When players like Kylian Mbappé or Timo Werner When they get rolling, the defenders usually only see their rear lights. They are now racing across the green at over 35 km/h. With their incredible start, speed and technical finesse, the Bundesliga's rocket men are also something of a promise against the sadness of midfield action and possession of the ball. In this blog post, we will explain to you the science behind speed coaching and show yourself how fast you are working on the pitch can.
A guest article about “Getting faster in soccer” by expert Lasse Ahl.
First of all, it should be said that the topic of “speed training in soccer” is an extremely complex and integrative topic. That's why we've decided to serve you this important content in small, digestible bites.
This first approximation should first address the term “speed” in general. Following on from this, there will be a first speed specific training session for you, outside of team training.
We want the attentive reader to be able to develop a feeling for the topic of speed based on this blog series.
The articles are intended to build a bridge between complex physiological processes and the implementation of fast-induced training.
“You can't train speed”, “That's genetics”; “Either you're fast or you're not”; “But we can do something for speed”; “He's off to a good start, but he's slow”; “Get faster? Forget it!”
You could probably add more nice sentences here.
Such sentences always arise where attempts are made to simplify complex issues without context [insert a soccer coach training of your choice here]. However, context is a key determinant of whether something said makes sense.
The second important influencing factor is the definition of terms so that you know what you are talking about. Without it, sprint training in soccer doesn't work.
Speed, like strength, endurance and mobility, is part of our physical abilities. Every sports student receives these four basic elements several times in their first week of study.
I guess every graduate can write down the conditioning skills just as well as the associated coordination skills. Together, they represent our basic motor characteristics.
As it were, this means that these very characteristics can be changed — to a certain extent — through targeted training, as the human body is able to adapt to certain circumstances (adaptation).
Nonetheless, the development of speed is a very complex issue.
The definition in the field of training and sports science alone is incredibly diverse. This is primarily due to the fact that “speed” can take on integrative, context-dependent forms (including speed of reaction, acceleration & maximum speed).
The associated abilities are both conditioned (energetic mechanisms) and are highly dependent on central nervous system control processes.
Classically, you could outline “speed” as the time it takes someone or something to overcome a certain distance. Usually expressed as meters per second. However, this very mechanical definition would not take into account the complexity of the physiological concept of speed.
[...] Speed is the ability to perform motor actions in a minimum period of time under the given conditions due to the mobility of the processes of the nerve-muscle system and the strength development capacity of the muscles (see Frey 1977, 349).
If you compare different sports such as martial arts (boxing, judo), athletics (sprint, high jump, throwing sports) and field sports (soccer, handball, rugby), then all these sports challenge their athletes different versions The motor ability “speed” decreases.
But our context is soccer, so we need a more or less appropriate definition for it, to which Jürgen Weineck has an answer:
“The soccer player's speed is a fairly versatile skill. This includes not only reacting and acting quickly, starting and running quickly, handling the ball, sprinting and stopping, but also quickly identifying and exploiting the given situations” (see Weineck 2010, 609f).
It would now be possible to further elaborate on all small areas of this definition. But that is not necessary at all for now. Football is a sprint sport:
If you can run fast for longer, you have a higher chance of winning.
In this blog section, we focus on the possible improvement of energy processes and exclude the perception-determining components for now. We now want to focus on the following factors influencing “sprint development”:
• General physical readiness
• Spint & jump technology
• Strength development ability
• Agility and change of direction in soccer
• Maximum speed vs. ability to sprint repeatedly
Every soccer player can get faster. One point for this is General Physical Prepardness/General Physical Preparedness:
This means nothing else than that someone who prerequisites in order to be able to sprint as fast as possible at all. On the one hand, it may mean that you have minimized the risk factors of an injury through additional training.
More broadly, the term can also be summarized as meaning that the individual potential can be better exploited. General physical readiness can take various forms.
Where additional strength training helps one athlete, targeted rehabilitation measures will benefit the other, and another will benefit from anaerobic endurance training in order to be able to sprint quickly at all times.
In summary, you can therefore three benefits Name an additional (strength) training for soccer players in relation to athletic performance:
1. Significant reduction of Injury indicators
2. Extension of strength development ability & anaerobic performance
3rd body composition
a. Building muscle mass, reducing body fat
b. Adaptation of passive structures (tendons, ligaments, cartilage, bones)
Especially in the area of “running & jumping”, we tend to do this without much thought, which may not be wrong per se. But with the right sprint exercises, so much more would be possible.
But one faulty technology combined with a sudden increase in training volume and intensity, will almost certainly result in a negative adjustment (injury or disproportionately long recovery time).
One improved sprinting technique usually resulting in an economized movement process, which can be associated with acclimatization.
This is the only way to ensure a progressive build up of stress over a certain period of time. Furthermore, an economic linear sprint allows targeted “falsification” of the technology (e.g. ball observation during a sprint) in the first place. If you like, the “sprint tank” is enlarged, which allows a player to sprint quickly more often.
There are also initial signs that sprint training with the right technique can reduce injuries in the back thigh muscles (see Nüll, 2019; Mendiguchia et al, 2020).
Although previous investigations have only been carried out with small samples, in the worst case scenario, correctly performed sprint training prepares an athlete for repetitive game loads.
On the other hand, theoretical, technical models should not be dogmatic. The inter-individual differences (different segment lengths, etc.) are sometimes too great for that. In this article, we limit ourselves to effective practical “drills” to train the technology.
But why are jumping technique and therefore jumping performance important for the maximum sprint?
Vertical and horizontal jumping performance has a direct influence on sprint performance up to 60m. This is partly due to the direction of movement of the sprint itself. He is a Mix of horizontal and vertical force vectors. The specific force situations of sprint & jump can therefore be compared, up to a certain extent.
