Volumes of research have established that a well-designed, appropriately supervised strength training program can help any athlete improve his or her performance, regardless of the sport. A recent study, published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, examined the effects of a resistance exercise program on soccer kick biomechanics.
The study followed a 10-week resistance exercise program, mainly for the lower-limb muscles. The training program included progressive high-weight, low-repetition exercises that focused on hip abduction and adduction; knee flexion and extension; and ankle plantar flexion and dorsiflexion.
Results included measurement of leg strength and power through the entire kicking phase — backswing and forward swing — before and after training.
As expected, “maximum and explosive force significantly increased after training…” (Manolopoulos, et. al.)
“These results suggest that increases in soccer kicking performance after a 10-week resistance training program were accompanied by increases in maximum strength and an altered soccer kick movement pattern, characterized by a more explosive backward-forward swinging movement and higher muscle activation during the final kicking phase.”
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