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Football is played in two main forms, firstly as a 90 minute game with a 15 minute half time rest period, or a more explosive 5 aside game. Being a sport that is constantly on the go, your fitness level and strength plays an important part in your game, however a high skill level on the ball and good knowledge of the game are also essential.

Football is a sport that requires a multitude of athletic abilities, aim to make improvements in the following to improve your game:

Explosive acceleration and fast sprinting speed.

Muscular endurance and strength in the lower body.

Muscular balance and high levels of neuromuscular co-ordination.

Body awareness and agility, the ability to know where your body is, and be able to move it.

Discipline to take orders and decisions, as well as putting the team first.

Good flexibility to avoid injury, football players are prone to poor hamstring flexibility.

Correct balance between your quadriceps and hamstrings, as well as strength imbalances between your left and right leg.

Your fitness training should take the following form

Speed work

Look at the plyometric circuit to developing explosive power, aim to do this circuit no more than once a week, and certainly not on days before a match, as this type of circuit takes a few days to recover from.

Shuttle sprints, most sprints last for between 6 and 15 meters in a match, so look at this distance for your training. Work your sprints in the following form, standing start, lying flat on your stomach start, running start, sprint forward with run back and then repeat all with a ball. Aim to have a minimum of 3 markers to turn around, not necessarily in a straight line.

Muscular Endurance

Use this circuit once a week to develop muscular endurance, best performed alongside a skill session or on a day after a match.

DISTANCE SPEED DRILL / NOTES

2 X LAPS LIGHT RUN PACE WARM UP & STRETCH

3 X LAPS JOG / RUN / FAST PACE YOURSELF

3 X 1/2 LAPS AS ABOVE DO DRILL WITH FOOTBALL

1 X LAP RUN PACE HK – SS – HTB -SS *

4 X 1/2 LAPS FAST RUN LEG CIRCUIT AFTER EACH 1/2 LAP

4 X 1/2 LAPS FAST RUN AS ABOVE PLUS UPPER BODY CIRCUIT

4 X 1/2 LAPS FAST RUN AS ABOVE PLUS ABS CIRCUIT

4 X LAPS SPRINT / JOG SPRINT ONE SIDE THEN JOG BACKWARDS *

4 X 1/2 LAPS FAST AS POSSIBLE DO DRILL WITH FOOTBALL

5 X LAPS FAST RUN LEG CIRCUIT AFTER EACH LAP

2 X LAPS LIGHT RUN PACE COOL DOWN & STRETCH

HK = HIGH KNEE RUNNING SS = SIDE STEPPING HTB = HEEL TO BUM

AIM TO SPRINT THE WIDTH OF THE PITCH, THEN JOG BACKWARDS ALONG THE LENGTH BEFORE SPRINTING AGAIN. ONCE YOU GET FITTER, YOU CAN THEN SPRINT THE LENGTH AND JOG ON THE WIDTH.

Perform 8-15 of each exercise as fast as possible, remember first time around to perform just the leg circuit, then the leg and upper body and finally all three. Make sure that you do the lap run after each circuit.

LEG CIRCUIT

Two footed squat thrusts – aim for a 12 inch jump. Walking lunge forward – changing lead leg. Alternate leg squat thrusts – count reps on 1 leg only.

UPPER BODY CIRCUIT

Wide arm press-up. Take elbows out to your sides. Normal press ups, aim to keep a straight line through your back. Close Hand – Aim to keep your thumbs touching each other.

ABDOMINAL CIRCUIT

Normal sit ups, keep your chin off your chest. Alternate elbows to knees – count reps on one side only. Alternate hand to foot – count reps one side.

Along with this session you can do straightforward cardiovascular training in the form of running, rowing and stepper’s. Aim to build up to doing sessions that last a minimum of 45 minutes either 2-3 times a week. You can also do your weight training after your C.V. workouts, in order to give your body a chance to rest and recover for key matches.

