Soccer Conditioning: Improving Strength & Power

Physical strength can benefit a player significantly on the soccer field. As the level of competition increases, strength will become a bigger aspect of the game. Being physically strong will allow you to shield the ball from your opposition, jockey for position, and help you win your one on one battles all over the field.

If you are serious about becoming a better all around soccer player, strength & power is definitely an area of your game you cannot neglect.

Weight training is an essential component of increasing strength and power. However, there is a lot of confusion around proper weight training methods. Spending hours in the gym doing bicep curls is not going to improve your performance on the soccer field. In order to produce an improvement in on field performance, players need to focus on “functional training”.

Functional Training: a classification of exercise which involves training the body for activities performed on the Soccer field. These exercises emphasize full body movements which are aimed at developing overall physical performance. Functional training promotes increases in strength, power, and physical size.

All the weight lifting exercises below are full body functional training exercises. Adding them to your weight lifting routine will improve your on field performance as well as general health and fitness.

Here is a list of the 4 essential functional training exercises all Soccer Players should use (accompanied with a video on proper technique):

1.  Deadlift.

2.  Squat.

3.  Bench Press.

4.  Clean & Jerk.

*Take the time to perfect your technique for this exercise. It is the most technically demanding of the 4 exercises. Start with very light weight and move your way up.

*Follow this link for a step by step tutorial on the Clean and Jerk:
http://www.ehow.com/how_16796_clean-jerk-weight.html

Weight training is a major component of soccer conditioning and soccer related workouts. It will improve your strength, speed, and agility.

It should be mentioned that soccer players should not start weight training until the age of 14. Soccer players under the age of 14 can however use body weight exercises to increase their strength and power. Stay tuned for a related post on this topic relatively soon.

When performing these exercises, first concentrate on technique using light weight. After you become confident in your technique you may then increase the weight. Don’t be stubborn and try to lift more than necessary.

The amount of repetitions and sets may vary depending on your desired training goals:

 If you are training for power, perform a lower set of repetitions (3 – 5), with a heavier weight (85% 1 Rep Max). You may want to have a spot present to assist you with these lifts.

If you are training for strength, perform a higher set of repetitions (8 – 12), with a lighter weight (70% 1 Rep Max).

The proper way to train is moving back and forth between a focus on Strength and Power. One week Strength, the next Power. This eliminates the possibility of the “plateau” effect.

Implement these exercises into your weight training program to increase on field performance. You won’t see results over night but with dedication and a commitment to your workout routine, you will be pleasantly surprised.

For more on improving soccer fitness you may want to check out this Guide to Total Soccer Fitness.

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