At that point, injuries start to increase and resilience decreases, leaving the coach looking for someone to blame…with the strength coach often the scapegoat. Often, coaches will see sharp play with the team performing very well and then a notable drop-off that correlates to the cessation of weight training. If we spend a large portion of the off-season developing physical qualities in the weight room-such as strength, power, elasticity, etc.-then the qualities will last for the pre-season and perhaps at most for the early part of the regular season, based on what we know about the residuals of each of these training effects.ĭuring the in-season phase, while we want to maintain the focus on actual play, we cannot neglect physical development and maintenance. In fact, many soccer coaches cease all weight training during the season in order to maximize practice and recovery time while trying not to make the players “sore.” Although this outlook has some merit (the focus of soccer is to play better soccer, not to lift heavier weights), the implementation is largely flawed. Typically, training programs have been separated into the “on-field practice” and the “in the weight room” development period. For most universities, soccer is not a revenue-earning sport and therefore does not get the focused attention it deserves. The planning of soccer training ranges from highly complex and esoteric systems to far more simplistic (and outdated) approaches, and it most commonly falls between the two ends of the spectrum. Through conversations with these coaches, as well as reading Raymond Verheijen’s work, I was able to learn about tactical periodization and a few of the different methods for implementing it in a soccer program. I reached out to some generous and skilled coaches and was able to connect with Charles Burdick of the Portland Timbers, Damian Roden (then with the Seattle Sounders), Josh McAllister (then with Minnesota United), John Cone from Fit for 90, and Tony Jouaux with the New York Red Bulls. My problem? I was in a mid-major Division I school with few resources-and even less time-to devote to the soccer programs in addition to my other teams. I wanted to seamlessly integrate the on-field work with the weight room work and be an extension of the coaching staff in the way that performance coaches operate at the pro level. Many performance coaches are in a situation where they may only be in charge of the weight room, while the sport coach takes care of the conditioning work-that, however, didn’t seem to be the best approach for me. I had been around field sports and assisted with them in the past, but now I was THE GUY. I was able to account for the rigors of practice and multiple factors and adjust the physical training program accordingly. With court sports, I was in my element-tracking jumps, heart rates, GPS metrics, all of it. Then, in the spring of 2017, my head strength and conditioning coach took another position at a different university and I was asked to take over our college’s soccer teams.Īs strength and conditioning coaches, we pride ourselves on being able to work with virtually any sport, team, or individual. Up until this point, I had followed that path and carefully planned every step to achieve my goal. It was my favorite sport, and I had played through high school as well as club in college, so it was a no-brainer. In 2014, my mind was made up: I was going to be a basketball strength and conditioning coach.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |