During lockdown or anytime you find you cannot get your team to training for a period of time you should make sure they are doing things to keep fit. They need things that they will find are fun and things that they will want to do because it is a competition. Without matches they are missing that competitive edge and that will add to their boredom when they cannot get out and play.
The drills below are a mixture of single and group work and will benefit your players so they are not coming back to training or to matches unfit.
For your players, you want a combination of activities so they can work in a variety of ways. One of the best individual fitness sessions is Leg press with a ball, which players can do at home. It is simple, just needs a ball and works on leg strength, which is vital to young players.
If you have enough players – brothers, sisters, friends – why not try this small-sided Continuous 2v2 game.
Short bursts of speed are vital in football, and you don’t want your players to lose their sharpness. Try this session How can you train speed in your players? It’s one of the best ways to keep players fit and sharp, and will help your players hit the ground running when they come back to training.
And if you want some fun while keeping fit try Skills relays. A race is always a good way to get young players to put the extra effort in.
For the older players they need something that helps maintain body strength. Get them to do a set of press-ups each morning to keep themselves fit. So use the tips in Soccer press-ups to help you. And to keep older players legs strong so they can last the pace in matches, The tuck jump is ideal practice.
Leg press with a ball... this five minute fitness drill can be used during your training sessions for a quick break to help coaching points sink in, or as an incentive for a drinks break. MORE
Young players can often get bored by fitness exercises, they just want to play. So keep their interest high with this game from Michael Beale's 64 Small-Sided Soccer Games manual. It's a great way of giving your players a good workout. MORE
Press-up drills are an excellent way of developing your players’ upper body strength in the arms, chest and shoulders as well as building core strength. MORE
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The season has suddenly taken off again after 4 months of Coronavirus lockdown. I've been coaching for 14 hours for the last two weeks in an attempt to get the players back into some kind of shape for playing matches. It has its benefits but also it has a downside. Two of my players picked up injuries, one an ankle injury and the other had what he called "tired legs". Find out how we got on... MORE
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