Should footballers lift weights?
In a word, YES!
There is a common misconception in football that weight training will make you bulky, slow and heavy.
This may be true to a certain extent if you are lifting weights for the purpose of hypertrophy i.e. bodybuilding. However, for sports performance, the purpose of lifting weights is to improve strength, power, speed and muscular endurance.
Your body responds to the training stimulus you place on it so, as an athlete, you need to lift with intent and with the goal always in mind and at the forefront of the programme.
Lifting weights that are close to your maximum will generate strength gains, whilst performing reps quickly with lighter weights will help to improve speed and velocity.
The benefits of resistance training for footballers are well supported by research. For example, De Proft and colleagues had one group of Belgian professionals perform extra weight training during the season. Compared to a control group who did no additional weight training, the players improved their kicking power and leg strength.
Strength training has not only been shown to make football players stronger and more powerful, but research also shows how it can make them faster. As with strength training, the value of good sprinting speed for footballers is well supported by research. Ekblom (1986) found that the absolute maximum speed shown during play was one of the parameters that differentiated elite players from those of a lower standard. This suggests that better players need superior acceleration and maximum speed to play at a higher level.
Research suggests that maximum strength training with heavy resistances will help improve acceleration and speed. However, max strength training during the in-season is very difficult to incorporate because it is likely to cause muscle soreness and fatigue which is tougher to recover from when training intensity is already very high. The recommendation is therefore two or three heavy strength sessions a week during the off-season, reduced to two in pre-season and then strength should be maintained with one session per week once the competitive season has started.
Resistance training is also thought to play a role in injury prevention in adult and youth athletes. Reilly (1990) showed that the stronger players outlasted the weaker players in terms of a regular place in the team and had reduced injury risks. He recommends that leg strength, in particular, is developed, especially in the quadriceps and hamstrings, to help stabilise the knee joint, which is the most frequently injured joint in football. Reilly found that players who voluntarily completed extra strength training were the ones who suffered the fewest muscle injuries. Since maintaining a fully fit squad can be a big problem, it makes sense for clubs to encourage or schedule general strength training for all players.
Resistance training should be programmed according to the individual athlete’s goals. The table below shows how resistance training can be programmed for strength, power and endurance gains:
The characteristics and type of resistance training are influenced by training experience (beginner, intermediate, advanced) and time of the season (off-season, pre-season, in-season). If you’re new to weight lifting, you should start with a basic resistance training programme focusing on quads, glutes, hamstrings, gastrocnemius and soleus as well as core stability and upper body strength (specifically for the shoulder muscles which may be prone to injury due to the defensive demands on the pitch). Max strength training should only be undertaken by athletes with experience in lifting weights.
Footballers should use their time during off-season to focus on max strength gains which can then translate into power and speed gains during the pre-season and in-season with the correct programming. If all these recommendations are followed, lifting weights should never make an athlete bulky, slow and heavy.
Strength training is often the missing piece of the puzzle. If you’re not currently strength training, now is your time!
Tariq Lamptey
Brighton & Hove Albion F.C & England Defender
References:
1. Baechle, T.R. and R.W. Earle, Resistance training, in Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, T.R. Baechle, R.W. Earle, and D. Wathen, Editors. 2008, Human Kinetics: Champaign, IL.
2. MACKENZIE, B. (2005) Strength training for football players
3. REILLY, T. (1990) Football. In: REILLY, T. et al. (eds) Physiology of Sports, London: E. and F. N. Spoon
4. EKBLOM, B. (1986) Applied physiology of football. Sports Science, 3, p. 50-60