits, your challenge is to achieve 25 reps each of bodyweight squats, pushups and crunches every day for a whole month.

Try it out, and let us know in the comments below if you achieve it!

And do you have any other bodyweight exercise routines that you like? We’d love to hear about those too.

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Tired of the Treadmill? Try This Instead

By Parker & Walsh 2 Comments

Thanksgiving is right around the corner and winter is approaching. For soccer players looking to stay fit, those cold winter months can be a challenge.

Running indoor on a treadmill is a tried-and-true technique, but for many, it gets boring after a while.

If you’re tired of running on a treadmill during the winter months, can you still get the same type of cardio workout?

You certainly can! Jump on the row machine because it’s better than the treadmill.

It works more muscles including your shoulders, traps, triceps, pecs, biceps, core, quads, hamstrings and calves.

The row machine will also boost your cardio. I have personally found that rowing at a 7 resistance really works the whole body.

Below are a few great booster workouts on the row machine to cap off your gym session and keep you in shape during the winter months.

Interval Training – Interval training is a fitness method with a lot of benefits. Sprint row for 1 minute and then rest for 1 minute for a total of 10 minutes (working for 5; resting for 5). How many meters can you row? See if you can row farther each time you interval train on the row machine.

Descending Workouts –

Row for 1000 meters; rest for 2 minutes

Row for 750 meters; rest for 1 minute

Row for 500 meters; rest for 30 seconds

Row for 250 meters

Rowing for Distance – A good pace is to be able to row 500 meters in 2 minutes for 10 minutes. If you want to step it up a notch, then try to row 2,000 meters in 7 minutes.

Have you tried any of these workouts on the row machine, or do you have another way to stay fit during the winter months? If so, let us know in the comments.

Best Ways to Stay in Soccer Shape Over the Summer

By Parker & Walsh 2 Comments

Summer is a time to relax and have fun, but also get into shape for your upcoming soccer season.

For many players, your club soccer is just about to end and you will have a couple of months of free time before your high school season begins.

(And even if your season is on another schedule, it is likely there will be a summer break in there somewhere.)

Summer is a crucial time to get into soccer shape, and this post will outline the best ways to stay in soccer shape over the summer.

Setting fitness goals for soccer

When you physically write down the goals you wish to accomplish, you are more likely to follow through and succeed.

One good goal is to be able to run 2 miles in 12 minutes.

Another goal should be the number of push-ups, abs, lunges, and split-leg jumping squats (jumping lunges) done in a week. You should try to raise the number by at least 1 each week.

Just get out there and run: A way to accomplish the first goal above is to get a watch, pick a running loop (whether it is shorter or longer than 2 miles), then try to run it faster each time. Then periodically test your 2 mile time throughout the summer. (Check out our post on Interval Training and the Importance of Change of Pace in Soccer.)

Does Playing Other Sports Help You in Soccer?

You bet! Other sports can be great for improving your soccer fitness, such as basketball, tennis, swimming, kayaking, rock climbing, and biking.

Aside from being fun, other sports have distinct fitness benefits.

For example, playing basketball allows you to work on your lateral movement while getting in a lot of short sprints. Tennis is the same way.

Swimming, on the other hand, will help improve your cardiovascular fitness.

Kayaking will help your arm strength to shield and hold opponents off.

Rock climbing is a full body workout which improves the strength of your arms and legs.

Biking will help strengthen your legs.

Especially for those who have to force themselves to go running each day, playing other sports helps spice up your summer while helping you to prepare for the upcoming soccer season.

Play Soccer! (And What to Focus on)

Finally, there is no better way to get into soccer shape than just playing the game itself.

If you are a defender, then try to make more attacking runs out of the back to get more running in.

If you are a forward, then try to track more guys down from behind. As for a midfielder, try to play box-to-box to get the most fitness in that you can.

Best Time of the Day to Train for Soccer Fitness?

Finally, when working out, you should take into account the time of day.

The hottest part of a summer day is usually from 2pm-4pm.

Many players would not work out during this time, but I think that it is a great time to work because your workout is intensified with the heat.

If you can perform in intense heat, then it will only make the games in optimal weather like a walk in the park.

If you are going to do this, however, be absolutely sure to stay hydrated and stop if you are feeling overheated.

This also depends on your location. If you live in a hot region where there may be a heat advisory, we do not recommend practicing then and instead in the morning or evening when it is cooler.

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How to Work Out While Watching TV

By Parker & Walsh Leave a Comment

In today’s society, TV is a big deal. Many of us spend hundreds, even thousands of dollars on the newest models to make the viewing experience as perfect as can be. Many people even set their schedules around certain TV shows, often at the expense of other activities like working out.

