When we watch our favorite football players on the field, we admire their speed, agility, and stamina to play the game with the same intensity till the end. But there goes a lot of blood and sweat in the gym behind the scenes - Lower body and shoulder training are a must as it’s a game driven by the legs and guided by the shoulders.
If you are not just a football fan but intent to play it yourself, we have curated a list of the five best exercises that your favorite players do regularly to up their game. They are also suitable for everyone to tone their body with weight per your fitness level or without weights.
1. Weighted Squats
Photo: Youtube@Coach CC Matthews
Benefits
- Weighted squats do a fantastic job on your hamstrings, glutes, and quadriceps muscles.
- It helps build the whole body, with your lower body being the central area of focus.
- Enhances your overall power of the legs improving your endurance.
- It helps in strengthening the major muscles of your legs.
Movement Instructions
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and toes pointing outwards.
- Place the dumbbells or the barbell on your shoulder.
- Keep your chest up and head straight.
- Do not lock your knees and slowly go down while keeping your lower legs vertical.
- Inhale before going down and slowly exhale as you go down.
- Do not bend your knees out or back down at any point.
- Repeat this exercise for 3-4 sets with 10-12 reps each.
2. Dumbbell Lunges
Benefits
- Weighted Lunges help improve your strength and stability to a whole new level.
- It enhances your mobility and speed.
- It works on your complete lower body.
- Weighted lunges prepare your muscles for the exact match situation by enhancing endurance and power.
Movement Instructions
- Grab a pair of dumbbells as per your fitness level.
- Stand in a split stance position. Keep your arms at your sides with a dumbbell in each hand and palms facing your body.
- Step forward with one leg and land on heel.
- Slowly go down with your front leg stopping at 90-degree knee flexion and back leg slightly touching the ground at the knee level.
- Try to put your head up and chest out while keeping the back straight.
- Repeat this exercise for 3-4 sets with 10-12 reps each.
3. Dumbbell Shoulder Press
Benefits
- It helps improve your posture.
- Enhance your speed and agility.
- Running speed is also enhanced because of the more decisive swinging arm action.
Movement Instructions
- Grab a pair of sturdy dumbbells.
- Sit comfortably on a bench with feet flat on a mat at a distance equal to your shoulder width.
- Now slowly lift the dumbbells to the shoulder position.
- Inhale deeply while keeping the weights stable and when ready, press the dumbbells over your head while exhaling.
- Maintain your head and torso straight in line with each other.
- Focus on the process of breathing while you complete 2-3 sets of 10-12 reps each of this wonderful exercise.
4. Weighted Glute Bridges
Benefits
- It trains your glutes mainly and impacts the calves, hamstrings, and quadriceps.
- It helps engage the core muscles improving the core strength.
- It also enhances your posture and overall stability.
Movement Instructions
- Lie down comfortably on a mat with your knees bent.
- Place the dumbbell on your hip flexors (upper thigh).
- Now take a deep breath and try raising your hips.
- Make sure you exhale slowly while going up and engage your core well.
- Repeat this exercise for 3-4 sets with 10-12 reps each.
5. Hurdle Drill
Benefits
- Improves speed and agility.
- Enhances the alertness and focus.
- Improves muscle coordination and your ability to perform combined movements.
Movement Instructions
- Place the hurdles on the floor and form a circuit for the drill.
- Move side to side over the hurdles by raising your feet as fast as possible.
- Repeat the course for the 30s to 1 min.