Training concepts that can sustainably reduce the risk of injury should correctly be integrated as an integral part of every training process.
In this blog post, we will therefore show you how you can sustainably increase your protection against injuries.
Neuromuscular control and adaptations are therefore the stated goal of injury prevention programs in women's soccer: The aim is to movements, motion control and motor skills Modify in order to avoid injury-risky movements or to counteract them dynamically.
Injury prevention exercises are to be carried out as an independent training focus, but are also suitable as part of warm-up programs to integrate injury-prevention elements into team training. It is important to develop a routine in order to be able to generate automatisms.
However, the content of preventive training must meet the function-specific requirements of a soccer campaign (duels, passes, headers, tacklings, runs with abrupt stops and changes of direction). We therefore see areas of general warming and activation, mobilization, trunk & leg stability, plyometrics, explicit jump and landing training, as well as exercises with changes of direction and pace (agility) and specific movement patterns that are comparable to those from the game as essential.
In order to optimally prevent injuries in women's soccer, we must first understand soccer as a whole. Football is a Duel sport — (indirect) contact with the opponent as a disruptive factor is therefore often the cause of injuries. Air duels, running duels, bumping or tackling throw a soccer player's body position out of balance. If the latter is then unable to adjust its exercise program to restore the balance situation, the risk of injuries is high.
Effective stability, however, requires maximum control against unwanted movements on all levels of the body. On the one hand, this involves muscular control in the trunk area and, on the other hand, stabilization of the pelvic and leg axes adapted to the playing situation.
Research teams found that deficiencies in neuromuscular trunk control are linked to an increased vulnerability to knee injuries — particularly among women — which justifies the use of specialized core training within injury prevention programs in women's soccer.
This training focus is also said to have a positive effect on the dynamic balance of soccer players.
In the dynamic nature of her sport, a soccer player's trunk is exposed to many asymmetrical and unexpected movements, which generate high forces in all three body levels (see picture above). Another fact that is decisive in preventing injuries among female soccer players.
Players must in duels, in air duels or deceleration movements Dynamically stabilize these acting forces or automatically adapt the body position to the new situation during an explosive movement. The decisive goals of core stabilization training are:
a. Improving the control of stabilizing muscles
b. Improving the automation of stabilizing muscle contractions in the dynamics of corresponding game situations and movement patterns
c. Optimizing posture and balance by regulating the neuromuscular control system
For game athletes, training content must go beyond controlled static holding exercises, as adequate stabilization is ultimately always required from soccer players in dynamic situations. In particular, the training of the reactive stabilization force in soccer is correspondingly specific and also necessary.
In practice, this means that limb movements (e.g. Arm swing and swing bone from running) changes the dynamics of the holding exercise and therefore requires the dynamic stabilization ability accordingly.
The position of the body in space should also be considered and exercises should be adjusted in accordance with the upright (soccer-specific) posture.
More broadly speaking, stabilization training in gaming also means improving leg axis stabilization, especially in terms of dynamics. Deviations from a functionally correct pelvic leg axis are considered as insufficient knee joint stabilization and are ultimately a Injury indicator. In addition to proprioceptive exercises, balancing exercises and exercises for single-leg dynamic stabilization, appropriate interventions for this include jumping and landing exercises, which effectively train the neuromuscular system in its sport specificity.
Jump and landing exercises will therefore be discussed separately in another blog post.
Dynamic knee valgus is therefore a major risk factor for cruciate ligament injuries. Especially in women's soccer. In conjunction with the trunk-stabilizing muscles, the functional strength of the hip stabilizers is therefore an important factor for the stability of the pelvic leg axis. It is therefore very important for the exercises to initiate appropriate activation in order to ultimately train you in game-specific movement patterns.
In short: Even when stabilizing the pelvic leg axis, a progression of dynamics towards typical game movement patterns and situation training is important in order to automate appropriate muscular activation in injury-risky situations from the game.
To avoid injuries as a soccer player, we are now showing you 14 exercises that you can integrate into your soccer training.
In any case, the knee position is of great importance, especially for women. The first exercise is about raising awareness of activating the knees while standing or during exercises into external rotation.
- Get into an athletic position with your knees slightly bent
- Rotate your knees inwards first (X-legs)
- Then rotate your knees outwards (O-legs)
reps: 20 seconds
With this drill, you not only strengthen and strengthen your abdominal muscles, but also your legs, buttocks and shoulders. Your duel behavior will therefore benefit.
