Football fever has given me thinking about the fitness benefits of playing football the lovely game. What are the masses of competing players placing their bodies, and minds, via over the subsequent four weeks? And what effect could this have on their long-time period fitness?
You don’t have to possess the skills of the future Ronaldo in order to enjoy the benefits, either. In reality, a look at by means of the University of Copenhagen showed that gambling on an ordinary five-a-side soccer game with your friends could have big, beneficial outcomes for your fitness.
Discover below how dominating the world of athletics can pave the way for an impressive trifecta of well-being, empowering you to achieve heightened strength, enhanced health, and elevated happiness.
The health benefits of Playing football include:
- Improving heart health and blood pressure
- Increasing muscle tissues and bone energy in inactive people
- Reducing body fat
- Building strength, stamina, and speed
- Training your brain, improving concentration and coordination
- Promoting teamwork, being social, and boosting your self-assurance
Here’s how gambling the world’s most famous game may want to make you this year’s real winner – anything your ability level:
But first, to apprehend a number of the health benefits of playing football. We need to recognize how the sport receives our body working.
What energy systems are used when playing football?
The training complexity undertaken by a football player necessitates the utilization of both their aerobic and anaerobic systems throughout a game.
Aerobic training involves the transportation of oxygen from the lungs and heart to the muscles, providing them with the necessary energy to carry out the activity. Its association primarily lies with exercises of mild intensity.
Nevertheless, once the activity reaches elevated levels of intensity, the anaerobic system assumes control as the predominant energy provider. The anaerobic system is capable of producing energy at a much faster rate.
Sustaining anaerobic exercise for extended periods is not possible as energy reserves deplete rapidly. As a result, the body relies on aerobic processes to replenish the oxygen debt incurred during intense periods of activity.
Football gamers have a tendency to perform a combination of excessive-intensity – like sprinting – and occasional-intensity – like jogging – exercises at some stage in a healthy:
- 25% of the time is spent walking
- 37% of the time is spent jogging
- 20% of the time is spent performing high-intensity running
- 11% of the time is spent sprinting
- 7% of the time is spent running backward
Football and strength training
Football players adhere to specialized strength and power training regimens with the aim of elevating their performance on the field.
The actions executed in the sport of football stem from the integration of multiple joints and muscles, working in harmony to generate optimal motion, diverse forces in different directions, and a solid framework to facilitate these movements. Artificial turf has expanded its presence beyond stadiums, encompassing a broader array of applications and settings.
Football requires the complete engagement of a player’s body throughout a match. Strength becomes crucial for defending, tackling, sprinting, jumping, and striking the ball, all while minimizing the chances of injury. Multiple muscle groups actively participate during the gameplay:
- Upper body: Having robust upper body muscles and joints provides a competitive advantage in actions like throw-ins, running, and jumping.
- Core stability: Maintaining good posture is essential for executing quick turns and protecting the ball from opponents. Core stability plays a vital role in achieving this.
- Lower body: Footballers develop strength in multiple lower body muscles, ranging from the ankles to the glutes. This strength enables them to kick, sprint, balance, and perform other movements.
Therefore, how does this impact the typical gamer? When playing football, it implies that our entire body receives a workout. However, to achieve comparable results to professional footballers both on and off the field, neglecting the gym is not advisable.
A study published in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning demonstrated that incorporating strength training in youth footballers not only enhanced performance but also reduced the risk of injury. This study implemented two to three 90-minute strength training sessions involving weights per week, resulting in a lower likelihood of injuries. Consequently, by disregarding strength training, individuals face an increased risk of sustaining injuries during football matches.
Football, body composition, and fat
Engaging in football helps burn calories, making it a beneficial activity for improving body composition, especially when aiming to reduce body fat.
When we play football, our bodies utilize energy in two ways: aerobically, relying on fat as the primary energy source, and anaerobically, using stored carbohydrates known as glycogen in the muscles as the main energy substrate.
How many calories are burned during a 30-minute football session?
According to Harvard Health, an individual weighing 155 lbs can potentially burn up to 260 calories during a recreational half-hour football game.
Nevertheless, it’s crucial to remember that achieving fat loss requires proper nutrition. Even if you expend significant calories playing football, consuming more calories than you burn will lead to an increase in body fat.
Moreover, for muscle repair and growth, an adequate protein intake is essential in your diet.
By combining training and proper nutrition, football players are able to maintain a body fat percentage of approximately 10%, characteristic of athletes.
What’s a footballer’s typical body composition?
While the average weight of a professional soccer player is similar to that of an average male in the UK (around 83.6kg), their body fat percentage is considerably lower. Typically, a Premier League soccer player maintains a body fat percentage of approximately 10%. In contrast, the “acceptable” range for an average male falls between 18% and 24%. While a “fit” male should have a body fat percentage of 14% to 17%.
The social aspect of football revolves around teamwork.
Teamwork stands as a crucial skill in the game of football. It fosters unity among players and presents a formidable force against the opposing team, resulting in impressive football scores.
How do you benefit from teamwork on the field?
Promoting collaboration is a fundamental aspect of every training program, from grassroots football to the highest professional levels, demanding unwavering dedication and diligence.
Engaging in football as a unified entity necessitates effective communication. And a steadfast commitment to the team’s well-being, regardless of the circumstances encountered on the field.
The benefits of playing football extend far beyond the pitch, as the sport cultivates a profound sense of camaraderie that seamlessly permeates into one’s daily life. Moreover, the notable boost to mental well-being is derived from heightened self-assurance. And self-worth attained through physical exertion significantly increases the chances of forging meaningful social connections beyond the boundaries of the football field.