How to Help Avoid Soccer Injury This Fall

Fall will be here before you know it and with it comes the start of a new sports season.  Soccer has become one of the most popular youth and high school sports and, as with all popular sports, injuries do occur.  Several different kinds of injuries are common in soccer, from concussion to ACL tears to ankle sprains. There are a number of factors that increase the likelihood of injury including improperly fitting cleats and shin guards, poor field conditions, overuse, improper hydration, hot and humid weather and lack of proper conditioning. This month, I want to focus on a few exercises you can use to improve your conditioning to prepare for the upcoming soccer season.

We will focus on three areas: strength, flexibility, and balance.  Remember, this blog posting is not a comprehensive training program, but just a few exercises you can use along with your conditioning program.  All exercises should be pain free and if you have any history of injury, you should consult a medical professional prior to trying these exercises.  

Strengthening Exercise for Soccer:

The majority of lower extremity injuries in soccer tend to occur when the athlete is on one leg while running, jumping, or cutting.  Often, the strengthening exercises used for sports are done on two legs such as squats or lunges. A great strengthening exercise for sports is the single leg lateral step up.  To perform this exercise, stand on a step and slowly lower yourself down, sitting back into your hip while keeping your toe, knee and hip in line. The goal should be to lower to a 90 degree knee bend and then return to the starting position while maintaining proper alignment.  You can hold a light dumbbell or kettlebell to increase difficulty. This exercise should be performed for 8-10 repetitions for 3 sets, up to 3 times per week.

Flexibility for Soccer:

Hamstring strains are a common soccer injury due to the amount of sprinting involved in the sport.  A great dynamic hamstring stretch is the standing toe touch. This exercise will stretch out the hamstrings, and help you learn to posterior weight shift, a movement that allows you to use the larger muscles in your hips more effectively, and protects your knees and ankles.  Starting in a standing position with feet together, reach your arms overhead and then bend forward to touch your toes while trying to keep your knees straight. As you move, think about your hips shifting back. If this is difficult, try squeezing a small towel roll between your knees - it will help reduce tightness in your hamstrings.  Perform this movement 10-20 times for 2 sets. This exercise can be done daily. 

Balance Exercise for Soccer:

Improving balance will help reduce the likelihood of many injuries including concussions, knee, and ankle injuries.  Better balance will also help increase power and speed which will improve performance. Training for balance is easy.  Simply stand on one leg, preferably with no shoes on which allows the nerve endings in your foot to better send messages to your brain on how your foot is positioned.  If this is easy, you can close your eyes, swing the leg you are not standing on or turn your head side to side, all of which will greatly increase the level of difficulty. Stay in an athletic stance with the leg you are standing on; do not lock the knee out.  Hold your balance for 20 seconds and repeat 8-10 times. This exercise can be done daily as well.

There are just a few exercises you can do to help prepare you for the upcoming soccer season. If you have any questions or would like to get in for a preseason soccer injury risk screen, contact Greg at Complete Game Physical Therapy 978-710-7204 or gcrossman@completegamept.com.