Why Soccer Speed Training Is Necessary for Soccer Players
Soccer speed training has three components: acceleration, maximum velocity and speed endurance.
Soccer speed training is associated with acceleration, maximum speed and the development of ability to maintain the speed. Speed is an essential component of soccer. Without speed, the players will not be able to outperform their opponents. However, many players do not get adequate training and do not perform to their potential. The focus is usually on building endurance, which is essential for building and maintaining speed. However, specific workouts should be a part of soccer speed training that help the players in learning how to run fast.
Acceleration
There are some techniques associated with acceleration that help you gain speed at the expense of less energy. Considerable amount of work should be done in this regard to teach players some acceleration mechanics. It is very important to be able to gain speed quickly and it is only possible with proper soccer speed training. This applies not only to soccer but to almost all other sports.
In soccer, your performance hinges on the ability to outrun the defender, to chase the attacker and to get to the ball first. All of this requires speed bursts. Acceleration takes place in 3 to 4 seconds. One acceleration workout may include, accelerating for 25 meters, and repeating the process at least six times with two and a half minute rest.
One important thing that athletes miss out on while accelerating is that they focus too much to gain speed through the use of their legs. If you put too much strain on your legs right in the beginning then you will lose stamina quite quickly and your muscles will start to wear off sooner. You should make use of other parts of your body in order to speed up. Here are a few workouts that should be included in every soccer speed training session.
Maximum Velocity
After around thirty meters of acceleration, athletes get to their maximum achievable speed. If you are running at your maximum speed, your body will not be leaning. However, if you try to drive harder in order to gain speed, which is not possible as you have already reached your limit, you will only exhaust yourself. This will lead to fast deceleration, which is detrimental for your performance. Therefore, athletes should be told during soccer speed training sessions to relax once they have achieved their top speed. They should be able to resist the urge of driving harder. Maintaining speed does not require as much of an effort as gaining speed does. The problem with many athletes is that they are not able to recognize the point where it becomes futile to push forward. If they are able to do that, they will avoid from pushing harder, and instead focus their energy on maintaining speed.
One maximum velocity workout is to place a cone at the starting point, then at 15 yards, 35 yards and at 55 yards distance. You should accelerate hard towards the cone placed at 15 yard mark. You would have reached your maximum velocity by then. On your way to the next cone, you should relax and focus on maintaining your speed. After reaching 35 yard mark, you should decelerate to a stop at 55 yard mark. As you gain experience, you should increase the distance between the markers.
Speed Maintenance
Speed maintenance or speed endurance refers to the ability to maintain your speed in case of fatigue. It is a very important aspect of soccer speed training and trainers should focus on that. Consider that if you are well into your game, and everyone is tired, then players who maintain speed in case of tiredness will be able to outperform others.
This training has a cognitive component as well. When players get tired, they revert back to some old and easy methods. This puts a dent in their performance. Therefore, during soccer speed training, players should be taught to give their best at all occasions. If they are trained in this, they will be able to deliver the good when going gets tough during the game. They will be able to evade fatigue.
The workout to perfect speed endurance includes running for 60 to 150 yards at full intensity. The player should try to attain full recovery (5-15 minutes) between each repetition.
With all these soccer speed training exercise, soccer players will be able to master a very important component of the game that is the speed. Speed training should be integrated into the training part as it is essential. Otherwise, soccer players will not be able to dominate on the field.
