Soccer Fitness And Nutrition: The Main Factors
Wednesday, April 29th, 2009Team sports like soccer make it very hard to determine what areas of fitness are required. The types required will depend upon positions and role in the team, but one key area is skill and specifity. Soccer players should be soccer players first and then athletes. The areas of fitness, speed, strength, stamina etc., but skill and specifity and perhaps spirit are the most important.
Depending on the role of the soccer player there are different types of fitness factors that must be considered, but there are two main factors that are necessary for all players: skill and specifity although stamina is also very important. There are two very important exercises to increase the stamina of a player and they are aerobics and anaerobic.
Aerobics helps a person to learn how to control their breathing and therefore control the amount of oxygen that they intake in one breath. People can practice aerobics when walking or jogging to control when they start to get out of breath, with time and practice you can control your level of fatigue and continue with your exercise for a longer amount of time.
Anaerobic exercises helps a player control their level of fatigue after short bursts of energy for example the energy used in a sprint that can make the player feel instantly tired and with loss of breath. Practicing this exercise will help the player to control the amount of breath used with instant bursts of energy and lower the feeling of tiredness.
Because of the physical activity involved in a soccer game, the fast sprints and the various short bursts of energy a player undergoes when playing soccer, the players need to undergo a training of both aerobics and anaerobic exercises to keep them in perfect shape and prevent loss of breath, dizziness and fatigue on the field. Depending on the soccer player, they must undergo more or less of these exercises.
The nutrition of a soccer player is as important as the fitness routine that the player must do. To determine the best diet for the player, they must undergo a complete examination by the team doctor. To have enough carbohydrates before a match, the player must eat a very nutritional meal just before starting the game also during the game in half time the player must have a small snack.
Glucose filled drinks are also advisable as they help to maintain a high energy level and are also very easy to digest. A soccer player should avoid the intake of soft drinks in his diet and especially before a game as the bubbles that the gas provokes make digestion a lot harder. Caffeine should also be avoided before a match as it tends to cause more dehydration that it does hydration.
For a healthy lifestyle a soccer player should have a diet high in carbohydrates, proteins and fats to maintain their energy, keep a fitness routine that includes exercises for all different strains that their body can be put under and a high intake level of fluids to keep them hydrated.