Bodyweight Soccer Sprints

In my last few posts I mentioned that I had put together a simple bodyweight routine whilst I was back at my parents house for Christmas.  Today I am going to be fully explaining this bodyweight routine.

The creation of this routine came about because I had no access to a gym at my parents house.  In the past I have just accepted this and not worked out at Christmas.  However, this year I wanted to be a bit healthier and do some exercise.  My first thought was to go jogging but the pathways were very icy and I didn’t want to be slipping and sliding all over the place.  So with jogging out I thought about what else I could do.  I then remembered a post that I had read way back in August on bodyweight burpees (see the video below for a demonstration – apologies for the cheesy music).

I had done bodyweight burpees in the past and knew that they would provide me with a good all round workout.  However, I did not feel they were enough on their own and wanted to create a full routine.  Later that day I was reading Andrew Rubalcava’s concluding post on free weights vs machine exercises which featured the awesome training video from Rocky IV.  This gave me some inspiration.  I thought I need to come up with a workout like Rocky’s that gets me outside, involves some resistance training/heavy lifting but also involves some running/cardiovascular exercise.  In other words a good all round workout that can be performed outside with little or no equipment.  After a bit of thinking I came up with ‘Bodyweight Soccer Sprints’.

WHAT YOU WILL NEED TO PERFORM BODYWEIGHT SOCCER SPRINTS:
- A set of soccer goalposts (or something similar) that facilitates pull ups.
- A rucksack (optional).
- Bottles of water (optional).

HOW TO PERFORM BODYWEIGHT SOCCER SPRINTS:
- 1) Go outside.
- 2) Find a set of soccer goalposts (or something similar) that facilitates pull ups.
- 3) Choose the number of bodyweight burpees that you will be starting with (bear in mind your overall fitness when picking this number).
- 4) Grab the top bar of the soccer goalposts and pull yourself up.
- 5) Lower yourself down.
- 6) Place your hands on the floor.
- 7) Kick your legs out and assume the push up position.
- Perform a push up.
- 9) Pull your legs in.
- 10) Jump up and grab the top bar of the soccer goalposts.
- 11) Congratulations.  You have just performed your first bodyweight burpee.  Now repeat until you reach the number of bodyweight burpees you chose in step 3.
- 12) Once you have finished the final bodyweight burpee of the set sprint to the opposite soccer goalposts and then sprint back.
- 13) Perform another set of bodyweight burpees that is one less than the number you started with.  For example, if you chose ten bodyweight burpees in step 3 go down to nine this time.
- 14) Once you have finished the final bodyweight burpee of the set sprint to the opposite soccer goalposts and then sprint back.
- 15) Repeat this process until you get down to one bodyweight burpee.
- Note: If you want to add resistance to this workout you can also wear a rucksack and fill this with a few bottles of water (or something similar that will add weight to the rucksack).

The first time I did bodyweight soccer sprints they absolutely kicked my ass.  I thought I was quite fit and this workout would not be too much trouble but trust me it’s a lot more difficult than it seems, especially when you add the weighted rucksack.  The last few sprints are an absolute killer.

Currently, I’m starting my workout with ten bodyweight burpees and then working my way down to one whilst wearing a rucksack containing 3.5 litres of water.  I plan to keep the number of bodyweight burpees I do constant and add 0.5 litres of water to the rucksack each week.  So by the end of January I will be on 5-5.5 litres.

I would not recommend doing bodyweight soccer sprints every day.  The first time I did them I was very sore the following day so I would suggest doing them every other day instead.  Also you do not need soccer goalposts to to bodyweight soccer sprints.   Anything which you can do a pull up on is fine.  In fact since I have come back to my house in Salford I have been using the climbing frame in my local park because I can’t reach the goalposts (they must be bigger here).  However, bodyweight climbing frame sprints doesn’t have quite the same ring to it .

Another thing I must emphasise is the importance of proper form when doing bodyweight soccer sprints.  I found the first time I did them the sprints really tired me out.  After two or three sprints when I came to do the bodyweight burpees I noticed I was not doing proper pull ups and not getting all the way down with my push ups.  Therefore, to make sure my form is consistent I have a little rest and get a drink of water when I notice it slipping.  Just make sure your rest periods are brief and do not compromise the intensity of your workout.

So there you have it…my very first bodyweight routine.  Bodyweight soccer sprints work most of the major muscle groups (biceps, triceps, back, shoulders, legs, abdomen), provide you with a good cardiovascular workout and can be completed in about 30 minutes.  Plus, they’re extremely versatile.  You can add weight to the rucksack and do more reps to make bodyweight soccer sprints more difficult.

Give them a try and let me know what you think.  I’m pretty sure you will be amazed at how tough they turn out to be.

An Introduction to Bodyweight Training

Bodyweight training is one of the most effective ways to burn fat and build muscle. When our weight gets to a certain level many of us decide that we need to join the gym or purchase training equipment. However, it is actually possible to train using your own bodyweight and achieve similar results. Many people neglect the potential of bodyweight training and in this article I intend to change that and make you aware of the benefits bodyweight training has to offer.

Bodyweight training can help improve your physique by starting with as little as 15-20 minutes work a day. As you get used to the training you should allocate more time which will in turn yield more impressive results. To ensure that you are getting adequate training time you need to make bodyweight training part of your daily schedule. Maybe you could get out of bed 20 minutes earlier or perhaps you could watch TV for 20 minutes less each day. As your bodyweight training progresses you should be able to come up with more creative ways to fit in your training times. If the appearance of your body is important to you then you will always be able to find the time. Stick with it, do it every day and you will begin to notice surprising results.

One of the main concerns with bodyweight training is the frequency with which you exercise. Many people think that you should exercise 3-4 times a week or every other day. This is partially true. Bodybuilders who participate in high intensity, high volume workouts require the additional rest between training and therefore should only train 3-4 times a week. However, bodyweight training is much less intensive. If you train for 15-20 minutes each day you will have a significant 1,420-1,425 minutes to recover. This is plenty of time. Plus, your overall training time for the week will be between 2-4 hours – a reduction compared with the time you would spend in 3-4 sessions at the gym.

So now that I have introduced you to bodyweight training and its benefits you are probably wondering what do I actually do? Well there are plenty of exercises you can do but I’ve outlined one of my favourites below:

THE BURPEE CHIN UP COMBO:

- To begin stand under a chin up bar (if you do not currently own one adjustable chin up bars can be purchased very cheaply on eBay or from the majority of department stores).

- Slowly squat down, bending your knees and keeping your back straight.

- Place your hands on the floor in front of you.

- Kick back with your feet so that you are in a push up position.

- Do a push up.

- Jump your feet back under your chest and stand up rapidly.

- Grab the chin up bar with your palms facing towards you.

- Do a chin up.

- Squat back down and repeat.

Try and keep this up for 15 minutes and you will quickly realise how tough bodyweight training can be. If you do this exercise every morning you will start to notice changes within the week. It will help you burn fat and build muscle in a very short space of time.

Bodyweight training has almost limitless possibilities. It does not stop at this one exercise. If you check out this Bodyweight Training Forum there are lots of great bodyweight training discussions happening which contain plenty of advice and exercises that you can use in your own routine. To progress with your bodyweight training set a feasible goal for each week. Once you achieve it set a new one for the next week. As long as you put in the effort you can burn fat and build muscle without attending the gym.