Most of us do not like watching commercials (except during the Super Bowl), and a lot of people use DVR to skip them and get around the inconvenience. Today, though, we’re going to make a case for not hitting the fast forward button.

Next time you’re watching TV, why not try doing a workout during the commercials so you can improve your fitness while you’re being entertained?

By doing these TV exercises, you will be getting an interval workout. The average length of a commercial for a 30 minute TV show is three two minute breaks. Within this timeframe, you can do numerous body weight workouts, so all you need is a TV and a show to watch. (If you watch TV shows online, many of these services still have ad breaks, although the timing might differ slightly.)

Exercises to Do While Watching TV

First, if you want to work your legs you can do lunges or body weight squats.

For arms, you can do push-ups or dips. There are many different push-ups you can do by the way you position your hands: wide, close, diamond and staggered. When doing dips, you will need a chair or a coffee table.

For abs, you can do bicycles, crunches, heel touches, pike-ups, russian twists, or planks.

Famous athletes have heeded this commercial break workout advice to great effect. Herschel Walker, 2 time Pro Bowl and All-Pro running back, former Heisman Trophy winner and mixed martial artist, made it a point of doing pushups during TV commercial breaks.

You can really challenge yourself here by seeing how many reps you can get in during the first break and try to improve for the next two. You can also do a different body section for each commercial break. You can choose what works for you, but don’t forget to work on your weaknesses too. If you have any more specific questions about any of these exercises, let us know in the comments. We’ll be covering them in more detail on Soccer Training Solutions in the coming weeks.

Why Being Fit for Soccer is So Important

By Parker & Walsh 4 Comments

In our last post on interval training and change of pace in soccer, we started to get at what it means to be soccer fit.

This is such an important topic that it can’t be neatly summed up into any single article, so we will continue to break it down here on the soccer training blog.

This post here today will outline three reasons why being fit for soccer is so crucial.

Simply put, soccer is a game of fitness, so it is important to be in the best shape possible.

Being fit for soccer will allow you to do 3 main things that will benefit both you and your team.

1. Being Soccer Fit Lets You Play the Whole Game with Limited Substitutions

Soccer games played at the highest level only allow for 3 total substitutions for your team; other levels will impose different limits.

This means that if you are a starter, you need to be fit enough to play the whole game.

You also want to be fitter than your opponent to constantly beat him or her to balls and be able to make run after run as the game goes on and other players start to get fatigued.

But this point isn’t just for players who find themselves regularly in the starting eleven.

Even if you are not a starter yourself (or if you play in a league where more regular substitutions are allowed), you still need to be fit enough to come off the bench and bring energy, enthusiasm, and help change the dynamic of the game.

This could mean either closing a game out or creating a spark to help change momentum towards your team. The importance of such a spark from a substitute might even make it more important for these players to be fit than the starters who may be able to strategically conserve energy throughout the match.

2. Improving Fitness Helps with your Touch

Being fit allows you to get your body into the correct position to receive the ball across your body.

If you are not fit, then you will not have enough energy to get into the correct positions, which will cause your first touch to be poor.

Basically, if you are playing tired you will start reaching for the ball, so when you are receiving it, your foot is planted on the ground.

This will prevent you from successfully cushioning the ball and will cause it to bounce up or away from you.

Being more fit allows you to get into the right positions and have the energy to raise your feet in order to better receive a pass. In short, it helps you better keep up with your soccer fundamentals over the course of a long game.

3. Better Soccer Fitness Leads to Better Communication

This last benefit is something that many players do not consider.

Overall, it is widely understood that communication is soccer is hugely important. But when you are tired, you tend not to talk at all.

The reason is because you are trying to conserve your energy to use it for running, passing, shooting, and tackling.

When you are truly fit to play soccer, you will be able to constantly talk and give your teammates information throughout the whole game.

It helps to break down teams, be organized defensively, helps your teammates know if he or she can “turn” or if there is a “man on,” just to give one example. There are countless other situations on the field where talking and communicating helps to form a cohesive unit.

These are just three reasons why being fit for soccer is so important, and why putting in the extra effort on your conditioning work can have major benefits for your game as a whole (and even the success of your team).

Do you have any other benefits of soccer fitness to add? If so let us know in the comment section below.

Photo credit: lusi

Interval Training and the Importance of Change of Pace in Soccer

By Parker & Walsh 2 Comments

soccer-running-track To play all 90 minutes of a soccer game, you must be in great shape. Even if you get the luxury of getting a breather or two, a high level fitness is still crucial.

But soccer isn’t just running around at one pace: it involves some sprints, some jogging and even moments of walking.

