Your Football Strength Program Is WRONG!!

Now that many of you have wrapped up spring practice, spring break, trips to the beach and pool it’s now time for football weight training and 2-a-day camps to begin.  I’m all for hard work and especially when it comes to team sports and events.  Here’s some things to keep in mind when it comes to designing your summer strength and conditioning program and making sure that your “Football Strength Program Is RIGHT”

Ask yourself this.  What are the qualities that a football player needs……….?  I’ll help you with this one.

• Strength
• Speed
• SAQ (Speed, Agility, Quickness)
• Explosive Power
• Full Range of Movement or Movement Efficiency
• Dynamic Flexibility
• Muscle Gain (for some)
• Fat Loss (for some)
• Conditioning
• Mental Toughness
• Team before “I” mentality

1. Learn about strength training - Many football coaches ARE NOT STRENGTH COACHES.  That’s right they are football coaches and anything they stress in the weight room is usually from their day and not appropriate for developing proper movement, strength, flexibility,etc.  However, should that be you and your situation then you better pay close attention to this site and educate yourself on what you’ll need in the weight room to make you a stronger, faster, more explosive athlete!!  Keep checking this site for more info on how to get better.
2. GPP - General Physical Preparedness is a must for any sport but especially football.  You should be in shape to train, not train to get in shape.  Jump rope, body weight movements, and med balls, and sleds make for a great way to get an athlete ready to train as well as lay the ground work for proper movement for the exercises to come.
3. Foam Roll - Begin every session with 5-8 minutes of foam rolling.  Think of foam rolling as a more convenient massage therapist on site to help release any muscle tension you may have and to better prep your muscles for setting PR’s in the Gym.
4. Dynamic Mobility - Following your foam roll session, next move into a dynamic mobility warm up specific to the movements that you will be doing in the gym and/or on the field.  This warm up session should not take away from your strength, it should be just enough to break a light sweat and get your CNS stimulated for your training session, 10 minutes tops.
5. Focus on Technique first - then progress to external weight i.e. bars, db’s, etc.  Too many of you freshman and sophmores will be in the weight room and the seniors will be grunting and throwing around some (not alot) but some weight and you’ll want to jump right in and prove your worth.  I admire the enthusiasm but take the time to learn proper technique and I promise you that you will be on your way to faster gains both in the weight room and on the field.
6. Compound Lifts - Once you’ve mastered technique, turn your focus to compound lifts or exercises that provide you the most bang for your buck.  Joe Defranco refers to this as “gym economy.”  With all the practices, running, and lifting, you won’t have alot of time so hit the big lifts if nothing else at all.
7. Unilateral Movement-Here at FITT we have all of our athletes follow there ME movement or Primary movement with some type of unilateral movement, i.e. alternating incline db press or Bulgarian split squats.  This ensures one of a few things, it addresses muscle imbalances, helps athlete work through a full ROM, provides some volume to the limb(s) being worked, and transfers well to field for any sport.
8. Strengthen Your Posterior Chain - If this hasn’t been said 100 times over but its so true.  The best thing any strength coach can give an athlete it’s a pair of strong and flexible hamstrings.  The GHR, hip bridges, kb swings, band pull through, and more are great means to develop these muscle ensuring you that when you break through the line you take it to the house!
9. Avoid Isolation Movements - See number 5, enough said.
10. Train Your Grip - It’s very important for any athlete to have a strong grip.  The hands are the ends of the kinetic chain so it makes perfect sense that you’re only as strong as your grip.  Dead lifts train your grip indirectly but specialty exercises are encouraged to better improve these lifts as well as transfer to the field.  They also make for great team training competitions in the weight room.
11. Flexibility - With all of the strength training, practicing, and running you’re asking for pulled and strained muscles without a proper flexibility program.  There are many forms of this as I mentioned above earlier in “dynamic flexibility”, there is also static flexibility in where you hold that position for a given amount of time. (The one I really prefer is PNF stretching but this requires an experienced coach or trainer and can be a little more time consuming) This type of stretching is usually done at the end of a strength or running session or 2 or 3 hours later after your CNS has settled down some and you’re more relaxed.
12. Nutrition - This is a pretty important one.  Many of you come to the weight room having skipped breakfast and expect to have enough fuel to make progress in your training.   It’s very important to supply your body with the proper amounts of healthy fats, lean proteins, and complex carbs while avoiding sugars, sodas, and other forms of sweets.  Think about it this way, if it doesn’t grow in the ground you shouldn’t eat or drink it.

Alot of information has been posted but believe me there is much more.  At the end of the day remember to keep your training simple, stick with the basic compound lifts, work hard, make progress, be consistent, and results will come!!  Follow these things and I promise that you will Train. Play. Dominate your opponents!!

-Travis