I've often heard soccer players talking about how we have to run 7 miles per game. Some players even run marathons to cross train.
I'm here to tell you that training long distance running is bad for soccer fitness. Here's why and what to do instead:
In a 90 minute game, an average soccer player will:
* Stand: 3-4 minutes
* Walk: 40 minutes
* Jog: 35 minutes
* Sprint: 7-16 minutes depending on the position
Wherever those stats came from originally, I've seen them a few times over the years.
Long distance running only helps with jogging. Not only would you be hurting when it came to sprinting, but that kind of training reduces your sprinting ability.
There's an article by Arthur De Vany on how bad marathons are for you. Among the reasons are various chronic heart, liver, kidney, brain and muscle damage. Not sure why anyone would want that. That's not the way to improve your game.
What should you do instead? Interval training. That's high intensity bursts followed by rest. Try running hills, fartleks or even circuit training routines if it's too bad to get outside. Or just do sprints. The rest of your jogging endurance will be filled out fine in the running you do in practice.
Another indication should be the comparison you can make between elite sprinters and marathon runners. Which of those two groups look more like professional soccer players? That's right, the sprinters. Being able to run for a long time doesn't do you any good in soccer if you're always the last one to get to the ball.
What if you like running distances? Should you stop running distances altogether? No. I just wouldn't make it a practice of running more than 3 miles at a time. Even then, you'd get more out of running more sprints, doing polymetrics, kettlebell work or lifting heavy weights. - 22873
I'm here to tell you that training long distance running is bad for soccer fitness. Here's why and what to do instead:
In a 90 minute game, an average soccer player will:
* Stand: 3-4 minutes
* Walk: 40 minutes
* Jog: 35 minutes
* Sprint: 7-16 minutes depending on the position
Wherever those stats came from originally, I've seen them a few times over the years.
Long distance running only helps with jogging. Not only would you be hurting when it came to sprinting, but that kind of training reduces your sprinting ability.
There's an article by Arthur De Vany on how bad marathons are for you. Among the reasons are various chronic heart, liver, kidney, brain and muscle damage. Not sure why anyone would want that. That's not the way to improve your game.
What should you do instead? Interval training. That's high intensity bursts followed by rest. Try running hills, fartleks or even circuit training routines if it's too bad to get outside. Or just do sprints. The rest of your jogging endurance will be filled out fine in the running you do in practice.
Another indication should be the comparison you can make between elite sprinters and marathon runners. Which of those two groups look more like professional soccer players? That's right, the sprinters. Being able to run for a long time doesn't do you any good in soccer if you're always the last one to get to the ball.
What if you like running distances? Should you stop running distances altogether? No. I just wouldn't make it a practice of running more than 3 miles at a time. Even then, you'd get more out of running more sprints, doing polymetrics, kettlebell work or lifting heavy weights. - 22873
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