my soccer program... comments please..

Other Sports Soccer
1

Ok after doing some searching i’ve tried to set up a conditioning program for soccer that focusses on strength/speed/and endurance, with tempo runs being the source of endurance training…

Here’s what i’ve come up with: (i will be doing weights sessions but they are not included in the list)

speed session 1 (short sprints):
10x10m (30 secs -1min rest between reps)
6x30m (2mins rest between reps)
6x40m (3-5mins rest between sets)
… with 3mins between sets

Tempo 1 (70-75%): 6 sets of (50+100+150+200 meters)
rest between sets of 1 mins
rest between reps will be 10 seconds for the 50, 20 seconds for the 100, 30 seconds for the 150, 40 seconds for the 200m

Speed session 2- medium sprints-
5x40 (rest 2-3mins between reps)
3x60 (rest 3-5mins between reps)
3x100 (rest 5-8 mins between reps)
3x10 depth jumps
3x10 bounding

Tempo 2 (70-75%) - run 30, do burpees for 10 seconds, jumping jacks for 10 seconds, then run 30 again… repeat for 10 sets then rest for 1 min

Run 50, burpees for 10secs, split jumps for 10 secs, run 50… rest 10 secs, then repeat for 4 sets then rest for 1 min

run 100 m, walk 50m, repeat 10x then rest 1min

run 60m, walk 30m, repeat 10x

run 150 rest 25 seconds, then run 150 again

Also i will be playing indoor soccer once/week

How does it look?

Oh and when would be the best time to incoporate agility work… on speed day, tempo day, or off day??

2

agility training, speed work, tempo, it may depend on your strengths and weakness as an athlete and your level of skill play,
I’ve had great results training agility and speed on the same day, with the addition of tempo 2 other sessions. Loook at soccer, the play is made with the agility/skill of the 1 on 1, 1 on 2 play, your speed improvements and tempo work will allow you to run down balls and chase players, each position needs specific work for improvements

3

so do my sprint workouts and tempo sessions look ok?? and could i just add agility to the end of my speed days?? or would that be too much volume?

4

hmmm actually after searching “agility” on this website, Charlie claims that specific agility training is not needed, as long as you play ur sport… since i play indoor soccer once/week, wouldn’t that be enough agility training??

5

This is like saying: “You dont need to sprint in your training as long as you compete”! :confused:

6

http://www.charliefrancis.com/community/showthread.php?t=5003&page=2&pp=15&highlight=agility

7

I believe the reasoning is that plyometrics and core work can greatly improve your agility.

8

Also a good shoes… and good surface…

During your COMP period, your emphasis should be put on the team tactics… and agility work should be developed during PREP period!
Give some sprinter to do suicide drill or zig-zag test and you will get only broken ankle… Agility is a skill and should be develoed using specific drills… Stoping? In basketball, this is a skill that should be developed during childhood… Doing only streight-line sprinting will improve just that - straight line sprinting, but how much do you sprint straigh during soccer play?

9

I missed this the first time, you’re playing once a week? That’s it…then agility drills, starts and stops, zig-zags with and without ball, etc. needs a greater priority in your overall plan. 3,000m tempo looks good, speed work with focus on acceleration will greatly help, but I feel agility skills at max effort will be best…

10

ok so when would be the best time to add agility to my training program… i’m guessing its high cns, so it should be put on my speed days right??

Could i maintain my current volume on my speed days and then add a short agility session at the end? say 5 sets of 10 agility sprints?

11

i dont play soccer anymore but because of my sprinting i ger questions from coach’s.
i read the tread on agilty but im still confused.

so in the off season do you basically do a sprinters training program, with no skill work.

or if your not playing games coz its the off season do you do all your agilty work??

12

If you dont develop high speed during agility work you can put it wherever you want, because it doesnt develop CNS fatigue, but I would rather put it at the “speed days” as you stated with 48h in between…

I would rather decrease volume of straight line sprinting and limit it to 30-50m distance (you can go to 60m just for your joy but it is not specific for soccer). Your priority is agility, not straight line sprints (which doesn mean you hould not do them, just cut the volume)

If you have 2 trainings per day, use evening training for techniqu/tactics, and mourning training for speed/tempo work.

If you have 1 training per day, specific skill acquisition (rehersal) is a must on every training (only the volume varies).
Tempo day will consists of:

  • soccer skills and drills (technique, tactics)
  • tempo and general work

Speed day will consists of:

  • Aglity work
  • soccer skills and drills (technique, tactics)

Agility work for soccer should be carryed from hills, short sprints, zig-zag with progresively increase in straight distance to allow greater speed, and from dull to sharp angles, also from simple to complex; stoping ability with progresivily increase in distance for acheaving greate speeds. Add some quickness and plyometric work (+the gym) and you have it. Ball drills could be done in the soccer part of the training… I described my “approach” to soccer training more thouroughly in the Soccer sub-forum (year round prep bla, bla, bla). I hope I helped a bit!

