With the Winter Olympics happening right now in Vancouver, it brings a greater awareness to some of the sports that we do not get to see televised that often and to get to know some of these athletes that are often forgotten in non-Olympic years. Some of the top competitors for Team USA are two skiers, Lindsay Vonn and Bode Miller and short track speed skater, Apolo Ohno. The thing that sets these 3 athletes apart from their competition is not only their ability to land on the podium after almost every event they compete in, but is how they do cross training in alternative ways to improve their overall strength and fitness. For example, Apolo Ohno likes to go mountain biking while Bode Miller spends a day of basketball shooting and basketball training as an alternative to cross training.

This article will mention a few of the training methods that these three Olympians do to make them better than their competitors that may only do ski or skate training. It has been shown that athletes that have better overall fitness, will suffer less stress induced injuries as well as have more strength and flexibility which benefits them in whatever sport that they are focusing on.

Lindsay Vonn is the Vancouver Olympics focal point with an unbelievable amount of talent in alpine skiing. Her story became big news when she suffered an injury to her shin only weeks prior to the Olympics and she was uncertain if she could even compete. So far, she is doing well and finished 3 of her 5 events winning a gold and bronze in 2 of them. She says she is in better shape this season than any other thanks to the hard cross training she has done. She does a lot of circuit training alternating strength exercises with cardio exercises that works her stamina as well as her strength.

Bode Miller had a lot of pressure to bring win at the last Winter Olympics in Italy and did not come through saying his nonchalant training methods were the reason. Since, then he has challenged himself to be in better shape and more ready for this Olympics. He enjoys adding other sports to his training regimen to keep things new and to constantly challenge his muscles in different methods. He plays full court basketball one day and then do interval sprinting and core work on other days. With 3 medals to his name this time around it seems to be benefitting Miller.

This is the 3rd Olympic games for short track skater Apolo Ohno and he has just became the most winning skater at the Olympic Games passing Bonnie Blair’s record of five Olympic medals. He is more confident than ever having lost 20 pounds in his comeback and to improve his fitness. He enjoys doing outdoor workouts like sprinting up a steep hill wearing a weighted vest or going on a long cycling ride to challenge his leg muscles the way they need to be for skating.

Practice makes a man perfect is something that each of us is aware of. This for sure is applicable to the Soccer Practice sessions. The kids are hopeful of attempting something new in the field every single day. However, remember that the kids must be made to practice old techniques in soccer training regularly that have been taught by you.

It’s therefore your responsibility and a big one at that, to see that repetitiveness does not set in with kids doing few similar drills daily. The following tips should help you carry out practice sessions in a disciplined, exciting, and regular manner.

1. Do I need to emphasize this more? Kids will learn from you and hence you should be a role model. Be punctual on the field, show them your expertise with the ball, involve everyone in drills, and organize the sessions well. This will help you win the players respect and trust.

2. The kids should be instructed to get to the field everyday with their own ball. It is mandatory that every kid has a soccer ball. You should be having some extra balls in case some kids forget theirs.

Soccer Coaching Drills

3. Some soccer moves must be practiced everyday without fail. Kicking, dribbling, passing, and throw-ins are vital elements of soccer practice. It is imperative that kids practice these on a daily basis. Involve everyone in it and see that even those kids who are apprehensive initially also become a part of it.

4. Initiate games more than soccer drills in your practice sessions. The reason is that games require much more stamina and dexterity in contrast to drills. In addition, you can research on new methodologies while maintaining the focus on soccer with games.

5. Discipline is the key to success for any team. With young players, it is no big deal to have mistakes. Ensure that you nip all issues in the bud to whether big or small. But mind the method since you are dealing with young kids here and not adults.

6. During the training session, you will observe that there are some players who do not participate in the drill. Make sure that this is not the case. All the players should join the action in some way or the other. Talk to the players about their respective positions and teach them to be responsible in those positions.

7. Do not make them scrimmage a lot. About 15 to 20 minutes at the end of the session is good enough. And do not work with a goalie while scrimmaging. This will help the team build its defensive skills.

8. Keep your eyes open for new ways to conduct trainings. This is the most recommended way of keeping the students interested in the training sessions.

Now its time to start putting these tips into action in your soccer practice sessions. These will raise the ability and skills of your players within a short span of few weeks. There are tremendous resources on youth soccer in our youth soccer coaching community. Join it today and you will see your team rise high soon enough.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Andre Botelho is known online as “The Expert Youth Soccer Coach” and his free ebooks and reports have been downloaded more than 100,000 times. Learn how to skyrocket your players’ skills and make training fun in record time. Download your free ebook at: Soccer Practice

Perhaps you’ve seen sports players on TV wobbling across the field at the end of the game, one leg just refusing to work. Perhaps you’ve observed marathon runners or tri-athlete’s waddle across the finish line because their legs won’t let them run anymore. The problem isn’t necessarilly that these athletes are injured or perhaps overly fatigued, the issue is that their bodies have just run out of fuel. Their muscles have exerted all the energy that they have and as a result have cramped up and stopped working properly.

