Hey Jim and everyone else,
Just wondering what you guys think about training for a soccer goalkeeper. Right now I’m playing in clubs (college age) but I might be walking onto a team within the next year. I’m 6’2", 210 lbs and around 12% body fat. Also I’m 20 years old.
Here are some of my lift stats:
Squat - 450 Lbs
Bench - 300 Lbs
Deadlift - 550 LBS
Right now I’m training 3-5 days a week depending on how much time I have. I always hit the big three lifts in the week, a lot of accessory work based on my weak points and what I need for goalkeeping. For speed and conditioning, I make sure to train sprints, change of direction, longer distances (150 and 300 yds mainly for conditioning), and a heavy plyo day.
What I’m wondering is how many exercises should I do per muscle group in a given week as a guideline? I usually have guidlines for my main lifts:
Squat: 2 Upper Back (Rear delts, Lats, etc), 1 Leg (Quads, Hams, Glutes)
Bench: 3 Shoulders, Tris, Chest
Deadlift: 2 Low Back (Middle Back - rows, posterior chain), 1 Leg (hip hinge)
Do these numbers change when applied specifically for sport? At what part of the workout should I incorporate sled work? How should my jumps or sprints vary through a progression? Such as what would a program look like through a mesocycle and then how would exercises/power + speed work progress through 3 mesocycles (12 week program)?
My gym has an unlimited amount of equipment. Ranges from barbells, Dumbbells, plates, machines, turf, prowlers, sleds, ladders/cones/hurdles, racks, pull-up bars, bands, 10ft rope wall, parkour boxes, plyo boxes, sandbags, legs, logs, stones, yoke and anything else you can imagine. I love keeping my program fresh however I will try to use the same exercises for a couple weeks to allow my body to adapt.
In terms of soccer, there are really no practices for some of these clubs. I get majority of the work by playing in games and creating my own practice schedules with some semi-pro players I know in the area. There are open practices at certain fields Sun and Tuesday night. I usually get 2-4 morning practices a week as well.
I believe in keeping my training simple, but at the same time I like variety and keeping it interesting. In the end, I will train myself to be mobile, strong, and fast.