Have you been there before? After slugging it out for 11 months of the year,
your body is about to break down like a freight train with no coal in the
furnace. You may be thinking that you should push on full steam ahead,
though nothing can be further from the truth. In fact, possibly the most
critical stage in any goalkeepers development is the need to take a step
back to move two steps forward, this is why rest is critical to maximizing
your goalkeeping performance in the off season. So, now you can kick your
heels up on the couch, pop open your favorite bag of chips, grab the TV
guide and your home and hosed? No, you may end up derailing all your hard
work in an instant. Let's see how any goalkeeper can recover and maximize
their performance in the off-season with 5 simple and fun training tips.
Two of the key components why many young footballers fail to progress in
their physiological development is that they miss two critical components
throughout their training year.
1) Being aware of a "detrained" state:
Detraining is the
partial or complete loss of training-induced adaptations, in response to
an insufficient training stimulus. Detraining characteristics may be
different depending on the duration of training cessation or insufficient
training.
Mujika I, Padilla S.
Detraining: loss of training-induced physiological and performance
adaptations. Part I: short term insufficient training stimulus. Sports
Med. 2000 Aug;30(2):79-87 (Source:
EXRX.net ).
Taking time off to recover from the harsh
demands of competitive football entails a fragile balance, where timing is
everything, and if left unchecked the untrained goalkeeper can pull apart
much of the platform for success that was built over a competitive season.
Having too much of a break means that the muscles and cardiovascular
enhancements created over a year can be lost over a very short period of
time. The time taken to rebuild those muscular and cardiovascular responses
which are lost in the off season can take considerable time to be re-built,
which can lead to a short term road block in competitive performance.
2) Understanding the concept of active rest:
Active recovery refers to engaging in low-intensity exercise after
workouts. There are two forms of active recovery. One is during the
cool-down phase immediately after a hard effort or workout. The second form
of active recovery includes the days following a competition or other
intense workout. (Quinn, E.
Sports Medicine Guide, December 2, 2007).
The above definition refers to
a period after each and every training session, though we can easily apply
this to the rest period in a year long periodized plan, over 2-4 weeks
(depending on the structure of the competitive season). Active rest is the
key component to being able to curb the effects of a detrained state, by
reducing activity intensity rather than cutting off activity completely.
So let's look at 5 super hot tips to help maximize goalkeeping performance
and enhance recovery rates from the harsh demands of competitive football:
1) Make Rest a Part of The Bigger Picture: Coaches whom have a
periodized plan are more likely to help their team succeed throughout a
competitive season than the coach that doesn't take the time to plan their
training sessions throughout the year. Though the off season should also be
part of the bigger picture. Having a 2-4 week rest period should entail that
the goalkeeper and the rest of the team are active, though not to the same
intensities as before and during the season. Keeper Skool have created a
great resource called The G-Code (part of their
Keeper Skool Certified membership program) that gives an in-depth
break down training sessions you can use to help maximize your performance
via periodized training programs.
2) Do Fun Stuff Other Than Football: One of the great things about
growing up in Australia is that Aussies have a great array of different
sports and football codes. Playing a different sport outside of the regular
football (soccer) season not only helps young players take their mind off
the game, but allows them to work different muscle groups and expand their
skill set outside of regular training. Get involved in basketball, get a
rugby ball and play some touch football with some friends, the list is
endless and the key again is differentiation and the ability to recover
actively outside of the competitive football field. Goalkeepers can gain
invaluable experience in eye-hand coordination by playing other sports in
the off season to boot!
3) Get Your Body Back in Alignment: Everyone knows that the goalkeeper
goes through some serious knocks and bumps throughout their season. Holistic
therapies are now widely practiced in elite sports, and nothing beats a
better recovery than some massage and physiotherapy to knock out any
roadblocks to your football development. In fact, massage therapy during the
off season will help the mind refocus, and help the muscles recover from the
strenuous demands encountered throughout the season. If you have had any
niggling injuries during your competitive season, get down to a
physiotherapist to help knock them out, so that you are fresh and ready to
go when the new season gets under way.
4) Eat Right To Fuel Recovery: Don't let the Christmas break make you
look like Santa when the time comes to get back out onto the pitch! As with
the whole season, a focus on solid nutrition should be the norm, even when
it is time to take a break from the pitch. What you also need to steer clear
of, is going to the extreme with unconventional diets that can hinder rather
than help your recovery. Whole breads, cereals, fruit, vegetables, plenty of
water and lean meats will contain ALL of the nutrients you require to fuel
your recovery and maximize your performance when it comes time to hit it out
in your next competitive season. Now no one likes an overweight goalkeeper
(that's why they put us between the sticks in the first place, right?), but
having one day during the post season to have a "cheat" food (something you
really like but is usually taboo during the season) is ok as well.
Taking the foot off the pedal is both healthy and normal for the competitive
goalkeeper to maximize their performance. Resting completely can lead to
detraining effects which can really take the edge out of the goalkeepers
performance throughout the season. In summary, planning your off season is
vitally important to maximize goalkeeping performance, making sure that you
take the time to get out and play other sports (outside of football) to help
enhance your skill set is also vital. Throughout the season, you are bound
to get some knocks that may be prolonged if no rest and recovery is taken
during the off-season, having some sports massage is a great way to iron out
aches and pains and get the body ready for pre-season. The post-season is no
time to be slack about your nutrition either. Make the effort to keep your
diet lean and mean, but also leave one day (every now and then) in your post
season training schedule to have a little cheat food as well!
John Stevanja runs Keeper Skool.com a
leading provider of online football goalkeeper training information.
Keeper Skool recently launched their "Certified" program, an online
membership site that provides the latest interviews with elite trainers
from around the world, forums and The G-Code (an e-book about the science
of goalkeeping). To find out more about the Keeper Skool Certified
program
click here.
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