10 Exercises for soccer players at the gym (A must read for soccer players who want to be high performers)

As a footballer, there are exercises that will get you prepared so you can perform well while playing football.

This content is about exercises for soccer players at the gym. You will surely be glad you came across the content and read the content to the end.

Exercises for soccer players at the gym
Exercises for soccer players at the gym

Exercises for soccer players at the gym

Here are some of the exercises for footballers at the gym

  1. Barbell Back Squats

Reasons you should engage in barbell back squats

  • They assist in building your whole body’s strength while concentrating on the lower body and squats work on your hamstrings, quads, glutes, and calves.
  • They boost your general functional mobility, particularly the hips.
  • The exercise strengthens your core which aids in the prevention of lower back pain and injury.
  • Squats aid you to become faster in short distances as a result of the enhanced rate of force development.

How to carry out Barbell Back Squats

  • Start with your feet shoulder-width apart
  • keep your toes facing forwards
  • Go up to the bar with confidence and poise that you will lift some heavy weight powerfully
  • Rest the bar on your shoulders
  • Keep your chest up and head up creating a long tall and powerful posture.
  • Keep your knees soft and don’t lock them out
  • Take a big inhale through your nose
  • Drop your hips back and butt back until about 50 degrees
  • Pull your lower legs back along with the hamstrings
  • Ensure you keep your lower legs as vertical as possible.
  • When your hips are just below your knees, exhale explosively out of your mouth and drive back up with power.
  • Squeeze your glutes at the top and then repeat the procedure
  1. Trap Bar Deadlifts

Why you should carry out trap bar deadlifts

  • Th exercise is basically a squat and deadlift combined into one exercise.
  • The trap bar deadlift strengthens the glutes, quads and hamstrings, as well as development of a strong back, core and traps.
  • The trap bar works more efficiently on the quads.
  • You can move weight quickly with a trap bar than a barbell.
  • Will assist you boost speed and explosiveness through the development of a strong foundation.

How to carry it out

  • Stand in the center of the trap bar with your feet about shoulder-width apart.
  • Lower your hips down, grab both handles with a solid-powerful grip, and take a big inhale through your nose.
  • Keep your head forward and your chest up with a strong powerful posture.
  • Move your feet through the floor, explosively blow out of your mouth and drive up through your feet.
  • Move your hips forward and squeeze your glutes at the top.
  • Repeat
  1. Dumbbell Lunge

Reasons you should engage in Dumbbell Lunge

  • The lunge will make all your lower body strong.
  • The lunge will boost your core strength as well as stability.
  • The lunge will boost the mobility of your lower body
  • The lunge will get you ready for what is to happen on the field; as you are generally on one foot throughout a soccer match.

How to carry out Dumbbell Lunge

  • Grab two dumbbells in your hands.
  • Get into a split stance position with one foot in front of the other.
  • Keep your hips facing forwards.
  • Let your back foot should be dorsi flexed (toes driving into the ground).
  • Keep your chest up as well as your head up with a strong posture.
  • Keep your core tight.
  • Gradually lower both of your legs simultaneously.
  • The front leg should stop at 90 degrees; ensure you don’t allow the knee to come over the toes.
  • The back leg can slightly touch the ground if needed.
  • Take a deep inhale through your nose, drive through your front foot and explosively blow out of your mouth to rise back up.
  1. Dumbbell Lateral Lunge

Why you should engage in Dumbbell Lateral Lunge

  • The exercise will boost the strength of your leg muscles; especially your adductors (groin), which is heavily taxed during football training and matches.
  • The exercise works on your small stabilizer muscles (stabilizers of the hip joints).
  • They assist in your overall change of direction and agility.
  • Hits your legs from different angles.
  • The exercise replicates a football-specific movement; lunging out to win the ball or change direction quickly.

How to carry out the Dumbbell Lateral Lunge

  • Stand with your feet together and two dumbbells in your hands.
  • Deeply inhale through your nose, take a large step out to the right, lower into a lunge.
  • Sink the hips back and bend your right knee to track directly in line with your right foot.
  • Keep your other leg straight, but don’t lock it out.
  • Ensure both feet are pointing forward at all times.
  • Exhale powerfully through your mouth and push off the right foot to straighten the right leg and return to the starting position.
  1. Front Squat

Why you should engage in Front Squat

  • Front Squats activate the core musculature as well as your overall total stability than the traditional back squats (you can do both the Front squat and traditional back squats).
  • Concentrate more on the front side of the body.
  • Front Squats will expose weaknesses in your strength and flexibility (And you get to correct them).
  • Assist in maintaining a strong upright posture.

How to carry out the Front Squat

  • Step up to a barbell and grip the bar slightly with your hands.
  • Tighten your core and pull your shoulder blades down and back.
  • Move your elbows up as high as you can while you also maintain a strong posture.
  • Take a deep breathe through your nose, sit your hips down and back, bend your knees while you push your knees out to lower into the squat.
  • Keep your chest and elbows up throughout the entire rep.
  • Continue to bend your hips and knees until your thighs are about parallel to the ground.
  • Exhale through your mouth, and drive through your midfoot to stand up out of the squat envisioning that you are pushing the ground away from you.
  • Your quads and glutes should do most of the work.
  • Squeeze your glutes to fully extend your hips at the top of the squat.
  1. Pull-Ups

Why You Should engage in Pull-Ups

  • The exercise will boost Your Posture.
  • The exercise will Strengthen Your Grip.
  • Pull ups build Upper Body Strength.
  • Pull ups build Core Strength.
  • The exercise will boost your Speed.
  • The exercise enhances force transfer.