Interval Training for Soccer Fitness

This means that a great way to improve fitness is interval training, a technique similar to game situations.

With interval training, you are performing a high intensity movement (running or sprinting) followed by recovering (walking or jogging).

The exact timing of your intervals can vary, but in general the key is to do the high-paced part for a short period of time, and the slow-paced part for longer so you have enough time to recover for the next burst.

You might choose something like 15 seconds of sprinting followed by 45 seconds of slow jogging. That also has the advantage of making your intervals one minute even so they’re easy to plan and track.

You also don’t need your high intensity movement to be an all-out sprint; something like 80% of your top speed can also work, and that should also allow you to do your interval run for longer.

There are nearly countless ways to plan your run, and next I’ll share one of my personal favorites.

The Neighborhood Mailbox Interval Run

I like to run outside in my neighborhood.

My youth club soccer coach once gave a way to turn this into an effective interval run. He told me to sprint and then jog every other mailbox.

In my neighborhood, mailboxes were spread out pretty evenly, although there sometimes would be a very long or short sprint or jog, but that is true in a soccer game as well.

If you live in a place where there are not any mailboxes, you can improvise.

Mailboxes were just my intervals. I have also used telephone poles and driveways.

Use anything that will create an interval unit, and if you can’t run on the streets near your home, try a local park.

I would recommend running at the maximum 3 miles, and I strongly believe though that working at high levels of intensity for short periods of time (3 miles max) can still get you into great soccer shape.

I know that soccer players run about an average of 6 miles but it is not all at high intensity.

Interval Training Improves Change of Pace

Interval training is effective because it works your fast twitch muscle fibers, which are the muscles used for quickness and speed.

In a game situation, this specifically improves your change of pace.

I’m sure you’ve heard coaches, announcers, or teammates talking about change of pace; it’s a quick burst of speed to get around or away from a defender, and that is why you want to work your fast twitch muscle fibers.

For example, after you do a move to get around your defender or put your defender off balance, you need to create separation with a strong change of pace to complete the move.

Interval training and change of pace are both crucial to work on when improving your change of pace, so stay tuned for more detailed information and training advice.

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Why Lifting Weights is Crucial in Soccer

By Parker & Walsh Leave a Comment

Many people consider lifting weights an important part of your training in other sports, like football and basketball, but it can make a huge difference in soccer as well. Here’s how.

Why Should I Lift Weights for Soccer?

There are tons of lifts out there that will help you get stronger, but to get better at soccer there are 3 areas to focus on: core, legs, and shoulders.

First, a strong core for soccer helps with your fitness and running.

In a soccer game, the average player runs anywhere from about 4-8 miles depending on the position you play. (Midfielders usually run more than defenders and forwards.)

Stronger legs help with your fitness, running, jumping, and striking the ball.

Strong shoulders help with strength on the ball so your opponents can not push you off and also help you jockey for air balls.

Soccer players do not need to be big and bulky. They need to be lean.

For an example, look at Lionel Messi, arguably the world’s best player if not the best of all time. He only stands at around 5’7’’ and weighs 148 lbs.

Many soccer stars are smaller than they might appear on TV, which is sort of the opposite of other sports. If you do not believe me, then look up some of your favorite players.

Even though they aren’t massive behemoths, these players are lean and strong in just the right areas, as a result of a career of weight training.

Muscle endurance is key to gaining the physique of a top soccer star like Lionel Messi.

For muscle endurance, you need to perform a higher number of repetitions so you are essentially lifting for a longer period of time.

Reps and Time per Lift for Soccer Muscle Endurance

There are two strategies for gaining muscle endurance: using the number of reps (15-20) or the period of time per lift.

If you using the number of reps technique, then once your reps get into the 15-20 rep range you will need to move up in weight.

If you are using the period of time per lift, then you should plan on performing your exercises ranging from 30-60 seconds.

Start off by performing reps for 30 seconds and then moving up to 60 seconds.

The period between lifts is important because it turns up the intensity of your workout.

Ideally, one should only rest 10-30 seconds between exercises. If this is too intense, then take up to 60 seconds, but you want to train like a soccer match.

The more intense your workout, the better shape you will get in and the better you’re training your heart for an actual match.

Circuit Training for Soccer

Circuit training combines either number of reps or period of time per lift and the period of rest between exercises.

In circuit training, you pick anywhere from 3-10 different exercises and go through these exercises with a range from 3-5 circuits.

The least amount of exercises, more circuits you do. You want your workouts to range from 20-40 minutes.

This is just a brief introduction to the importance of soccer weight training. Stay tuned for more detailed updates in the future.

(Photo credit TanjaS)