There is more than one way to prepare for this week’s game. By doing this workout, get pumped up and wear your team badge with pride!
Practice Description:
For me, a graduate of SEC school, the importance of soccer victories trumps any other claim to glory in the fall season.
But even more than soccer, it’s setting up the tent, stoking the grill and putting ice in the cooler for the start of the game.
While the players are getting ready to play, the cheerleader is getting ready to host.
Depending on your age and where you’re at, the sit-ins can last an entire weekend.
Friday night lights in high school? Tailgating.
Saturday’s college game? Hangouts.
NFL Sunday? You get the idea.
No matter how many teams you root for from week to week, one thing remains the same. You have to be in shape to wear your team’s apparel with pride.
So whether you’re a high school freshman getting ready for your first Friday night outing or a 40-year-old former college fraternity star living vicariously through Saturday’s successes at your alma mater, we have the perfect workout to help you tuck into your lucky game-day jersey.
Read also:
Whole-body workout with dumbbells only at home or at the gym
Tailgate Muscles and Filling Up Your Tailgate Clothing:
When I say “Tailgate muscles,” you may be imagining biceps that work lifting various foods and drinks to your face, back and hamstrings lifting a cooler weighing seemingly 1000+ pounds, or legs from an endless marathon running through other people’s places.
However, I’m speaking approximately focusing at the muscle businesses a good way to be visible (or which you wish may be visible) even as sporting an outsized tank top.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve worn a lot of clothes in my day, and the soccer jersey is probably one of the hardest to wear. You also don’t get the benefit of wearing pads to help you seem bigger.
So, before we get to the workout in general, let’s break down what muscle groups we will be targeting in this workout and why we will benefit from it.
And any ladies reading this who think this workout isn’t right for them because they don’t plan on wearing a tank top to their workout, think again. Building up those muscles will help you make that dress or tank top look so much better on you on game day.
Shoulders:
The most important muscle group to fill out your game day jersey will be your shoulders. Think about this. You will have to find a way to look in your shoulder pads without actually wearing them!
This isn’t always an smooth task, however never an not possible one. To do this, we’re going to need a good combination of strength and hypertrophy training. This means taking a heavy barbell for the standing press and increasing the volume for the rest of the assisted lifts.
The end result will be boulder shoulders and three-dimensional delts worthy of wearing your team colors. Seriously, this barbell will make you look more like an animal than your team mascot.
Back:
A thick upper back will serve as a base for padded shoulders. This will also help in the development of a V-shaped taper, which is what we really want from this program.
The broad shoulders and thick back will taper to a thin waist, creating the illusion that there are pads under your lucky jersey. In fact, it’s 100% hardbody, bro!
As we discussed above about how to work your shoulders, the same applies to working your back muscles. We’re going to pick two exercises, one heavy for strength and one with more volume for hypertrophy, for the glutes, mid-back and lower back.
Arms:
If you’ve ever worn a soccer jersey, you already know that its sleeves are very loose. In order to fill out those sleeves, we’re going to have to gain some serious mass. By the end of this workout you will feel like there are footballs hiding under the sleeves!
As I’m sure you’re well aware, the bulk of the upper arm is made up of the triceps muscles. So our best plan of action is to attack them frequently, giving them enough rest to properly recover before the next direct or indirect workout. This also means a high workload to optimize hypertrophy in direct training.
Don’t worry, I know after all this talk about triceps you’re worried about your biceps wilting. This program will give you enough volume to increase hypertrophy for them too! Heck, it will probably be a useful break from your current high volume curling routine and lead to some serious gains!
Feet:
I know what you’re thinking. “Why would I want to train my legs if I’m just trying to tuck in my game jersey? Besides, winter is coming, and I’ll be wearing pants soon.”
Until the cold weather arrives, you will wear shorts. Do you really want to look disproportionate? I don’t think so. Training your legs will not only complement your developing V-taper, giving you an X-shape, but it will also help you get to the line while your team is on O, during those two-touchdown games with your hands.
So while the sun is shining, think of leg training as a means to create a more finished look.
When it snows, think of it as a way to show off to your friends while playing ball.
But what about your breasts:
Although “International Breast Day” Mondays may stop for a while, you will still get enough volume on this muscle group to keep growing. However, as I said about biceps, this group may suffer from the volume you are accustomed to.
If you think about it, your chest won’t stand out much in your gym clothes. Does that mean we’re going to give it up? Absolutely not. But we are going to attack it in a much more concise and strategic way.
By focusing more on hypertrophy training, we’re going to build a chest that proudly flaunts your team name.
Tailgate Touchdown Workout:
The workout is planned so that your weekends fall on Saturday and Sunday – those are the days teams play most often. As long as you do these drills, your team will do drills throughout the regular season.
Related: Mark Megna’s complete workout and nutrition plan for soccer players
While I can’t guarantee the outcome of their season, I can guarantee that the result of this workout will be a tighter you.
If you need to modify the program to fit your schedule, that’s perfectly fine. Just remember to leave a day between your abs workout and a day between your back and leg workouts.
Monday – Shoulders:
Exercise Sets of Repetitions:
1. heavy military press 5 8, 6, 5, 5, 5, 5
Side lifts 4 10
3. Frontal lifts 3 12
4. Rear delta lifts 3 12
5. Heavy barbell presses 3 8
6. Dumbbell press 3 12
Tuesday – back:
Exercises Repetition sets:
1. Deadlift 3 5
(Deadlifts)* 4 8, 6, 5, 5
Heavy dumbbell rows 4 8, 6, 5, 5
4. Lat Pulldown 3 12.
5. Inverted rowing 3 12
6. Hyperextensions 3 15
*If weighted pull-ups cannot be performed, do regular pull-ups or assisted pull-ups.
Wednesday – Chest and Triceps:
Exercises Repetition sets:
1. Incline bench with barbell 4 12
2. Flat bench with dumbbells 4 12
Triceps curls 3 12
Triceps diamond push-ups 3 12
5. Jump rope push-ups 3 12
Thursday – legs:
Exercises Sets of reps:
1. Squat 5 8, 6, 5, 5, 5, 5
2. Dead leg raise 4 10
3. leg press 3 15
4. Walking lunges 4 20 yards (or gym length)
5. Shin squat raises 3 12
Friday – Biceps & Triceps:
Exercises Repetition Sets:
1a. Pull-ups 3 12
1b. Triceps dips 3 12
2. Barbell curls 4 10
3. cranial crushers 4 12
4. Dumbbell inclines 3 10
5. Rope Press 3 12
A fair amount of these exercises indirectly affect the core. However, if you feel the need to add direct work targeting the core, that’s fine too. In fact, we have a lot of great workouts for the core at M&S.
Conclusion:
There you have it, ladies and gentlemen, the perfect workout for super fans. Obviously, you will enjoy soccer on your free days. If you do get together for a party, consider the hard work of setting up and taking down (along with throwing the ball and going from place to place to visit others) your active recovery.
