Parallel Performance

Here are another four gems if you want to not only train your midsection, but also maintain shoulder health.

Number one: Saw plank. While it forces you to maintain integrity through the plank as you move your arms overhead, it also challenges the shoulder through a controlled range of motion, making it a great option for maintaining shoulder health.

Number two: Baseball rotation. This is a great exercise to promote internal rotation through the femur of the back leg. A lot of athletes, especially ⚽️ players, tend to use external rotation as their primary strategy for a lot of movements. This exercise helps maintain integrity through the hips while also developing rotational power.

Number three: Kettlebell or dumbbell arm bar. This exercise helps athletes understand their ability to dissociate the upper and lower halves of the body. It’s great for developing rotation, while the axial rotation through the shoulder can contribute to long-term shoulder health. You’ll also see benefits for neck health as you promote the ability to mobilize the neck through the rest of the spine.

Number four: Back extensions. This is an old-school exercise that still has a place. The means of anchoring can be as simple as a pin or whatever you have available. I use a Tumble Trak simply because that’s what we have.

If you’re a ⚽️ player trying to stay healthy while getting stronger and faster in the offseason, give me a follow.

It’s pretty cool to actually see continuous progress, even at 36 years old.

Do I wish I was younger when I started this stuff? Absolutely. And that’s a big part of why my goal is to help as many young ⚽️ players as possible.

Athletic development isn’t something that happens overnight. It’s an endeavor. It’s years and years of continuous work to become, quote-unquote, “more athletic.”

Obviously, this one exercise doesn’t represent every aspect of athleticism. However, there are a lot of qualities involved in this movement that can help demonstrate athletic development.

These videos are years apart, and I’m pretty pumped about continuing to get better.

If you’re a ⚽️ player looking to stay healthy, become more explosive, and get faster and stronger in and out of season, give me a shout and come follow along.

Let’s revisit these four exercises that can help improve your first step.

For a ⚽️ player, the first step can be the difference between getting to the ball or not. These exercises help reinforce the positions needed for better acceleration.

The first two are the meat and potatoes: sled sprints and resisted accelerations.

Sled sprints help you maintain a good forward angle and project horizontally, making them especially useful for beginners. Use lighter loads for acceleration or heavier loads to build horizontal strength.

Resisted accelerations work similarly, but changing the resistance helps challenge different aspects of timing and positioning.

The last two are medicine ball throws. Number three is more hinge-biased, while number four is more quad-dominant. Both are great for reinforcing acceleration positions and work well as prep before sprinting.

Simple exercises that can help improve those critical first few steps.

If you’re a ⚽️ player looking to get stronger, healthier, and more explosive, give me a follow.

All right, so let’s dive a little deeper into these four exercises.

1. Cossack Squat

The Cossack squat is a great lateral exercise for developing hip mobility and strength. You’re getting a significant amount of adductor loading, particularly in a lengthened position, while also challenging your ability to control the hips in the frontal plane. That combination makes it incredibly valuable for building more resilient and capable hips.

2. Curtsy Step-Up

The curtsy step-up is a phenomenal exercise for loading the glutes in a lengthened position, particularly on the leg that’s elevated on the bench.

The biggest thing here is maintaining your body position. Keep your torso relatively straight and facing forward. Avoid excessive rotation as you step up, and make sure the entire foot stays planted on the bench so you can maintain full-foot pressure throughout the movement.

3 & 4. Front Split Variations

These two variations are very similar, but changing where the band is attached changes the line of tension and, ultimately, where the exercise becomes most demanding.

With the band attached to the foot, you’re creating more demand through the front of the hip, particularly the hip flexors, while still getting significant hamstring loading.

When the band is positioned around the hips, the line of tension changes. You’re still getting plenty of hamstring work on the front leg, but the back leg becomes less demanding. Once you reach the bottom position, there’s also less stretch being placed on the rear leg.

Both variations are great options for training the hamstrings while maintaining continuous tension throughout the movement. You can perform them slowly and controlled or make them more dynamic and fast-paced depending on the adaptation you’re looking for.

If you’re a ⚽️ player looking to stay healthy during the season while getting faster and stronger, give me a follow.

The side bend as a movement is especially beneficial for long-term spinal health and for ⚽️ players both in and out of season.

What’s cool about this type of movement is that we are actively mobilizing the thoracic spine through spinal lateral flexion. But the way we position the body changes the demand and gives us different ways to progress the movement.

1. Side bend with the feet anchored

Here, you’re laying on your side with the feet anchored. Because we’re no longer standing, we take away some of the variables that come with being upright and create a different demand for lateral flexion. This can help us isolate the side bending component and allow the athlete to explore movement through the thoracic spine.

2. Standing spinal lateral flexion

Now we introduce the standing position. This changes the demand because we have to manage the body while also creating lateral flexion. We also introduce more of a hip hike, allowing the pelvis and spine to contribute together rather than simply asking the spine to move by itself.

3. Half kneeling lateral flexion

Similar to the standing variation, the hip hike is still part of the movement. However, by moving into a half kneeling position, we change the balance demands and take away some of the stability requirements of standing. The back leg also contributes by creating a dynamic stretch through the hip flexor region, giving us another layer of movement to work with.

4. Overhead lateral flexion

This variation becomes more integrated. With the load positioned overhead, the lever arm increases, making the lateral flexion more demanding and increasing the contribution required from the obliques. We’re no longer simply exploring the movement, but integrating the spine, pelvis, and upper extremity while managing an external load.

All four variations are phenomenal ways to expose soccer players to lateral spinal movement and help maintain the capacity of the spine over the long term.

If you’re a ⚽️ player looking to stay healthy, get strong, and get fast, give me a follow.