Soccer Exercises

Performing leg strength and stability exercises are key components to improving performance and limiting injuries on the soccer field. In today's busy youth sports world with club and high school practices and games, private training and let's not forget school, time can become a factor.

Soccer involves a high volume of cuts.On the field, our stance involves our hip position and contact with the ground to be at varying ranges of motion. For example, when defending, we never want our hips square to our opponent similar to a squat position. We want to force him/her one way or another.

Often questions arise about what is the best choice for soccer fitness test. No perfect answer exists and will depend on the level of your team and what your goals are.Several questions must be answered prior to choosing a test or test battery.   

I divide my off seasons into 3 phases: Recovery, Volume Building, Intensity Building.  This article discusses the 1^st of 3 phases, recovery.

Perform this lift to increase the amount of power you generate on the soccer field.  

The lunge to press exercise is an effective exercise to generate single leg strength and upper body strength. This can be considered a progression from the basic lunge exercise. This exercise can be incorporated into your overall training circuit.

ACL injuries are more prevalent than ever. The ACL provides rotational stability to the knee and rotational stability exercises are often ignored in both prevention and rehab protocols. The following is an excerpt from the National Athletic Trainers Association's Public Service Announcement.

The Single Leg Straight Leg Dead Lift is commonly used to strengthen the hamstrings and glutes. The exercise will also improve balance and knee stability.

I believe sled training to be the most important factor in developing speed & acceleration. That is because it is a combination of both running drills and weight room exercises. As I've said in my previous articles during speed month, your ability to generate explosive acceleration in your sprints relies on your ability to generate force from the ground. But what is important is the specific manner in which you do it.