Can you be the fastest soccer player on the team? Maybe, maybe not. However, you can definitely become one of the fastest! There is a false belief out there that only specific types of athletes are fast. The general belief is that either you are born with speed or not. The level of how fast one becomes is certainly driven by genetics. However, every human can learn and train to become faster than he or she is – all the way up to the genetic potential of that individual. Many professional soccer players are fast, and many were certainly born with great genetics and athletic ability, yet they still work very hard to become even faster players.
We have all seen pros run well. And, guess what? You can also learn to run well. Running well is a skill, just like any other task we do as humans. We had to learn the skill of brushing our teeth, eating with a fork, walking, and of course, running. When we were raised, generally speaking, we were taught those skills. However, very few of us were taught how to run fast.
In which team sport do you need to run more than the others? Soccer. There are several phases of running that the soccer player can practice. Perfecting the arm swinging action can be a soccer player’s greatest secret for running faster! Why? Simply because most players spend all their practice time on soccer kicks, dribbling, footwork and conditioning. And, rightly so. But if you really want to step up your soccer game – add speed! (and yes, even the goalie will benefit from being faster).
One of the most important yet over-looked parts of running faster is your arm swing.
To improve your arm swinging action – pay attention to these 4 easy tips.
- Strive to keep the elbow bent at an angle of 90 to 95 degrees.
- When the arms swing back they should reach the end point where the hand and wrist are 4 to 5 inches behind the hip.
- When the arms swing forward they should reach the end point where the palm of the hand is not higher than the neck level.
- As the arms swing through their range of motion the palm of the hands should swing swiftly back and forth past the hipbone area.
Important Note: These arm motions should be perfectly synchronized with the leg motions. This means that when the right hand reaches it’s end point in front of the torso at the neck level, the left knee should simultaneously reach it’s high end point in front of the body where the knee height is two to three inches below the hip level.
Mirror Test: Stand in front of the mirror at home, close your eyes, and swing your arms at a moderate speed as if you were running at 75% effort. Get a rhythm going, then open your eyes and take note of the corrections you need to make. Do this test from the front position and both side views. Once you have made the proper corrections, then take that feeling right to the field!
Great arm swing is vital for reaching top end speed. It is impossible to run fast without good arm swinging action. For the soccer player, acceleration and top end speed can be quickly enhanced if you spend just a little bit of time to rehearse this skill. Use the 4 important tips above. You will soon find that your speed during catch-ups and breaks-a-ways has greatly improved!