Strength Training

Read the notes on strength training on the site, concentrate on adjusting your workouts to allow for your body to recover, avoid training sore muscles. Train at low intensity’s if you are new to weights, working on your legs for power and your arms in order to hold off players.

LOWER BODY

Seated leg extension machine Quads. Keeping your back firmly into machine, place your feet under the foot pad, about shoulder width apart, just above your ankle level.

As you develop your leg strength, aim to work for 3 sets of 10 – 12 reps, followed by 1 – 2 sets of 50% weight, using 1 leg for 4 – 8 reps.

Calf machine. Most modern gyms will have a calf machine, if not that use either a Smith Machine or Barbell across your shoulders.

Stand straight with the balls of your feet on the platform, with the shoulder weight cushions comfortably placed on your shoulders, – avoid being bent up, or straining to reach the supports.

Lift and lower slowly for 2 – 3 sets of 10 – 12 reps working for a full range.

Cable adductor and abductor pulls, Inner / Outer Thighs. Aim for 2 sets 0f 10 – 12 reps with a suitable weight. Work one leg, then simply turn around to face the other way, in order to work the abductors.

Repeat on the other leg. Count the number of reps that you can do, in order to gauge the difference if any in strength in each leg.

Leg Press Quadriceps. There are a number of foot positions you can use to work the different muscles of your quadriceps, you can have your feet close together – wide or shoulder width apart.

Work for 3 sets of 10-12 reps, for first set work with your feet close, then normal and finally wide, with toes pointing outwards.

Hamstring Curl Machine. Use a suitable weight and perform smooth reps. Avoid pushing yourself on this exercise, as most people’s hamstrings will tend to be tight, and can easily be damaged.

Aim for 2 – 3 sets of 10 – 12 reps, using a light weight for your first set.

Gluts / Hip Flexor Cable Pull Connect a foot strap around a leg, just above the ankle joint, and attach this to a low cable pulley.

Aim to keep your legs and back straight throughout the exercise, to help isolate the gluts, holding a secure object for balance.

Work for 2 sets of 10 – 12 reps, on each leg – facing forward (gluts) and rearward (hip flexors).

Complete Lower Body. A combination of either front or rear lunges can be performed using a Smith Machine, however always make sure that you perform with a lightweight, enabling your leg muscles to get use to the movement prior to increasing the weight.

Aim for 2 sets of 10 – 15 reps each leg, using a light weight, however aim for a full range of movement.

Adductor Machine. Aim to keep your legs and back in contact with the machine at all times. Some machines will have a combination of settings, allowing the legs to be taken wider, avoid taking your legs out too far, especially for beginners.

It may be useful to warm up your muscles with a lightweight prior to your training weight.

Aim for 2 sets 0f 10 – 12 reps with a suitable weight.

UPPER BODY WORKOUT

This session is designed to work all muscle groups of your upper body, as an endurance / toning circuit and also to increase the heart rate sufficiently to provide you with a sweat.

Aim to work at a fast comfortable pace within your own limits, taking minimal rest between the different exercises, this circuit is only suitable for persons use to weights.

LEVEL SET 1 SET 2 SET 3 SET 4

REPS REST REPS REST REPS REST REPS REST

INTERMEDIATE 12-15 30 SEC 10-15 30 SEC – - – -

ADVANCED 15-20 20 SEC 15-20 20 SEC 12-15 20 SEC – -

ATHLETIC 20-25 10 SEC 20-25 10 SEC 15 -20 15 SEC 15-20 15 SEC

WARM UP AND STRETCH PRIOR TO DOING THIS CIRCUIT

Wide Arm Press-Up. Take your hands out at double shoulder width, with your palms facing forward. Dependent on your fitness level, choose your style to work in, i.e. 3/4 position for intermediates and full position for advanced.

1 Arm Row. Support your body by placing your left hand and knee on a bench, whilst placing the weight in your right hand, with the right foot securely on the floor.

Aim to keep your back parallel to the floor, whilst lifting the weighted elbow from a straight position to an angle of 90 degrees or more, aiming to take the elbow high without rotation.