Jumps can help an athlete to make the relationship between force and speed (rate of force development or force gradient) explained in the following article more successful.
On the one hand, jumps/landings can be worked against resistance (e.g. box jumps — you have to work against your own body weight & gravity) and, on the other hand, changing the ground contact times influences the relationship between force and speed production.
Longer ground contact times allow you to jump to something higher (high box), where shorter ground contact times allow faster jumping in a row (jumping over mini hurdles).
Both lead to specific adjustments in the muscle-tendon complex (stiffness & reactive force), which can have a positive effect on the risk of injury as well as on performance.
In order to prepare the muscle-tendon units, especially in the calf (Achilles tendon) and knee (patellar tendon), for multiple jumps and sprints, it is recommended to incorporate strength-specific exercises from the B42 app for these muscles.
To start this sprint training for soccer players perfectly prepared and warmed up, we recommend our yoga flow specifically for soccer players.
Key points:
▪️ Kneel hip-width apart
▪️ Make sure your hip stretches constantly
▪️ Work out with a long back
Repeats:
▪️ 8 (1 pass)
Key points:
▪️ Jump twice with short contacts on both feet
▪️ Land quickly and with a straight leg axis in the lunging position
▪️ Maintain an upright position of the upper body
Repeats:
▪️ 4 — per side (1 pass)
Key points:
▪️ Stretch high with your upper body upright
▪️ Land with a low focus on one leg
▪️ Ensure fast and stable deceleration
Repeats:
▪️ 4 — per side (1 pass)
Key points:
▪️ Lean against a sturdy wall at a 45-degree angle
▪️ Maintain an upright upper body
▪️ Work out with quick contacts on the forefoot and a pronounced knee lift
reps:
▪️ 20 seconds (2 runs)
Key points:
▪️ Lean against a sturdy wall at a 45-degree angle
▪️ Maintain an upright upper body
▪️ Work out with quick contacts on the forefoot and knee extension in the mainbone
Repeats:
▪️ 8 — per page (2 passes)
Be one step ahead of the others - with B42
Key points:
▪️ Lean against a sturdy wall at a 45-degree angle
▪️ Maintain an upright upper body
▪️ Work out with quick contacts on the forefoot and a pronounced knee lift
Repeats:
▪️ 20 seconds (2 runs)
Key points:
▪️ Jump explosively from the lunge position
▪️ Maintain an upright position of the upper body
▪️ Straighten your knees slightly after the jump
Repeats:
▪️ 8 — per page (3 passes)
Key points:
▪️ Start sitting with an upright upper body
▪️ Make sure there is quick contact with the forefoot
▪️ Explosively stretch your hip
Repeats:
▪️ 8 (3 passes)
Key points:
▪️ Start from the push-up position
▪️ Try to quickly find your sprint position
▪️ Tighten your trunk
▪️ Take an explosive first step
Repeats:
▪️ 6 (1 round — with a 90-second break afterwards)
Key points:
▪️ Start in a one-legged position with the knee pulled up
▪️ Straighten your knee and raise your counter arm
▪️ Pay attention to the stability of your ankle
Repeats:
▪️ 8 — per page (2 passes)
After this block, we recommend an extended break of three minutes.
Key points:
▪️ Start from sprint position
▪️ Watch out for an explosive first step
▪️ Pay attention to expansive steps
Repeats:
▪️ 6 (1 round — with a 90-second break afterwards)
Key points:
▪️ Start standing with your legs closed
▪️ Stabilize your core
▪️ Watch for a quick arm swing
Repeats:
▪️ 30 seconds (2 runs)
After this block, we recommend an extended break of three minutes.
Key points:
▪️ Start from the easy run
▪️ Watch for a long sprint step
▪️ Straighten your upper body
▪️ Sprint with pronounced knee lift
Repeats:
▪️ 6 (1 round — with a 90-second break afterwards)
Key points:
▪️ Get into a half-knee position
▪️ Maintain an upright upper body
▪️ Pull your elbows back close to your body
Repeats:
▪️ 30 seconds (2 runs)
It is now time for you to regenerate as quickly as possible. To do this, we recommend the cool down of our.
However, we can see that there are quite a few areas in which you can work in terms of your “speed”.
However, we must point out the individual differences here. Athletes have different starting levels, daily routines, and genetic dispositions (including body geometry).
The following practical training content is general suggestions for an initial introduction to speed training and does not claim to be exhaustive.
Key message:
If you are able to sprint faster and more often in the game, this gives you the opportunity to influence decisive situations in the game.
“As a goalkeeper, you can put on a sprint from your own five to well into your own half and thus become a “manu-dem-libero.”
“As a defender, you can easily run off a striker in the 89th minute.”
“As a 6-player, you don't lose a duel because instead of 3 starts per 5 minutes, you now make 6 starts in the same time.”
“As an outdoor player, you can suddenly “break through” & run back a lot more often.”
“As a “10er” in the 2nd half, you are no longer just a ball distributor, but are now flooding the box regularly.”
“As a striker, you run offside less often because you can now overrun the defender twice more.”
The additional sprint training in soccer should always take into account other activities. In general, it is recommended to carry out the units well rested and with highly concentrated performance. We also suggest planning 1-2 units a week every 5-8 days in order to make any adjustments and secure them in the long term.
Be fearless. Be focused. B42
Our author Lasse Ahl (33) has been playing soccer actively since the age of 11 and also does additive strength training as well as cycling, running and skiing. He is a sports scientist (M.A.) at the University of Göttingen and has worked in the university sports gym and in university sports for several years. Since 2017, as Academy Education Director, he has also been responsible for the training and continuing education of instructors at the University of Göttingen in the areas of training science and the basics of physiology & anatomy.
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