Athletic Training for Soccer

Totally agree about Core Strength being quite vital in our beloved sport. I'd suggest a wide variety of core exercises. If you have a gym that you can use (fitness center, YMCA, etc...) some of the exercises are a lot easier to work on (due to having access to some useful equipment) but you can also do some stuff on your own. Right now, here's what I do for my Core Workouts (which I end EVERY exercise session with):

Captain's Chair Knee-to-Chest Lifters (2-3 sets of 10 reps, don't bounce these, do them in a controlled manner) - This is the standing exercise where your forearms rest on horizontal pads and you grasp a joystick handle in front of you in each hand with your back resting against a long pad behind you. Then you bend and lift your knees up above your waist like you're trying to get them flush up against your chest (but most people don't go up that high with them). It's great for your hips and abdominals). Once these get easier, do what I do and get a smaller dumbbell (start out small - I'm doing a 10-lb dumbbell at the moment) and grasp it between your feet, THEN do your knee lifts! What a burn.

Captain's Chair Straightened Leg Raises (2-3 sets of 10 reps, don't bounce or swing these, do them in a controlled manner) - Same position in the Captain's Chair but this time you're locking your legs straight and then lifting the entire legs straight up to a horizontal line from your waist and then back down. Be careful NOT to get into a swinging motion where you're cheating and using the swinging motion to help you come back up. Also, for added difficulty you can add ankle weights to this (but start SMALL to be safe) and/or raise your legs higher and hold them in place VERY briefly (you don't want to pull anything). Another good burn.

SIDENOTE - I basically do any of my core work exercises without a lot of rest in-between reps and even different exercises in order to create a sort of cross-fit environment, where I'm getting a bit of an aerobic workout due to not resting much in between everything.

Curl-Ups on Bouncy Ball (weights optional) - While Curl-ups have become less popular lately due to the potential to hurt your neck or back, they're still okay to do if you're using one of those larger bouncy rubber exercise balls for support. Grab a fairly large one and (if you'd like tougher difficulty you can add some small dumbbells or a weight-plate itself) and lie back on it with your lower back fully supported and mostly on top of the ball. Then simply do curl-ups. I do about 30-40. I hold the 2 dumbbells together right below my chin and that adds some extra weight. One other good tip is that when you lay back on the bouncy ball, you'll be steadying yourself with your legs and feet (which will be in front of you off the ball and touching the floor). In order to get even more core burn and such, keep your legs and feet very close together - this makes your core have to compensate while curling-up for the balance issues of laying on the ball. You'll feel a bit more wobbly as your core learns to be strong to help you stay balanced on the ball.

Wheel-Rolls!! (So, so not fun and easy to get hurt on this one so take it easy your first few times!) - Find that small wheel with the two handles sticking out its sides (not the bigger one you see with pedals but the smaller one, it works better, imho). Get on all fours (doggie-style - get yer mind outta the gutter!) and hook one ankle over the other (for a better burn) then grasp the handles on the wheel in front of you and sloowwly roll it forward until it's a foot or more in front of you and you're more parallel to the ground, then clench that core and roll back up. AGAIN...be careful as it seems to put a LOT of strain on your shoulders and Core. In fact, if you have any sort of shoulder issues, don't even try this one. Play it safe. These can really toughen up your core though, they rock!

Oblique Weight Machine (you can also get this workout from holding a heavy medicine ball while twisting side-to-side as you hold yourself in a partially up Sit-Up position) - Find the Oblique Weight Machine in your gym and do 3 sets of 10 reps, concentrating on doing these slowly and carefully. It's the machine where you kneel on the pad below while holding handles in front of you and twisting your waist (the kneepad below rotates, to allow this movement). Start with an easy weight to play it safe and increase as it becomes easier.

Finally, and last but not least...PLANKS!!

Normal Planks - Get into a push-up position and then lower yourself so you're resting on your forearms. Squeeze or suck-up your gut against your spine (clenching it basically) while holding the rest of your body straight as a plank of wood. DO NOT SAG YOUR BACK - that's cheating and totally defeats the purpose. Hold this position for a count of 20 or 30 (depending on your physical condition and such). It looks super easy when you see someone do it. It's not. Right now I just do one or two holds for about 30 seconds each. You'll find that arms will shake a bit as will your core towards the end of each Hold.

Side Planks - Same thing as before but you only rest on one arm and you turn you body on its side and you have to keep your lower half from sagging. Really works your spine, core, and obliques, too. Not easy.

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There are, of course, plenty of other great exercises for an excellent Core Workout but these might get you started. ​

 

Squats are super good because that whole area/region (Glutes,Hamstrings) is super important for helping your groin and hips and adductors/abductors (if I'm not mistaken). Soccer players tend to have good strong Quads from all the fast sprinting we do but our Hamstrings aren't always as good as they could be.

So yeah, incorporate Squats into your routine and focus on FORM while doing them so you don't get hurt AND so that you get their full benefit, too. Lunges are awesome too - I like to do them while holding some dumbbells at my sides for extra oomph.

Good luck!

 

Thanks, I hope it helps!