Biceps Curl, again if possible perform in a seated position to limit excessive body swing.

For intermediates and advanced aim to perform the movement in the 3 following actions, normal / hammer / and reverse, full descriptions of all the exercises can be found in the members area.

Tricep Dips, place your hands either side of your buttocks, with fingers facing forward. Bend at your elbows, taking them backwards. Perform on a secure bench with feet on the floor for intermediates, and feet on another bench for advanced. Focus on taking your elbows behind you.

Breast Stroke. Control the movement, ideally standing with feet shoulder width apart. Keep your head up looking straight ahead, with elbows at shoulder height. LIGHTWEIGHT

Make smooth controlled breast stroke swimming movements, whilst focusing on keeping your elbows at shoulder height.

Bench Press Aim to perform the exercises in either a close arm normal or wide stance exercise. Again you can adapt the exercise by using an incline / decline / or flat bench, whilst working with either dumbbells or a barbell.

Focus on a complete range of movement, lowering the weight down to your chest, however never use a weight that is too heavy so you can’t lift it back up.

Tricep Kick Backs. Sit on a secure bench with your feet firmly on the floor, leaning over as far as possible, ideally to a position that enables your body to be parallel to the floor. LIGHTWEIGHT

Smoothly extend the arm back from a bent position, in order to straighten the arm, focusing on keeping your upper arm horizontal whilst keeping your elbow tucked into your side.

Reverse Fly’s. Support your back on either an inclined bench or the thigh of one leg. Keeping a bend in your arms lift the weight up no higher than shoulder height in a smooth motion, before lowering under control. LIGHTWEIGHT

Lateral Raise. Holding suitable dumbbells in each hand, smoothly lift the weights up from your side, to a horizontal position out to your sides, aiming to keep a slight bend in your arms, hands inline with your shoulders.

For best results, certainly for beginners, aim to work on a declined bench so that you have some support for your lower back.

Close Arm Press-Ups. Beginners should perform in a box style press-up, as this is a hard exercise. Aim to make a triangle with your fingers and thumbs, taking your elbows out to the side. Your hands should be under your chest.

Normal Fly’s. Work on either a flat or incline bench, taking the weights from a central position, out to your sides, in line with your shoulders.

Keep a slight bend in the arms at the elbow, lowering the weights no lower than your shoulders.

Shoulder Press. Aim to work in a seated position on an inclined bench for support for your back. Lift the weights from your shoulders, up above your head, keeping the palms of your hands facing forward. Make sure the weights are secure.

Remember that by doing high reps 15+, you will build up muscular endurance, without increasing in size too much. Correct nutrition will help you build stronger leaner muscle tissue necessary for today’s game.

Aim to fit 2 sessions in a week of strength training, as mentioned earlier, these can be combined with your C.V. sessions.

Use the weight training login sheet to monitor your progress, with the amount of weight that you can lift as well as the reps.

Co – ordination / Skills

Eye – Body – Brain, is the way we want to have our co-ordination and skills. Unfortunately many of us see the ball, and our body takes too long to react to it passing us. This area can be improved by developing what is called your motor skills, so that you see the ball, and your body automatically positions itself in the correct place.

With a complete variety of situations you can be in for a ball to pass you, you need to work on improving your total body, to react as one fast efficient machine.

Ladder Drills

Used to gain speed in footwork, lay out a rope ladder, or chalk out an area with approximately 15 inch squares. Combining ladders so that you go both forward and side ward’s, will give you rapid results. The numbers indicate the order to run in.

Single leg run; aim to run on the ball of your foot, without catching the rope or chalk lines.

= Left foot = Right foot

Double leg run; aim to run at speed through the rope ladder, pumping with your arms.

= Left foot = Right foot

Double side step, run through the ladder in a sideways direction, with either double or single leg. = Left foot = Right Foot

Ickey Shuffle, As with the double run, but this time every third step comes outside the rope.

= Left foot = Right foot

Cross over’s, Side step through the rope, taking your leading leg both in front and then behind the trailing leg. = Left foot = Right foot

By performing these drills in both directions, you will soon realize that you are better on one side than the other. Aim to work on your weaker side for greater improvements in your game.

