Soccer Training Tips: Want To Do Stretching
Does it sound familiar when I say that stretching forms an integral part of soccer training tips and is widely recommended and practiced by almost all sportspersons? As a sport, soccer is growing and developing incessantly in its superiority.
There are two types of stretching that can be incorporated in kid’s training for soccer; static and dynamic stretching.
Static stretching requires players to stretch their muscles to a point of resistance and hold for a given duration of time. Rebounding, rhythmic bouncing, and recurring motions are involved in dynamic stretching. Generally, static stretching is considered as more effective and involves less risk than dynamic stretching.
This article discusses some benefits of stretching that go a long way in making a good player great.
Stretching reduces injuries: Stretching helps bring down the risks of injury when performed over a period of time by stretching the muscles daily, thus promoting their growth. Stretching also provides an effective way of enhancing the muscle size and strength.
Stretching affects flexibility: Stretching prevents loss of flexibility. Nevertheless, stretching works best when performed for a greater length of time than for shorter periods of time.
Stretching for some minutes prior to any occasion is liable to improve flexibility. But, of all the soccer training tips, the best is where stretching program is extended over a longer period of time that constantly improves the player’s range of motion.
Stretching betters’ performance: When the stretching program is planned after considering the player’s soccer specific needs, their performance improves.
Make stretching fun for the kids: You can do this by including a variety of soccer drills into your training regimen. Keep changing the warm up activities that are performed before stretching. Try games like the tag game, ball tag, and keep away.
Concentrate all your energy on stretching, experience and identify with each stretch while checking for soreness.
One 15-30-second stretch for each muscle group is sufficient for most players, but some kids require longer stretches and more repetitions as well.
This is due to the fact that when the temperature of muscles is higher than normal, inflexibility decreases and extensibility increases. Players who want to maintain or increase their flexibility can partly achieve this goal by stretching. It is better, safer, and more productive to do stretching exercises when the body temperature is higher than normal.
For this reason, some kids are made to do stretching even after their workout also. After practicing soccer skills, if kids are made to do some stretching for 5-7 minutes, it’ll prevent their muscles from tightening too fast.
Normally, players who perform an active warm-up previous to stretching get an enhanced range of motion than the ones who simply stretch. So if injury prevention is your aim, stop stretching before exercise and increase the warm up time.
Some food for thought; one of the most important soccer training tips is that hurried stretching is meaningless and boring and doesn’t help your players gain flexibility, so allow them some extra time when they are feeling inflexible or stiff. Join our youth soccer coaching community and enhance your knowledge about soccer through loads of articles, videos, and podcasts available there.
Andre Botelho is the author of “The Expert Youth Soccer Coaching Guide” and he’s a recognized expert in the subject of youth soccer coaching. Learn how to explode your players’ skills and make coaching sessions fun in less than 29 days! Download your free pdf guide at: Youth Soccer Drills.