Let’s face it! When it comes to warming up and stretching in Soccer practice , both coaches and players tend to ignore both. You musk know the importance of a practice session in shaping a player’s career as a whole. In soccer training, performing daily drills is not good enough.
Strength, elasticity, and patience are necessary in players to stay active in the game. So every practice must start with warm-up and stretch. Later in the session, include games, drills, and any kind of technique teaching. Lastly, game tactics can be taught to the kids.
Warming up and stretching achieve two broad objectives. They make the body ready for a grueling session and stretching after the session tones and relax the muscles. There are a few drills that act as great warm up and stretching exercises.
1. Running in Formation: In this warm up activity, make all the members of the team run, two abreast, staying in step. This activity will result in developing player’s strength along with a feeling of belongingness in the team. Moreover, moving forward in a pre defined arrangement of players; you indicate to the opponents that they are going to have a hard time dealing with you.
2. Follow the leader: This is one of those warm up soccer drills that develop the player’s ability to follow orders and to dribble with their heads up, watching other players. Every player needs to have a ball in this activity. Pick a senior player or an assistant coach to start dribbling the ball and everyone else must follow him/her in a line. This player should try a lot of new things which should be imitated in turn by the rest of the pack.
3. Reaching out: In soccer practice, this is a well accepted and efficient stretching activity. Make the players stand with their legs apart and direct them left, right, and center. Then, ask them to try touching their toes on all sides. To begin with, this may seem like a tough exercise but they will adjust to it soon.
4. Lift legs up behind: This exercise makes the thighs get stretched. While standing, the kids must fold one of their thighs and hold it for a specific time. The repeat the exercise with the left leg. It is crucial that the kids do not look below at the ground else they will fall.
Every practice must have an aim. As a coach, try to focus on 1 or 2 skills per week. Engineer drills that work towards developing the skills of the players while at the same time helping them warm up and stretch.
Fitness is the key. Understand that the team that is not fit and gets tired loses. It is extremely important that every drill uses a soccer ball. Do not make the kids run just like that, have them dribble with the ball while they do so.
So go ahead and make your team work out with these fitness mantras for soccer practice. Join our youth soccer coaching community to benefit from our knowledge, tips, and tricks on youth soccer.
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