Discipline

Its simple, whatever the referee says, it goes. Avoid getting yellow cards or getting sent off by learning to rise above poor decisions. If you get fouled, pick yourself up and get on with the game, lashing out at your opponent can end with your team playing with ten men, and you not being popular with your team-mates.

I’m personally not good at team sports, as I don’t like to lose because of a weak link within the team. What I’m now learning to do, is to find that weak link and rectify it. If it means dropping a team member because there is a stronger player, then accept the coach’s / managers choice and simply ask what you need to do to get your place back.

Too many players once dropped have a completely negative attitude, look upon it as a challenge to prove your coach wrong. Train wiser and smarter than before, show commitment to your team, and even if you don’t make the first team, at least you can respect yourself for trying and giving 100 percent.

Way too many football players and strength coaches develop favorite lifts (usually one’s they’re good at) and stick to them no matter what. I’ve run into guys I trained with a decade ago and they are still doing the same workouts! I don’t mean the same philosophy, I mean the actual same football workout! Same exercises, sets, reps and sometimes, sadly, weights.

While we need to rotate exercises constantly to avoid accommodation, we can’t just add any-old exercise and hope for the best. Plus, often, the exercises we hate the most are the ones that do us the most good. Many guys hate movements like lunges, but, if you want to get faster for football, you need to do them.

Here are the top 11 Exercises for to Get Faster and Stronger for Football. Add them to your rotation and work ‘em hard.

1. Deadlifts – Deadlifts are the King Maker…they might be more responsible for building football speed and strength than any other exercise.

Deadlifts are ultra-important for several reasons:

o They build tremendous starting strength. Many football players are woefully lacking in the ability to get explosive and apply strength quickly.

o Deads strengthen the Posterior Chain; building power and strength in the hamstrings, glutes, calfs, and the entire back (the muscles responsible for getting you faster for football).

o Deadlifts, like Squats, build insane strength in the hips; the seat of power for football.

o They build slabs of muscle. Nothing will make you grow from your calfs to your traps like heavy Deadlifts.

o The Deadlift can be extremely useful for injury prevention. Some believe that the moderate to high hamstring activity elicited during the deadlift may help to protect the Anterior Cruciate Ligament during rehab.

Deads can be used as Max Effort, Dynamic Effort or moderate rep exercise. The classic 5 x 5 protocol applied to the DL can put more muscle on your frame than most other exercises combined.

2. Box Squats – Box Squats and Box Front Squats are essential for building tremendous leg strength and explosiveness while taking almost all stress off the knees. They are the cornerstones (along with deadlifts) of any football strength training program that can make a player stronger and faster for football.

Louie Simmons of Westside Barbell Club, who’s club has done more to popularize Box Squats than anyone else in America describes the benefits of Box Squatting in one of his articles:

Many trainers have found that a great deal of flexibility can be developed while box squatting: by going lower than normally possible, and by using a wider stance.

You can isolate all the correct squatting muscles by sitting extremely far back on the box. By sitting back on the box to the extent that your shins are positioned past vertical, the glutes, hips, hamstrings, spinal erectors, and abs are totally pre-stretched and overloaded simultaneously, producing a tremendous stretch reflex.

Box Squats eliminate many of the problems encountered when doing traditional squats. Gone are the knee problems associated with the knees traveling way past the toes. You are also limiting the stretch reflex, so Box Squatting becomes much like a Deadlift in it’s ability to build explosive strength.

Box Squats also teach an athlete to stay tight and explode up using the hips, hams, and glutes. This is essential for any sport that requires running or jumping…which is pretty much all of them! They are key for building football speed and strength.

Some other huge advantages of Box Squatting include:

o Less soreness than traditional squats, allowing you to recover faster and train more often

o No guessing on depth. Set the box to where you want to go and simply sit back on it.

o Box Squats can increase real-world flexibility. If you widen the stance, push the knees out, and descend under control, you will develop excellent mobility and flexibility in the legs and hips.

o Build tons of strength in the glutes and hips – critical to blocking and tackling.

