welcome!

This site is designed to provide information and ideas to help youth players develop specific fitness to help them play soccer. It is designed for the serious soccer youth player from ages 13 and up, but also covers activities and ideas for younger players (10 to 12). Some parts of the site are specifically aimed at the players that I am working with, but it also aims to provide useful information to any player or coach looking to improve youth soccer players' fitness levels.

My background is in track athletics, general fitness, strength conditioning and speed development. I have also, for the last 7 years been involved in coaching youth soccer. In studying youth and senior soccer coaching techniques, I have realised that the majority of fitness training is based upon techniques coaches learnt from their playing days.

Soccer in some countries, has been late in adopting modern techniques for conditioning and diet. For example, it has only been in recent years, with European coaches and players now common place in the Premier League, that a more scientific approach to soccer specfic conditioning has become the norm there rather than the exception.

There is no reason why youth players shouldn't also benefit from training techniques used in other sports as well and this is something that I have seen is missing from a lot of youth level soccer training.

The aim of soccerfitness.net is to provide more focused planning for conditioning and speed training, as well as encourage good nutrition and ideas on such things as warm ups, stretching and recovery.

The most important part of soccer training for youth levels is the work they do with the ball, but as the more elite players develop, they must put in concentrated effort on conditioning and speed training.

This site and the work I do as a conditiong and speed coach aims to supplement general soccer training and help produce fitter, faster and healthier players.

Jürgen Joarder

B. Hum Hons (London) Movement Studies and Education