The Best Soccer Training Program for Individual Training (2024)
What is the best soccer training program for individual training? There are hundreds, if not thousands of online and in-person soccer training programs available for players. Here at The Art of Football, our goal is to provide you with the best and most valuable information up to date.
There are a lot of options out there but from all those programs there are only a few that I would recommend. If you’re investing money into a soccer training program then make sure the main goal of that program is to turn you into a better footballer.
This may sound vary obvious, but its very important to not get carried away and start training things that don’t really translate to the game. In this blog post I will help teach you everything you need to know to make an informed decision about a soccer training program.
Training Videos on Youtube and Instagram
Nowadays, one of the most popular ways for players, especially younger players, to learn more about the game is through Youtube and Instagram. Some Youtube and Instagram content can be useful, but most of the training advice out there is not as effective as it may seem because it lacks the structure of a specialized training program.
There is also so much information out there that it makes it hard for players to know what information works and what doesn’t. It is also up to the player to find a training program that works and be consistent with it because changing routines every week due to new videos you see online is not an effective way to be training.
Again some of these things might be useful, they might even help, but you’re not going to get long-term progress.
Image by Nigel Msipa
The Problem with Unstructured Soccer Training Programs
Social media can be a great way to connect with other soccer players and learn new soccer skills or concepts that can be beneficial. However, the problem with copying all the training exercises and programs you see online is that they lack structure which leads to inefficient and ineffective workouts.
Here are some issues of unstructured training:
Inconsistent Progress
Without a clear training plan from someone who knows what they are doing, you may not be progressing properly and may even regress.
Injury Risk
Unstructured training can lead to more injuries because doing random exercises for the sake of exercising, without any real goals, is going to be beneficial in the long term.
Wasted Time
The reality is that unstructured workouts are a complete waste of time. If you don’t have a goal during training then what are you training for? As a soccer player your goal should be to get better at soccer, so if your training program is not directly making you a better soccer player is your program really working?
Image by Source
The Problem with Copying Your Favorite Athlete’s Training Program
Another huge problem with social media, which is similar to the last problem, is that a lot of players, especially youth players, but even older players, see high level players from the biggest teams in the world doing a certain exercise and immediately think that they have to do it as well.
It’s natural to look up to your favorite professional players and want to copy their training sessions because we all want to be like them. However, copying their programs blindly can be a grave mistake. Here is the main issue with this approach.
Correlation Does Not Equal Causation.
A lot of players, coaches included, will see a video of an elite athlete on social media and immediately think, “I have to copy those exercises because if a pro is doing them, then I should do that too.”
This way of thinking makes some sense but is flawed. Just because you see a high level athlete doing something, does not mean that one specific thing is contributing to their success.To become a high level soccer player, you have to find out what makes a high level player and start training those things, not just randomly copy exercises professional players do.
Find out what helped them develop their talent before they made it pro, not what training they are currently doing with their pro teams. This is why you can copy a “Cristiano Ronaldo Workout” for 10 years and you will not become Cristiano Ronaldo.
To become like Ronaldo, or at least get closer to becoming like Ronaldo, you have to train the right things that make him an elite player in the first place. Most of these things have to do with things that can’t be seen or quantified such as his underlying connective tissue, nervous system, mitochondrial function, and more.
This includes things like
- Being a Fascia-driven athlete
- Having high mitochondrial function
- Having an elite Mentality
- Having elite Football Talent
- High Confidence
- Elite understanding of the game
- Having fun even when the competition is a challenge
Image by Donnycocacola
The Issue with Most Soccer Training Programs
Now that you know why you should not just copy random workouts from social media, even those performed by your favorite soccer players, let’s discuss the issue with other soccer training programs.
Not Game Realistic
The beautiful game is one of the most popular sports in the world for many reasons. One of those reasons is that it is unpredictable and anything can happen at any moment.
This is why the best way to train for the unpredictable nature of the game is to train train in a way that best mimics the game such as through
- Real games
- Team trainings
- Pickup games
- Fusal
- Beach soccer
- Etc.
A lot of training programs focus too much on cone drills and give players too many coaching points, which does not allow them to tap into their innate creativity, which is part of what helps them unlock their talents in the first place. Cone drills can be beneficial for beginners, but there will come a point where they will do very little in terms of making your in-game performance better once you are more advanced.
This is why you need a training program that focuses on enhancing all aspects of performances, on and off the field, not just your soccer skills.
Muscle-Based gym training
The human body is much more than just muscles and bones. The human body is covered by fascia, or connective tissue, from head to toe and fascia connects everything together from muscles, to ligaments, to bones, to tendons, and even nerves.
Traditional strength and conditioning, which is how most footballers train, even at the professional level, is based on the principles of linear muscle-based bodybuilding which neglects the fascia system. The fascia system is a system that we have known about for a very long time, however, people used to think it was filler tissue, since dead fascia looks different from real fascia and to study the human body scientists study cadavers, which of course have dead fascia.
It is hard to see alive fascia because we would have to get under skin, by cutting through it, however its role within the nervous system, elite performance, effortless movements, and injury prevention are starting to become more well-known nowadays through more and more research.
If you truly want to reach a new level you have to do training that other people are not doing. Think about it. If you follow the same exact training that everyone else is doing, how do you expect to stand out and get different results?
That is where fascia and sensory based training comes in.
The Best Soccer Training Program
Join our Free Telegram!
Learn how to better express yourself on and off the field.
As I mentioned earlier the goal of any football training program is to make you a better footballer. If you want to become a better footballer there are 5 key areas that you have to develop- Football talent and IQ, mindset, athleticism, breathing, and your lifestyle choices.
Our private training program will help you improve these five key areas and as a result you will be better able to express yourself both on and off the field. If you would like to learn more about our training you can join our free private telegram, read any of the following blogs, check out our private training page, or send us a message via email or through Instagram.
–Football Training
-Athletic Training
-Barefoot Training
-Injury Prevention
-Foot Function
-Mitochondria Function
-Recovery Techniques
-Time Spent Grounded
-Sleep
-Nutrition
-Hydration
-Supplementation
-Breath work
-Mindset
-EMF Exposure
-Relationship with Nature
-Understanding of the Game
Frequently Asked Questions
What are some of the best soccer training programs?
The only other training program that I reccommend is Football Entangled.
How do you train effectively as a soccer player?
To train effectively as a soccer player, you have to participate in team practice consistently, play a lot of pick up games, work with nature, and spend a lot of time training individually to work on your weaknesses, physically, technically, mentally, and tactically.
How many days a week should I train as a soccer player?
As a soccer player you should be participating in team training about 3-4 times a week and playing games usually on weekends. If you want to reach a new level you will also have to spend a lot of time training individually on and off the field, which is why I recommend Football Entangled who provides you with a ton of valuable information on how to optimize every part of your life that affects performance.
Conclusion
Don’t train harder. Train Smarter. Invest in the best soccer training program in the world that has helped thousands of players, including Premier League and Champions league level players, and watch you performance and health on and off the field improve like never before.