Use Box Squats for either Max Effort or Dynamic Effort training.

If you go heavy, either work up to a max set of 1 – 4, or do multiple sets of low reps

If using the Box Squat as a speed exercise, it’s best to use bands or chains and go for 12 sets of 2 reps with 60seconds rest.

This will all be explained in the workouts section where you will see a living, breathing example of sets and reps for the Box Squat (and all other exercises).

3. Clean & Jerk – A few years back Olympic Lift-only training programs were all the rage. Then, they fell out of favor and on came the anti-Olympic lifting brigade. As usual, and over-reaction short term and an under-reaction long term.

The truth is that the O-lifts are still extremely helpful for football players and, should be included in your football strength workouts. The undisputed king of the O-lifts for athletics is the Clean and Jerk. It’s a lift that builds toughness, identifies weaknesses, and requires strength, power and determination. All the traits an athlete needs!

The C&J is similar to the Deadlift in it’s ability to point out weaknesses. Lifting a heavy bar from the ground to overhead requires strength in the entire posterior chain, plus the abs, shoulders and triceps. If any one of those areas are weak, you will miss the lift.

Some say they are hard to teach but I can get an athlete doing cleans in one session. Remember, the C&J (and just about any other exercise) does not have to be done with a barbell alone. Using sandbags, barrels, dumbbells, kettlebells, a Stone Trainer, a thick bar or a Log is an excellent way to build real-world athletic strength and get around the technique issue. This kind of lifting can be used to build brute strength and also excellent conditioning and mental toughness.

Grabbing a pair of DB’s and doing high rep or timed sets of the C&J is an excellent conditioning tool. I picked up this idea from an old Louie Simmions article and it’s helped me and many of my athletes get in top shape, even when the weather prevents us from going outside. Plus, it really helps build focus and mental toughness.

If you are using the C&J for strength, stick to singles and doubles. If you want conditioning, go with higher reps or time your sets.

4. Box Front Squats – Just as with the O-lifts, people went crazy with the training of the posterior chain. Yes, it’s supremely important, but many athletes and coaches went overboard, completely disregarding the front of the body.

An athlete needs strong quads for sprinting, jumping, and driving another human out of their way. Many feared training the quads at all would lead to them overpowering the hamstrings. This can happen when the hams are under-trained, but we can’t allow the quads to become weak either. Any imbalance, either way, will lead to decreased performance and possible knee injuries.

I always loved Front Squats and believe they might be better than Back Squats for many football players, especially lineman. Having the load held on the front of the body will build tremendous strength in the core, and the entire motion is very similar to the motion of blocking.

But, most guys I’ve seen can’t Front Squat to save their life. They have more bad habits than Artie Lange. They push the knees way over the toes, don’t sit back, and fall forward.

Enter the Box Front Squat. Using boxes at different heights, and a soft box, allows the athlete to sit back, stay fairly upright and drive through the floor, rather than just squatting up and down. It does place some of the stress on the glutes and hams, but leaves plenty of work for the quads as well.

It is especially helpful to do your Box FS with bands or chains. This will help build amazing driving ability and the power to simply run through people. Football is not the only contact sport…in soccer, basketball and hockey, your ability to get the enemy out of your way en route to the goal is essential.

Keep reps low when Front Squatting. Use multiple sets of 1 – 4 reps, or use it as your Max Effort movement and work up to a heavy single.

5. RDL – Romanian Deadlifts are an excellent assistance exercise for Deadlifts and Squats. They build muscle and power in the hamstrings and glutes and also hit the lower back quite well.

The RDL is great for athletes because it is performed in the stance very similar to the “ready position” used is so many sports (hips down, knees bent, flat back…think a Linebacker or the position of the body pre-jump). The romanian Deadlift is such an excellent to get you faster for football that it should be included in the majority of your football workouts.