13

Well said…( hit the gym ) soccer athletes tend to go right to the bench first, thinking they do so much running their legs are strong, why bother, “look at these cavles”. We know what a solid lower strength and power program can do for acceleration, decelleration, speed and VJ.
Don’t forget about stopping, too. Sprint 10-20-30 yds then stick the stop in as few steps as possible, 1 leg and 2. It’s just another way the develop all parts of the game for improved sports performance.

14

Straight line sprinting is a general means of improving speed. Improvements made in straight line sprinting can transfer over to agility easily. Agility is basically a bunch of accelerations and decelerations. If you improve your straight-line acceleration then your agility will improve. They are related.

Also, improvements in core strength will give you the ability to hold your body in a better position when you are changing direction. Therefore agility improves as core strength improves aswell.

15

crap, blinky says agility is not nessesary, but Dux says they are, who should i listen to lol??

Dux u said that u can do hills for agility… how does that work, since u are basically running in a straight line up a hill… how steep should it be by the way?

16

Agree… stoping is very important SKILL that should be developed, as you said using one and two contact techniques (basketball). It stresses the whole body, so be smart, increase approach speed slowly and progresivly…

They are related, BUT… …if that is true, then sprinters would be great players in soccer and basketball which is not the case! Try testing some sprinter with ilinois or T test and you will see what I am talking about… Surely there is some transfer (running technique, relax, shoulders, starting angles) but it is just for beggingers! I just have returned from training where I teached basketball players (14 y.o.) basic running drills and relaxness, so I agree that there is a transfer but it is small… after all you cant change your direction while being in the air, cant you?

Blinky, your logic is partialy true… again for begginers who lack torso stability! Developing core stab will improve agility (and everything else) till some point, after that point it is misleading to expect improved agility from core work…

Listen to yourself… there is a lot of ways to climb a mountain, but the peak is the same :cool: :slight_smile:

Hills are used (on my opinion) as a foundation for later agility development, because they develop adility to achieve deeper angles and to accel faster, they are also good to strenghten the legs (triple extension) and allows you to do Hi int work prior to specific agility work (preparation). Again, this is my poin of view…
About steepness, consult GPP DVD (I think about 20-30 deg are good?), dont know really…

17

since i play soccer once/week, how many agility sessions should i add??

assuming one session/week, how is this speed/agility workout:

speed session 1 (short sprints):
8x10m (30 secs -1min rest between reps)
4x30m (2mins rest between reps)
4x40m (3-5mins rest between sets)
zig zags: 1st cone 3m, 2nd cone 5m, 3rd cone 5 m, 4th cone 7 m, 5th cone 10m (cones arranged in a zig zag shape) repeat 5x with 2mins rest in between

18

How many session of agility work? That depends on your week structure… what do you do over the week? Are you in COMP period? Did you miss developing agility during PREP period! Is agility your minus or plus, did the time and energy spent on agility development is the best choice for you at this time of your career, year period etc? A lot of questions… quite hard to give the ANSWER!
Zig-zag is not enough, try doind some stoping-starting drills, T-drills, etc.
When I said progresively increase approach speed and the sharpness of the angless I ment over a PREP period, not over a zig-zag course…

19

this is what i do during the week (with added weights power to the people style):
speed session 1 (short sprints):
10x10m (30 secs -1min rest between reps)
6x30m (2mins rest between reps)
6x40m (3-5mins rest between sets)
… with 3mins between sets

Tempo 1 (70-75%): 6 sets of (50+100+150+200 meters)
rest between sets of 1 mins
rest between reps will be 10 seconds for the 50, 20 seconds for the 100, 30 seconds for the 150, 40 seconds for the 200m

Speed session 2- medium sprints-
5x40 (rest 2-3mins between reps)
3x60 (rest 3-5mins between reps)
3x100 (rest 5-8 mins between reps)
3x10 depth jumps
3x10 bounding

Tempo 2 (70-75%) - run 30, do burpees for 10 seconds, jumping jacks for 10 seconds, then run 30 again… repeat for 10 sets then rest for 1 min

Run 50, burpees for 10secs, split jumps for 10 secs, run 50… rest 10 secs, then repeat for 4 sets then rest for 1 min

run 100 m, walk 50m, repeat 10x then rest 1min

run 60m, walk 30m, repeat 10x

run 150 rest 25 seconds, then run 150 again

Its offseason right now…

So u mean i should start doing agility at a low intensity, ie low speed and shrpness of angles and then increase the intesity weekly or something?

So for the first bit i can just add the agility to my speed sessions without reduction of volume, and as i increase the intesityof the agility i reduce the volume of speed?

would 5 sets of zigzags (5m inbetween each cone, total 30 m distance), and one or two other agility drills you mentioned be enough??

20

Omyss, what are you trying to improve? Are you trying to improve your ball handling with change of direction. The question about “agility” is very vague. If you are trying to improve any movement with the ball, these movements are very specific to the sport and you must perfect these movements with a ball.

As far as general agility is concerned. In my opinion it is nothing more than a series of change-of-direction plyometrics. There is a thread on this. To improve agility I would treat it the same as any plyometric activity with full recoveries in between foot contacts.

For instance I would do something like this. Focusing on the change of direction aspect…

Run at 75%, jab step, jog

Run fairly quickly, stop on a dime, accelerate the other way.