How to carry out Pull-Ups

  • Grab the pullup bar with your palms facing away from you (shoulder-width grip).
  • Hang onto the bar with straight arms and don’t allow your legs to touch the floor.
  • Drive your shoulder blades down and back to create tension in your back.
  • Take a deep breathe through your nose and simultaneously, pull your elbows down and back as hard as you can towards your pockets while you exhale explosively out of your mouth.
  • Ensure you pull your head above the bar.
  • Lower yourself back down again until your arms are straight.
  1. Bench Press

Why You Should engage in Bench Press

  • The exercise will assist you build a strong chest and shoulders.
  • The exercise boosts your pushing strength.
  • Bench press enhances your posture.
  • The exercise makes you stronger in 1 v 1 battles and challenges.

How to carry out Bench Press

  • Lie down on the flat bench with the bar resting on the rack directly above your eyes.
  • Hold the bar with both hands at about a shoulder width grip
  • Inhale deeply through your nose and un rack the bar.
  • Lower the bar down towards your chest keeping your forearms vertical.
  • Exhale explosively out of your mouth driving the bar away from your chest straight into the air.
  • You can lock out your elbows at the top of the movement.
  1. Dumbbell Shoulder Press

Why You Should engage in Dumbbell Shoulder Press

  • The exercise requires tons of core stability (rectus abominis, erector spinae and external oblique).
  • The exercise assists you in becoming more explosive and this requires your whole body to work together to produce the transfer of force.
  • Dumbbell Shoulder Press enhances running performance as a result of the anti-extension quality of the exercise.
  • The exercise enhances your posture.
  • Dumbbell Shoulder Press enhances your sprint speed by boosting your vertical arm drive.
  • The exercise enhances your starting strength by requiring you to generate force quickly with little or no motion or momentum prior to the movement and this is crucial in cutting and being quick in your first step.

How To Dumbbell Shoulder Press

  • Sit on a secure bench with dumbbells in your hands.
  • Let your palms face forward.
  • Feet are shoulder-width, with your feet driving into the ground to create a stable position.
  • Keep your torso right and rigid and slowly lift the dumbbells to your shoulder position.
  • You can rest them on your shoulders if you want to and keep your elbows at about 90 degrees.
  • When you are ready, bring the dumbbells towards your ears, and open your chest, take a deep breathe through your nose.
  • Exhale as hard as you can through your mouth and press the dumbbells explosively over your head.
  • Gradually bring them down. As you lower them down, concentrate on retracting your shoulder blades like you are squeezing a pencil in between them.
  • Think about pressing the dumbbells through the roof
  1. Barbell Bodyweight Row

Reason You Should engage in Barbell Bodyweight Row

  • Barbell Bodyweight Row with total body control.
  • It enhances core stability.
  • Barbell Bodyweight Row boosts upper body strength.
  • It enhances activation of total body musculature.

How to carry out Barbell Bodyweight Row

  • Get under a bar (squat bar on a secure rack or a bar on a smith machine)
  • Let your hands be slightly wider than shoulder width
  • Let your feet be about shoulder width apart
  • Let the back neutral position; glutes and quads right and feet Dorsi Flexed.
  • Chest in line with bar, take a deep inhale through your nose, and pull yourself to the bar by driving your elbows towards your pockets while breathing out explosively through your mouth, also ensure you use your lats and mid back, not your biceps.
  • Gradually lower yourself to the bar, and Repeat
  1. Turkish Get Up

Why You Should engage in Turkish Get Up

  • Turkish Get Up will enhance your lower body stability and core strength.
  • It will assist in boosting hip mobility.
  • Turkish Get Up will assist you change directions and speed on the pitch.

How to carry out Turkish Get Up

  • Using a kettlebell or a dumbbell, begin by lying flat on your back on the ground.
  • With your right knee bent, and foot flat on the floor.
  • Keep the left leg extended straight out.
  • Hold the dumbbell in your right hand, and have your left arm extended straight out to the side at a diagonal angle with your palm down on the floor.
  • Inhale through your nose and extend your right arm with the weight and press it straight up, directly above your shoulder.
  • Push your hips up and bend your left, bringing the leg directly behind you.
  • Put the knee down on the floor directly under your hip.
  • Your right knee should remain bent and out in front of you with your foot flat on the floor.
  • Lift your upper body into a lunge position and stand up.
  • Reverse these movements as you lower back down to the position you started with.
Exercises for soccer players at the gym
Exercises for soccer players at the gym

Conclusion

These exercises outlined in the content will help footballers build their boy the right way for them to perform well while playing in the field.

Remember to discuss this with your doctor if you have any health issue. For you to get the result you need while doing this, you need to be consistent.

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