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Soccer Training Tips: Learn The Benefits Of Flexibility

knowledge | July 23, 2010

Soccer training tips

Let me ask you a simple question. Not following the soccer training tips, most soccer coaches blindly design training programs for their players just to make up the numbers and simply go through the motions. Are you doing the same thing?

Before you design your next training programs, make sure you set some specific goals for your team. Determine in advance what you wish to achieve form this program and do whatever it takes to accomplish that.

Introduce new, fun, and innovative soccer drills in your training sessions to add variety. It will break the monotony of doing the same drills day in and day out. Once the kids enjoy participating in the training sessions, their performance will improve drastically.

Make your players learn to respect you and listen to you, irrespective of their age or the level at which they play. Valuing each other’s opinions and feelings creates a healthy environment for both players and the coach.

Soccer Training

Soccer players always have an advantage of the level of flexibility is high. It has been divided into 3 categories.

Dynamic flexibility: It refers to a player’s capability to perform fast movements within the full range of motion in the joint, like twisting from side to side.

Static active flexibility: This is the aptitude of a player to stretch a hard muscle by using the tension from within that muscle. Holding one leg out in front of you as high as possible is an example of this. Here, your hamstrings are stretched when your quadriceps and hip flexors hold your leg up.

Static passive: It’s the skill of using the body weight or some external force to hold a stretch. For example; imagine holding your leg out in front of you and resting it on a chair.

Moving further, let’s now see what is next in the line of soccer training tips. This calls for a need to examine and ensure that the clothes worn by kids to the field are apt for the weather.

Training for soccer should be followed by a fitness program that focuses only on those areas that need maximum help. Keep the following factors in mind whenever you are designing this kind of a training program.

Age of the player: With age, there is a decrease in the flexibility of soft tissues in the body that is directly related to the reduced range of movement, no matter what the gender. However, decrease in flexibility can be significantly slowed down if we keep active.

Gender: Girls show greater movement, no matter what their age.

Motion: It is natural for kids with an active lifestyle to showcase better soccer skills and a greater range of movement that the ones not so active on field.

Injury: Injuries also impede the range of motion in a joint.

Pain: There is a decrease in flexibility as pain increases that result in muscle spasms. But, strength training does not slow down flexibility if you do the exercises correctly and in full range of motion.

Genetics: The amount of flexibility that a player possesses also depends upon his genetics.

So, there should be no reason why you should not include soccer training tips into your training program for better productivity. You can improve your coaching skills by subscribing to our youth soccer coaching community that has tons of articles, newsletters, and relevant videos.

 

Andre Botelho is a recognized authority in youth soccer coaching and has already helped thousands of youth coaches to dramatically improve their coaching skills. Learn  how to explode your players’ skills and make training fun by downloading your free ebook at: Soccer Drills For Kids.

 

Soccer Training Tips: 5 Simple Steps To Coaching Goalkeepers

knowledge | July 17, 2010

Soccer training tips

If you’re like me you probably know that soccer training tips for goalkeeper are of immense value since a goalie is the only player on the field who is allowed to touch the ball by both hands and arms.

For this reason, the soccer skills of a goalie give him an advantage over all the other players on the field. But this makes a coach’s job tougher and more complex when training goalkeepers for soccer.

Based on the method of play in soccer, goalkeepers are the first line of offense and last line of defense. They’re always ready to employ their body to stop the ball from entering the goal or to block it. They are ready to dive in any direction to catch hold of the ball.

Goalkeepers training for soccer on various techniques specific to their role and the level of their play can be extremely demanding. You must also keep in mind, his mental state when you are training him/ her on all important skills and techniques.

Soccer Training

The only player in the team who can match the vigor of a goalkeeper is the striker. In reality, many goalkeepers have already been great strikers at some point in their careers. You’ll observe that very often, it’s the goalies and forwards that get into a direct battle on the field, no matter what the level of competition.

When it comes to soccer training tips, staying balanced and knowing the center of gravity of the body is of the essence to the goalkeeper. This will benefit a game setting by enhancing the activity of a goalkeeper and the promptness of other players.

While a majority of goalkeepers are tall with big hands and long arms but even if it is not the case, they simply compensate for the lack of their physical attributes with good vertical and lateral mobility.

It is important for a coach to realize that goalies have a great sense of worth but still need to be motivated on a regular basis. Goalkeepers should perform soccer drills that improve upon their skills specific to their role in the game once they have finished doing regular warm up exercises with the team.

Because goalkeepers have a dominant personality and a sense of control, they are leaders of the team. So they must be supported by the rest of the team to successfully execute their role by being placed in a vocal and demonstrative capacity.

The ball can be handled by the goalie only in the 18 yard box. If there is anyone other than the goalie, who gets to touch the ball, the opponent team wins a free kick. It’s a penalty shoot from “the spot” in case of a goalkeepers’ team member.

So you should now concentrate on using these soccer training tips by encouraging the goalkeeper who leads the team inside the 18 yard box, and needs appreciation of remaining teammates. For more such training tips and coaching skills, subscribe to our youth soccer coaching community and get access to thousands of videos.

Andre Botelho is known online as “The Expert Youth Soccer Coach” and his free ebooks and reports have been downloaded more than 100,000 times. Learn how to skyrocket your players’ skills and make practice sessions fun in record time. Download your free ebook at: Soccer Drills.