Overview
Soccer is very high intensity game. During the regular season, there is more than plenty of aerobic activity going on. But it happens to be interspersed with with a lot of sprinting, jumping, diving, spinning and lateral movements. Not to mention this all takes place while trying to manage and control the angle and direction of a soccer ball. To be on top of your game, you need to have good cardiovascular endurance. This can be achieved in the weeks leading up to the season.
Significance
A preseason aerobic training program is very significant in the life of soccer players. Often after a season has ended, players tend to take a lot of time off which leads to them becoming unconditioned. In doing this, their aerobic capacity goes and often times they lose a bit of their skills.
Function
Preseason soccer aerobic training actually functions in a couple different ways. It strengthens players' cardiovascular strength and it also gets them into better anaerobic shape as well. This is due to the fact that soccer is all about intermittent bursts of energy.
Interval Training
Preseason training is based on a sport specific situation. This means that it mimics the actual game. Interval training is a popular method of doing this training. Here's an example of how it works. After a five- to 10-minute warm up consisting of light jogging and dynamic stretches, intervals of high and low intensity running are performed. To make it really sport specific, short games can be played for four-minute time frames and three-minute rest periods as an example.
Sprint Drills
There is a lot of sprinting in the game of soccer. Sprint training is done by running wind sprints with short rest periods in between each one. This can be made more sport specific by incorporating ladder drills, agility drills, hurdles and cones into the mix.
Identification
In the game of soccer, there is also a lot of getting up and down off the ground, and jumping. Muscle endurance is what is needed for these repetitive body movements. Training for this would include doing high reps with just body weight. Some examples of exercises to do would be push-ups, crunches, squats and lunges.
Considerations
It is important to stay properly hydrated before, during and after aerobic training. This is especially the case when it is hot outside. Another thing to take into consideration is the diet. Often a long layoff from training comes with a layoff from eating healthy, too. Foods to avoid would be high fat foods, deep fried foods, processed foods and sugary drinks like soda.
