Due to the gym closings across the country, most athletes have been left without access to a training facility. Some sports like the NBA and NHL were mid-season, whereas the MLS and MLB were just beginning theirs. This has left a lot of college and pro strength coaches scrambling as their players retreat to their respective homes.

Good coaching requires the ability to be adaptable. This situation only heightens that. And in predictable fashion, this pandemic is exposing a lot of lazy coaches who aren’t sure how to program without a barbell or rehabilitate an injury.

Some of my favorites so far have been, “run .75 of a mile a little faster”, and “run a 5k and make sure you take a picture of your watch”.

The workout below is from a program for a pro soccer player. He had no access to equipment and needed to stay prepared for his sport. I was also already aware of injury history, training history, and overall goals.

Day 1 – Lower Body Intensive

Roll (foam or PVC) where desired (piriformis, quads, adductors)

Warm-up

• Jogging, Backpedaling, Skipping, Backwards Skipping, Lateral Shuffle (10-15yds, 2x/e)
• Walking Knee tuck, Walking Quad Stretch, Walking Cradle Stretch, Lateral Lunge – all x5
• BW Squat x 10, Goodmorning x10, Lunges (fwd/bkwd)x5/e
  
• 5 way hip swings x 10/e

Ground Based

• Bird-dog x 5/e with 3 second hold
• Cat/Cow x 10
• Adductor mobilization x 10/e
• Heel to sky x 15
• Hip Circles fwd/bkwd x 10
• Abduction (like dog peeing on fire hydrant) x 10
• Side lying abduction (slow lower) x 15
• Clam x 10/e
• Straight leg raise (on back) one leg at a time x 10
• Single leg bridge x10/e

Sprint Primer

• Week 1 – High knees 2x10yd, Butt Kicks 2x10yd, A-Skip 2×10, Pogo hops 2×10 (FWD/BKWD), 1xSubmaximal Straight leg bound

Sprints

• Week 1 – Falling start – 5yd x 10 (walk back recovery), Push up start – 10 yd sprint (10s or walk back is recovery) x 10

Jumps

Single leg Jumps (small amplitude, jump and stick)

• Week 1 – 10 fwd, 10 bkwd, 10 lateral (inside leg)

In-place Vertical Jump (single response)

• Week 1 – 3×5

Bodyweight Squat

• Week 1 – 6 second lower, explode up – 3×8

Reverse Lunge + Single Leg RDL Bodyweight

• Week 1 – 2×10/e (2 second hold at the bottom of each lunge)

Single Leg Calf Raise (elevated) – Week 1 – 2×12-15

Lay on the ground with legs up (60 sec)