Cramps are fairly straightforward to diagnose. Whether you are an athlete, coach, or run a home based business tutoring athletes this information will be of help to you. If you’ve ever felt your toes cramp when you take your shoes off at the end of a long day then you know the sensation. What these athletes are experiencing is generally that same pain and stiffness, but it doesn’t stop at their toes. It customarily goes all the way up into their calf and can even go all the way up the leg and into the hip. When this happens it can be very devitalizing and you can’t walk very well until you get the cramp to depart.

The best way to stop cramping is to ensure that you are correctly hydrated and that your body has masses of fuel to perform the activities that you are asking it to. Many times, one can feel the cramp coming on before it really takes hold, but sportsmen and women choose to ignore the symptoms because they need to keep competing. The best thing to do is stop as soon as you feel the original twinges and drink. A sports drink may be a little better than water at this point as it also provides carbohydrates and electrolytes. The carbohydrates are like tiny energy bombs that go straight to your muscles. The electrolytes help your body maintain its sodium levels and permits your body to maximize the liquid that you put in it. Briefly they help you to stay well hydrated.

When an athlete reaches the point at which the cramps have already taken hold, then they need to drink straight away. In order to get the affected muscle group to loosen up, they need to stretch as well. Continuously stretch the muscle till you feel it let go. This may be painful at first, as the muscle is pretty firmly knotted up. While stretching, massage the muscle, as this will also help increase the blood flow and will allow the nutritional elements that you are drinking to be soaked up quickly into the tissue. Keep stretching and massaging until the leg begins to perform naturally again.

You can expect to be pretty sore the day following a bad cramp. When your muscle clenches with that much power it has similarities to the sort of stress that you would put on it when lifting weights. You can get the same sort of muscle soreness from a cramp that you would get from a tough workout.

Let me tell you that in Kids Soccer Drills, there are certain blunders that coaches make which reduce their teams to rubble and bring it down. And it’s absolutely right. Most of you might wonder as to what can be so big that puts the team on a loosing streak. Well then, the bad news is that they are many.

When it comes to soccer drills for kids, you have to be very careful and strategic. You need to understand the psychology of the kids. Exchange words with them discussing things from their point of view. But unluckily, nearly all coaches are not experienced in this. They conveniently ignore fact that there is a disparity between training grown-up players and kids.

So there you have it; top faults of coaches that bring the teams to a point, from where it’s near impossible to get back on to the winning track.

1. Several coaches don’t take their jobs seriously. They do not plan the sessions, prepare the drills, or bother about reaching the field in time. All these are not only bad traits but put off the kids too. Kids tend to be very serious about soccer and you should too. Plan the youth soccer drills in advance. Put together all kinds of equipments which you would need to accomplish the drills.

Kids Soccer Drills

Always be prompt. Make it a point to reach the field earlier than the kids. Well in fact, grace the filed with your presence when kids reach. It has the advantage of finding some extra time to practice the drills and plan other things.

2. When the coaches are instructing before the kids soccer drills, it is normal for them to take a long time. Can you believe how boring that can be? Know that kids come to the field to play and not listen to boring speeches. Keep the lecture short and sweet. Use these sessions in a way that the kids get inspired to play and enjoy the game.

It is extremely vital that the kids are not interrupted while playing. If you have observed anything that needs to be corrected, note it and discuss it after the drill. And stand outside the field when the kids are playing.

3. Some coaches get ruthless and unkind while dealing with the kids. In soccer drills for youth, both the behaviors are unacceptable. It is never a good idea to show your emotions on the field. It is imperative that the kids will make mistakes. Always remember that they are young. You do not need to take this to heart and get harsh with the players.

When this happens, you are making the kids loose interest and also making things difficult for yourself. Soccer is a game of the mind. When you help the kids know the meaning of it, they will love the game.

Just don’t let these problems of kids soccer drills affect you and you are a winner. If you would like information on what you should or shouldn’t do, join our youth soccer coaching community. You will be surprised by how big an improvement you can make by your decision.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Andre Botelho is a recognized authority in youth soccer coaching and has already helped thousands of youth coaches to dramatically improve their coaching skills. Learn how to explode your players’ skills and make training fun by downloading your free ebook at: Soccer Training