- Start in push-up position
- Take your knees alternately towards your chest
- Maintain body tension throughout
reps: 30 seconds
In order to be correspondingly successful and remain injury-free, you need holistic athletics. One muscle group that is often underestimated or trained too rarely is your lateral abdominal muscles, which you draw on with every shot, pass or header.
- Start in a lateral position with closed and extended legs
- Raise your pelvis and form a straight line from head to toe
- Maintain body tension
- Repeat this exercise on the other side as well
reps: 20 seconds (per page)
With a sturdy leg axle, you protect yourself from injuries and make your running behavior significantly more efficient as a result. This exercise strengthens the ankle, knee and hip axes accordingly and gives you a clear advantage on the field.
- Start from the squat
- Keep your upper body straight
- Perform a knee lift and an arm swing with the counter arm at the same time
reps: 30 seconds
Squats also show you your weak points clearly and bluntly. Too little ankle and hip mobility? It's important for soccer players to work on this — for finally more power on the pitch.
- Get into squat position
- From this low position, you now alternately raise your legs
- Work with an opposite arm
reps: 30 seconds
The monopod shows you the state of affairs in the truest sense of the word. With the Star Tap, you go one step further when it comes to the stability of your leg axes.
- Start with one leg
- Tap forward with your heel
- Then tap clockwise with the tip of your foot
- Try not to put your free leg down and return to a stable monopod after every tap
reps: 2 rounds (per side)
The knee lift is of fundamental importance in soccer. It determines your stride length and therefore necessarily your speed. With the Wall Sprint (Loaded Lift), we increase the range of motion of the knee lift and thus also the training effect.
- Lean against the wall at a 45-degree angle with your upper body upright
- Bend your mainstay slightly
- Bring your free leg backwards and then quickly upwards
- Keep your arms stretched
reps: 15 (per page)
Since a stable leg axis protects you from injuries and strong glutes also increase your performance, the next exercise is ideal for you as a soccer player. That is exactly why this exercise should not be missing from an injury prevention program in women's soccer
- Start lunging forward
- Tense buttocks and abdominal muscles
- Bring the knee of the back leg towards the ground
reps: 10 (per page)
An explosive print to the side — nothing unusual in soccer. The factors “strength” and “stable leg axis” are of paramount importance when it comes to preventing injuries on the one hand and increasing performance on the other.
- Start with a lunge to the side
- Bend the leg when the leg is straight
- Move your arms forward to compensate
- Then move to the “Sprinter” position
reps: 10 (per page)
Tappings are an excellent drill because they promote quick footwork.
- Get into a stable, slightly forward bent upper body position
- Make sure you have a quick foot extension on the forefoot
- A normal foot attachment, then a foot attachment far out
- Move your arms slightly
reps: 10 (per page)
Since a stable leg axis protects you from injuries and strong glutes also increase your performance, the next exercise is ideal for you as a soccer player.
- Tense buttocks and abdominal muscles
- Start lunging forward
- Then perform the lunges in the star pattern
reps: 2 rounds (per side)
With this exercise, we focus on stabilizing your leg axis, which is very important for you as a soccer player.
- Start in a single-legged position with a slightly bent knee
- Bring your upper body forward; move your heel back up
- Make sure your back is straight and your pelvis is stable
reps: 15 (per page)
With this exercise, we will now dynamically activate your entire backward chain. For soccer players with lots of stop-and-go movements, this is an important drill, as it engages your entire spine down to the back of the thigh muscles.
- Start in an inverted four-footed position
- Tighten the glutes and back of the thighs
- Stretch your hips and lower them again
reps: 20
A stable leg axle protects you from injuries and strong glutes also increases your performance. In this respect, the next exercise is ideal for you as a soccer player.
- Do a wide backward lunge crossed behind the mainstay
- Straighten the upper body
- Lower your back knee and straighten it up again
reps: 15 (per page)
By the way, these exercises are also part of our rehabilitative comeback trainings. With special training programs for knee joint injuries, we are there to provide you with advice and assistance even in the worst time for every athlete. In doing so, we rely on the procedure “reliable diagnostics — professional physiotherapy — comeback training”.
After the neural healing phase, mobilizing, strengthening and finally dynamic elements are implemented piece by piece in the individual training units as part of the comeback work.
In principle, everything a soccer player needs to come back even stronger after an injury break.
Be fearless. Be focused. B42.
sources:
McGill et al, 2004; Zazulak et al, 2007; Kachanathu et al, 2014
Hewett et al, 2013; Barnett et al, 2014
Kachanathu et al, 2014
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