Conditioning



Acceleration running can be used to improve endurance and speed. Acceleration running is a form of interval training, which involves a gradual increase of pace from a walk, to a jog, to a stride, and then to a sprint before returning to a recovery walk. Each change of pace should take place over a similar distance. For speed and anaerobic work the distances for each pace could be from 10 to 20 yards and for aerobic endurance the distances could be from 100 to 200 yards.The walk segment should be slow enough to allow the player's heart rate to drop below 130 beats per minute.The number of repetitions will depend on the player's fitness level .You should work until you are tired, but not exhausted. Overload can be applied by either increasing the number of repetitions or decreasing the time taken for each run. The rest period depends on heart rate recovery and must not be shortened as a means of overloading the player. You could incorporate a ball whilst doing some of these exercises with this method of training which stresses both anaerobic and aerobic energy systems. It is a good training method for pre-season and early season training and I highly recommend it. Acceleration running is a good training method for cold weather because the gradual increase in speed is less likely to cause injury to cold muscles than a sudden change of speed.
FARTLEK TRAINING Fartlek training is a relaxed adaptation of interval training and is a good aerobic and anaerobic for off-season and pre-season. Fartlek training (literally "speed play") is normally done in-groups led by a member of the group. The group sets off on a cross-country run at an easy pace. The leader who can be changed periodically, varies the pace from time to time with short, intense sprints, and fast middle distance runs of up to a half mile in length. Recovery periods, tempo, and speed are up to the leader's discretion and can be adapted to suit the terrain, like a sprint up a hill, or a zigzag run between fallen leaves. This is a good aerobic and anaerobic practice for the off-season and pre-season and should be a fun "follow-the-leader" game. During the Fartlek training the leaders must allow some recovery breaks between the intense routines. This will allow the players to do more work at a high intensity before tiring.