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Six-week pre-season endurance and football fitness programme
Train fitness and technical elements together using football drills in this six-week programme, which categorise drills into certain endurance categories, and applies those categories at different times during pre-season
Metabolic responses suggest that football is basically an endurance event with skills superimposed within it. Distances are not that demanding but the intermittent and sporadic nature of efforts - which include inefficient multi-directional movements and anaerobic activities such as shooting and jumping – cause high levels of fatigue.
Improving endurance will allow players to maintain and recover from high intensity efforts, whilst maintaining skills and reducing the chance of injury.
With so many components to work on in football, it is optimal to train fitness and technical elements together using football drills whenever possible. Modern analysis has allowed us to categorise drills into certain endurance categories, and those categories are best applied at different times during pre-season.
The program presented here is for 18 outfield players with 2 goalkeepers.
Structure
- Weeks 1 and 2 – Extensive endurance drills
- Weeks 3 and 4 – Lactate threshold drills
- Weeks 5 and 6 – VO2 max drills
Example pre-season endurance and football fitness schedule
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | |
| Football drill |
Normal game, 7- to 10-a-side, between penalty areas |
Normal game, 7- to 10-a-side, between penalty areas |
5-6 a side, 50x30 yards |
5-6 a side, 50x30 yards |
Line score 3-4 players per team, 30x20 yards |
Line score 3-4 players per team, 30x20 yards |
| Duration |
3x15mins, less than 3mins rest |
3x20mins, less than 3mins rest |
6x5mins, less than 3mins rest |
6x6mins, less than 3mins rest |
6x3mins, 2mins rest |
6x3mins 20 secs, 1min 30secs rest |
Extensive endurance drills
Weeks 1 and 2
How do I set it up?
Mark out the area between penalty areas. Split players into two teams, with a minimum of seven and a maximum of 10 on each team.
What do I get the players to do?
We play between 7- and 10-a-side in an area between the penalty areas. Standard rules apply.
Lactate threshold drills
Weeks 3 and 4
These drills involve a moderate to high intensity, and are best performed at intervals below 20 minutes. Lactate threshold training improves the tempo which players can sustain throughout a match.
How do I set it up?
Pick three teams of 6-a-side. Two teams play 6-aside while the other performs a technical drill or a running drill of a similar intensity. Rotate the teams through the drills for the given repetitions (normally 2-3 rotations through).
What do I get the players to do?
We play a 6-a-side game (plus two keepers); standard rules in a 50x30-yard area. Touch restrictions, rule alterations and zones can emphasise required technical and tactical elements.
VO2 max drills
Weeks 5 and 6
These drills involve a high intensity, which can typically only be sustained for up to five minutes without the tempo dropping. They are a very powerful training tool which improves many areas of football fitness, in particular recovery after a sustained high intensity period. Technically, they are great for pressing and all elements of skill development as they involve constant involvement in play.
How do I set it up?
Split the group into teams of three or four players. The example shown is for six teams of 3-a-side. Set-up three pitches – 30x20 yards and have two teams play on each. Rotate teams as shown in the table above for a total of six repetitions each.
Rep |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
| Pitch 1 | 1v2 | 1v3 | 3v5 | 3v4 | 4v5 | 2v5 |
| Pitch 2 | 3v4 | 2v5 | 1v6 | 1v5 | 2v3 | 1v4 |
| Pitch 3 | 5v6 | 4v6 | 2v4 | 2v6 | 1v6 | 3v6 |
What do I get the players to do?
The aim for each team is to stop the ball in their opponents’ end zone. When defending, the emphasis is on good angles and distances, with the premise to give away as little ground as possible by advancing quickly.
When attacking, the emphasis is on good supporting positions and scoring as quickly as possible. We can vary the drill by adding touch restrictions or by instructing players to go player-to-player. Adjust the number of pitches to suit the size of your squad.
Performance assessment
Several tests are available for assessing endurance levels and can be researched separately - the most popular probably being the Yo-Yo test, because of its specificity to football performance. A reasonable score for the Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test is ~1,000m.
Targets for improvement will depend a lot upon the initial training state of the players. Endurance is a fitness component that is relatively easy to change and improvements in the Yo-Yo test distance of 20-30% are achievable. Changes in physiological measures like VO2max are more moderate at 5-15%.
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