LITTLE ROCK — Love it or hate it, World Cup Soccer is drawing the eyes of the world. As I sat down to write this column, the U.S. team’s future was uncertain as it furiously competed against the Algerians for the opportunity to advance to the next round.
As Landon Donovan’s goal in extra time propelled the United States past Algeria, 1-0, I marveled at the physical conditioning of these athletes, in terms of lower body strength and cardiovascular endurance.
This week, I’ll present a few ideas for bringing soccer-style conditioning to your exercise regimen. In addition, I’ll show you a movement that is guaranteed to develop explosive lower body power, when performed correctly.
Although skill and strategy are the key components to soccer success, team fitness is a foundational element that must be developed for a team to contend. For this reason, elite soccer players spend dozens of hours per week developing their physical conditioning.
Cardiovascular endurance is their foundation. These players basically run continuously for 90 minutes with intermittent bouts of sprinting, jogging and walking. You can tailor your training to give you that ability, too.
Interval training is a fantastic way to develop cardiovascular endurance, regardless of your current fitness level. Although World Cup players use sprinting and jogging in their training, you can receive similar benefits from walking and jogging. Simply select a short jogging interval you’re comfortable with and fill in the gaps with walking.
One example of a beginning interval program would be 30-second bouts of jogging combined with two-minute bouts of walking. This is a very common interval ratio of 1-to-4, one part hard work to four parts recovery. The work part can be increased as your fitness rises.
You may want to start with the 30-second/2-minute format and gradually increase it to one minute of work to four minutes of recovery.
Another possibility is to change the format to 1-to-2, only two parts rest after one part of work, as you become more comfortable with the jogging interval.
Once you’ve begun to build a foundation for your cardiovascular endurance, it’s time to consider your lower body strength. Certainly strength machines are a great alternative, but soccer is performed outdoors (for the most part),so why not keep your workout program mobile? This week’s exercise is a great way to develop lower body strength and power without depending on a single piece of equipment.
1.
Find an open area where you have a clear space about 25 feet long to use.
2.
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and squat down very low.
3.
As you do this, bring both arms behind you in order to use them for momentum.
4.
As you reach your full squat position, forcefully extend your legs and bring your arms forward, leaping off your feet and performing a broad jump.
5.
Land with your feet shoulder-width apart and go right into the next jump by squatting and bringing your arms behind you.
6.
Continue this frog jumping for 10 jumps, then turn around and repeat.
There are many modifications for this exercise, depending on your age and joint health. You can lower the intensity by jumping shorter distances with a decreased knee bend.
If you have significant knee or hip problems, you’ll want to take a pass on this one. The impact, while effective at developing the lower body musculature, will place additional stress on these joints.
Matt Parrott has a doctorate in education (sport studies), a master’s in kinesiology and is certified by the American College of Sports Medicine.
ActiveStyle, Pages 28 on 06/28/2010