Soccer is a game that demands serious running skills and endurance because it’s a 90-minute long game and can keep players hauling for up to 8 miles.
Therefore, soccer players need to undergo serious running training to enhance their endurance and stamina. Doing so will keep themselves from burning out too soon during a match and help them bring their A-game.
If you pay close attention to a soccer game, you’ll learn that it does not just involve consistent running. The players dribble between running, jogging, and walking and you need to do the same.
Here’s how you can perform running training for soccer:
Mixing it up
The best way to train for soccer is to mix it up. You need to involve running, sprinting, walking, jogging, and warm-ups to conquer the right running training for soccer. Here’s what you need to do:
Start with a warm-up: Kicking it off with a warm-up will get your cardiovascular system going. Start with a 5 or 10-minute jog so as to get your muscles warm.
The 20-second sprint: If you’re a soccer fan, you must have an idea of what’s a 20-second sprint. It’s the quick haul when a player finds an opening and just charges towards the goal post, or this 20-second sprint occurs during a wild chase.
You need to do the same for 20 seconds. Charge forward.
Take a walk: Soccer is more about preserving than using. Therefore, using up all your stamina early in the game can be disastrous. Similarly, you can’t keep running and sprinting if you want to train for soccer running. You need to know when to take a break and regain energy.
To do this, take a small 1-minute walk after you’ve sprinted for 20 seconds. This is similar to walking to your position when there’s an offside or when the ball is on the opposite side. It creates a perfect opportunity to gain back your stamina.
Jog: Once, you’ve regained your breath after a walk, increase your pace, and start jogging. Don’t push too hard. Just go with the flow and think that you’re covering distance. Do this for at least 3 minutes.
Repeat: If you look at it, this training is almost similar to what happens in a live football match. There’s sprinting, running, jogging, and walking. You need to implement the same in your running routine for at least 45 minutes.
Keep repeating but don’t do it in the same order that is mentioned. Mix it up before you never know when you might need to sprint, jog or walk in a match.
The famous variations
One of the best ways to pump up your soccer running training is to follow your soccer idols.
The Messi variation: Messi is one of the greatest players in the football business and is a magician when it comes to sprinting and dribbling. Following in his footsteps, you can perform a 5-minute jog, 3-minute sprint, and then jog again for a few minutes. Keep doing this until you begin to lose breath.
The Ronaldo variation: Ronaldo is one of the fastest, fittest, and powerful soccer players of today. You will find him play at almost every spot on the field because the guy’s running stamina is seriously at par.
To follow his type of running training, sprint at 80% of your heart health at a higher pace. Take 1-minute intervals of slowing down and then start sprinting again.
Conclusion
These are some of the most effective running training exercises for soccer. It’s not necessary that you push yourself hard from the very first day. Go at your own speed but don’t forget to push yourself further every day.
