I received this question via email today on warm ups and thought it would make an interesting post…
Q: My team and I have fallen into a routine of warming up with two lines of plyers moving back and forth down a line of cones doing various movements: jog, skip, shuffle, lunges, hip mobility, leg swings, etc. Then we combine stretches with dribbling, fast footwork, or change of direction moves. That leads us in to the rest of the session or remainder of the pre-game warm-up. The girls seem to use the first part of the warm up to talk through their day. I think they are getting what they need from the movements although the focus comes and goes. In your opinion is it better for a team to have a set warm-up or vary it from one practice to the next?
A: Great question… I have found that a mixture, or progression of warm ups is much better than 1 set warm up every day. This works in 2 ways…
1. Progressive warm ups provide a new stimulus each week (or every other week) so that they are constantly simulated, but not having to learn new drills. You would just simply merge some of the movement based activity in with ball drills, increase distance, duration and intensity, or partner up which add reactive anticipation and perceptive qualities to warm them up mentally as well as physically.
2. From a flexibility/mobility/activation perspective, I would start each season with stationary (more static drills) that address the appropriate positions, postures, and the “where” to feel this aspect. Then progress to more of a moving warm up that becomes more dynamic in nature, but still giving them a few minutes to statically stretch the problem areas (calves, groins, hip flexors) if needed.
I find that after about 3 or 4 times through a warm up the players (and the coach) become comfortable with the activities and they start to become lackadaisical in their approach to warm up. If we can add a small, but new stimulus every few weeks the players are being exposed to new variations and boredom becomes less likely. They will always go back and tell you what they like best, so give them the opportunity to stretch on their own, but warm up progressions are essential for both player and coach to stay sharp!
Here is an example of how we might progress through one aspect of a warm up of the hips:
Phase 1: Learning to Feel the Stretch
· Kneeling Hip Flexor Stretch (static)
· Kneeling Groin Stretch (static) View the Groiner Exercise Here
· Postural Squat (static)
· Glute Stretch (or Figure 4)
· Groiner Stretch (static hold)
· Toe Touch (static)
· Hip Circles on all Fours
Phase 2: Gaining Stability (Activation) while Stretching
- Groiner (no hands – 3 second hold x 5 times)
- Bottoms Up (3 second hold x 5 times)
- Lateral Lunge (no hands – 3 second hold x 5 times each side)
- Squat
- Lunge
- Balance Hip Circles
Phase 3: Making the Warm Up More Dynamic
- Lunge to Groiner to Balance (5x each side with 3 second hold)
- Postural Squat to Bottoms Up
- Walking Lateral Lunge
- Walking Hip Circles
- Fwd and Lateral Skipping (high knees for more hip flexor activation)
- Carioca with a High Knee Crossover
Phase 4: Revisiting the Basics
- Go back and revisit some of the simple static drills
- Re-teach some of the “where” to feel these drills
- Choose the ones that give you the biggest bang for the buck
- Skipping Hip Circles
- Volleying balls above the knee
I know there are a lot of things left out in this warm up and it is far from complete, but I just wanted to show a progression from stationary to moving in regards to hip mobility and activation for soccer players. There is no right or wrong way to go about this progression. This is just a collection of ideas that may inspire you to change it up every now and then. If you are having trouble getting a mental picture of these exercises, please refer to the www.AthleteFIT.com website for more info.
If you are having success with some of these types of drills, it would be great to hear from you. I think if we all put our favorites together, and categorize them accordingly, we could come up with a really cool progression that might save all of us some time (and sanity)!