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How many times a week are you gonna be practicing/playing?Originally Posted by dgk3188
any soccer players in here? i just joined a league whereas before i was only playing pick-up games. now that im getting more serious about my game i really want to work on endurance and other things that'll help on the pitch.
i feel like i've had to go back to the drawing board when i'm at the gym. Before i was only really working out for aesthetic reasons. Just to get bigger and look better...(which worked, since i started working out and bulking up i went from a mere 140 to around 165)
now that size isn't really a concern for my i feel that days in the gym where im working on upperbody could be spent doing more cardio. now, i know the importance of still working out my upperbody since sometimes on the pitch you do need to muscle up and at the end the stronger guy will gain the advantage...but i want to make sure im working out my lower body properly. i went from 4 sets of heavy weights doing like 10-12 reps to 4 sets of lighter weights doing 15-20 reps. (squats, db lungers, leg extensions, deadlifts, calf raises, etc)
is this how i should be working out if i want to work on endurance? Carlitos Tevez! help a brother out here my man, i know you're the resident soccer expert around here
Like you said, upper body strength is still important because a lot of times you're going to be coming into contact with other players. I dont know what your schedule is like but this past summer when I was playing 3-4x a week I would lift upperbody 1-2x a week. I did heavy compound lifts like bench press, military press, rows, pull ups, dips, etc for 4-8 reps. Dont waste your time doing isolation exercises because they wont help you on the field. As you said, there is a difference between lifting for aesthetics and lifting for sports.
As for legs, stick to free weights and compounds as well. Squat, deadlift, lunges, Bulgarian split-squat (very VERY important exercise...I think this is the most important one for me personally because it helped me improve my muscle imbalances). Unlike upper body, I think doing isolation exercises for legs is important so keep on doing those calf raises (helps prevent shin splints and will give you more endurance in your calves) as well as a couple sets of leg extensions and hamstring leg curls just so that you dont have any imbalances. I'm not sure how many times a week you'll be playing but just listen to your body...if you're too tired then forget going to the gym and just rest. But try to work out your legs atleast once a week and twice if possible. I would not lift really heavy but I usually did 6-10 reps. Occasionally I did sets of 20 reps for squats just to help improve my cardio and get my legs used to all the stress that you'll feel on the pitch.
Cardio is pretty easy...the best way to improve your cardio is by playing. Even if you feel good in practice, you'll probably need a few competitive games to get in game shape. I remember feeling good about my cardio but the first 3 games of the season I was extremely gassed. Competitive games are played much faster and require more running. When you're feeling good then do some HIIT (I like doing it on the elliptical because it doesnt put any stress on my legs), and you could also do some fast paced interval running outside. I dont recommend going for long jogs because you'll never be running at a steady state during a match...it's always something like jog, walk, jog, sprint, walk, sprint, jog, walk, etc etc. Going for long jogs wont prepare you for the sprinting aspect involved in soccer.
Ab exercises are important too...try to do ab exercises that work your abs, obliques and lower back...also do ab exercises that incorporate your legs so that you can strengthen your groin muscles as well.
You can also kill two birds with one stone by doing circuit training with weights...workout all your muscles without resting for as long as possible...if you're doing it right I guarantee you'll be on life support after 20 minutes (heart rate will be well over 170)
As for food...bananas, oatmeal, pasta, rice, potatoes, etc are your friends. I also like gatorade before, during and after matches. The thing I hated worse than being extremely tired after a match was being EXTREMELY hungry...I was eating enough food to feed an African village. You play soccer for over 60-minutes and you're going to be starving after which tells you you're body badly needs some nutrients. Protein intake is still important but you dont need the 200+ grams that people recommend...