Q & A

In-Season Strength Training for
High School to College Level Players

This month’s article involves in-season strength training for soccer players from high school to college level.  When it comes to in-season strength training most players will shy away from lifting weights because of all the training involved with the rigors of practices and games.  I strongly disagree with this type of thinking as most players will fatigue and weaken by the end of a long season and this could result in injury.  Remember the primary reason for strength training is injury prevention.  Enhanced performance follows closely!  I recommend at least one to two workouts a week and usually the day after a match, if possible. The workout will actually help flush away byproducts, such as lactic acid, created in the body during a match.  The workout should be performed in a short time (generally 30-45 minutes max), so you’ll need to take a no nonsense approach and not waste time in the gym.  The workouts should be a split routine - one day dedicated to lower body and the other day to upper body. The upper body workout should be done the day before a match and the lower body workout at least two to three days before your next match.  In the event you cannot perform two workouts per week then concentrate on a once a week total body workout.  If you have never touched a weight before then you should take a more conservative approach when it comes to load (weight) lifted for each exercise.

Below are sample exercises that you should implement into your workout:

Lower Body:

Box Squat
Deadlift Variation – Trap Bar / Straight Bar/ Dumbell
Step Ups
Single Leg Squats
Walking Lunges
DB Romainian Deadlifts
Reverse Hyper Extensions
Back Hyper Extensions

Upper Body:

Bench Press Variation – Barbell/Dumbell
Chin/Pull Up Variations
Standing Shoulder Press Variation - Barbell/Dumbell
Curl Variation - Barbell/Dumbell

For more information about strength training for the soccer athlete please see my manual.

Question and Answer Section:

You can ask Mark any question dealing with Strength and Conditioning for Soccer players and he will address two or three questions each month.

Mark now has his strength training manual Williams Soccer Strength Method available on his website!