For many athletes, the RDL is a far superior exercise to the Straight Leg Deadlift. For anyone with a long torso, the SLDL can become a lower-back exercise and damn-near neglect the hamstrings. But, because of the hip position (traveling backwards) and the intense pre-stretch of the hamstrings, the RDL is much better at working the PC.

RDL’s can be done as your Max Effort movement, especially if you do them in the Rack.

RDL’s in the rack.

But, their main strength lies in using them as an assistance exercise for Squats and Deads. If using them as an assistance, go for 3 – 5 sets of 3 – 8 reps.

6. Rows – Too many football players and lifters focus way too much on the pressing exercises and neglect the muscles of the back. This will lead to injuries like rotator cuff tears, pec tears, and shoulder impingements. Worst than that it will also lead to a crappy bench press.

There is about a billion row variations, so pick 2 or three and put them in your training program. You can go heavy or for reps, or both. If you’ve been neglecting your back, you should start off by doing twice as much back work as chest/pressing work!

7. Side Lunges – Most of us simply do not do enough training on lateral movements, which I find odd because so much of sports is played while moving from side-to-side. There are several reasons why most athletes avoid movements like Side Lunges:

o Ego: Less weight (much less!) will have to be used, especially at first.

o Pain: Side Lunges, even with light weight, have the potential to leave you with damn-near injury-like soreness, especially if you aren’t used to doing them

o Ego, again: You’ll never be able to slap on endless 45’s on this exercise, so most people will just avoid the hit to their pride.

Lateral movements are key to building football game speed.

8. Dumbbell Incline – I’m hated for saying this, but I believe the Dumbbell Incline is a much better movement for athletes than the Bench. Obviously, the bench press is a great exercise, but when it comes to athletes, not Powerlifters, the Incline rules.

The DB Incline much more closely mimics the path taken by the arms in many athletic movements such as blocking, punching, and in many wrestling moves.

The incline is also much better at developing the all-important shoulder girdle. It’s a nice compromise between the Overhead Press and the Bench, allowing an athlete to hammer the shoulders, pecs and triceps. Adding the Dumbbell Incline to your football strength program is an excellent idea, especially for lineman and Linebackers.

For those with shoulder problems, Incline can be a life-saver. When I had rotator cuff problems, benching even super light weights felt like I was being stabbed in the front delts! But, I was able to continue doing Inclines as heavy as I could handle. When I fixed my shoulder problems, I returned to the bench and lost very little progress.

The DB Incline is also incredibly versatile; you can use it for Timed Sets, High reps, moderate reps, or you can go super heavy and treat it as a Sub-Max movement. If you’d really like a challenge, try doing a 1-Arm DB Incline, now that’s real “core” training!

9. Sandbags – Lifting and carrying sandbags are excellent ways to “bridge” the gap between the weightroom and the playing field. Sandbags are excellent strength and conditioning tools for wrestlers, football players, and fighters. They will also help with just about any other sport that requires strength, speed, and stamina.

Sandbags shift and fight you every inch of the way. They never relent. Picking up and carrying or shouldering a sandbag feels a lot like wrestling a live opponent. While all the work in the weightroom helps build max strength and speed, using sandbags will be an excellent compliment to your heavy training.

There’s a lot of great resources on sandbag training, but I recommend you check out Josh Henkin’s sandbag training course.

10. Prowler – The Prowler owns all when it comes to conditioning for football. It can be pushed and pulled for time, distance or speed. It can be loaded heavy or light. See where I’m going with this?

The Prowler is also great because you can use it laterally, which as I said earlier, most athletes neglect. So much of sports is played moving laterally, yet training that way is ignored.

Use the Prowler as a finisher or on a non-lifting day as a way to condition. Because of the lack of eccentric movement, the Prowler will not cause much soreness, which is a huge advantage for athletes. One of the biggest issues when designing a training program for an athlete is how to give strength, speed and conditioning their proper due without compromising any of the elements.

Using the Prowler is simple, go light for time for recovery and GPP work. Go a little heavier for sprints and go heavy for strength work.

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