Q & A

Off-season Strength Training - Soccer Players

As most players are coming to the close of the season, the focus on individual improvement should set in. For those players that have not been involved in a strength training program, this is the time to start! For all of those players who went through the season with nagging injuries, it is time to address them and prevent then from happening again when the club season starts. All strength programs have a progression to them and I would start your program with the basics outlined in my manual. These concepts will enable you to make changes not only in the area of injury prevention but performance as well.

Starting a strength-training program in the off-season makes sense because it gives the player time to adjust to this type of training and not have games to worry about. The off-season is a short timeframe for most club players and it is important to 'set the table' so for the next season coming up. Some players use strength training as just an off-season tool. I have found that players benefit the most from strength training all year around. I am not talking about training on the soccer field which only has a conditioning affect on the body and does not help the nervous and muscular system stay at a high level like strength training does. Players who only strength train in the off-season and then stop when the season starts have reduced strength levels by the end of season and this occurs at a crucial point in the season - when tournaments are beginning. Some sample in season strength workouts are discussed below in the Q&A, but can certainly be used in the off-season as well. Do yourself and your team a favor, if you have not started a strength program yet - start today!

Q & A

I do have a couple of questions for you: we're at the point in the season where we have games every 2-3 days and I still want to lift during the season to maintain my strength, what are the best exercises to do that won't wear me out before practice and games? And my other question has to do with our new freshman class, they're pretty tiny, but there's one girl who is just coming back from an ACL tear, she isn't wearing a knee brace because she recovered really quickly and she is keeping up with the rest of us. But how can I get her stronger when we do team lifting in the winter without risking her knee to shift or re-injure?
Heather

Answer: Heather,
Thanks for the great questions. I'm going to address each one individually as they each cover a great topic.

We're at the point in the season where we have games every 2-3 days and I still want to lift during the season to maintain my strength, what are the best exercises to do that won't wear me out before practice and games?

A I would use single leg movements at this time - Step Ups or Single Leg Squats. Single leg movements will not tax your body like a heavy squatting or dead lifting. I would keep the sets at 3 work sets (not including a warm-up set or two) and repetition range at 8 to 10. Rest would be 1 to 1 and half minutes between each set. Second, Perform a hamstring movement like DB RDLs for 2 sets of 10 to 12 reps with the same rest interval as the prior exercise.

As for the upper body I would use exercises like barbell bench press going up to a 5-rep max. Then do a back superset of pull downs or rows supersetted with side laterals. Perform 3 sets of 10 reps for each exercise of the superset. Then finish with a curl variation for 2 sets of 12 reps then a plank variation for 2 sets of 45 seconds for each set.

You can either split up the workout into two days or perform all the exercises if time permits.

My other question has to do with our new freshman class, they're pretty tiny. But there's one girl who is just coming back from an ACL tear, she isn't wearing a knee brace because she has recovered really quickly and she is keeping up with the rest of us. How can I get her stronger when we do team lifting in the winter without risking her knee to shift or reinjure?

A I would tell her to do single leg movements to start and if she is able to box squat that would be the next step in the progression. I would keep the volume high for the single leg movements like 10 to 12 reps for 3 or 4 sets. For the Box squat, start with sets of 8 reps until she is be able to work up to a 5 rep Max, then progress lower as she gets stronger. Next, work the hamstring and gluteus with RDLs or good mornings for 3 sets of 12 reps.

I hope this helps.

Question and Answer Section:

You can ask Mark any question dealing with Strength and Conditioning for Soccer players and he will address two or three questions each month.

Mark now has his strength training manual Williams Soccer Strength Method available on his website!