ASA Fitness Baseline Tests

by Jennifer Schwartz, Alexandria Soccer Injury Prevention & Fitness Most soccer parents are familiar with the fact that soccer can create a variety of knee issues. In fact, a longitudinal study identified High School girls soccer as the sport with the second highest rate of knee injury behind football (Sports Med 2014). Of the 186,000 […]

Change of Pace in Winter Conditioning

by Jennifer Schwartz, Alexandria Soccer Injury Prevention & Fitness Being in the best physical condition to play should be a top priority for competitive soccer players. This means training hard in team sessions, working on fitness outside of the team, an intentional effort to encourage the muscles to recover, sleeping adequately, and putting thought into […]

The Best Nutrition Tip

by Jennifer Schwartz, Alexandria Soccer Injury Prevention & Fitness Many players neglect the benefits that food can add to their performance. Rather, the majority of players are focused on improving their skills, on what their teammates are doing, or playing multiple sports. The ultimate performance mindset is one that focuses on the small things that […]

Sports Drinks | A $6.8 Billion Industry that Doesn’t Refuel Your Kids

by Jennifer Schwartz, Alexandria Soccer Injury Prevention & Fitness The amount of sugary drinks and the post-game snacking that I’ve seen in my several years working in youth soccer is disturbing. At the very moments when our players need nutritious food we are handing them the equivalent of soda, and some sports drinks like Gatorade […]

Commonly Overlooked Muscles for Soccer Quickness and Durability

by Jennifer Schwartz, Alexandria Soccer Injury Prevention & Fitness Soccer players talk a lot about their hamstrings and hip flexibility. In reality, the muscles in the ankles and calves are working the hardest during the motions of soccer. In other words, the ankles and feet are completely taken for granted in our sport. During a […]

One Simple Exercise to Prevent Ankle & Knee Injuries

by Jennifer Schwartz, Alexandria Soccer Injury Prevention & Fitness How to use this exercise: Each repetition should be guided by the bullet points in the video. Control of motion is a very important goal for knee strength gains. This should be accounted for with slow and thoughtful repetitions. For injury prevention and no pain present- […]

How & When to Use Active Stretches

by Jennifer Schwartz, Alexandria Soccer Injury Prevention & Fitness What are active stretches? Active stretching is an advanced form of flexibility training. This form is different from static passive and dynamic stretching. Placing an outstretched leg on a chair and using body weight to bring about a stretch is an example of static passive stretching. […]

The Key to Summer Training is Specificity

by Jennifer Schwartz, Alexandria Soccer Injury Prevention & Fitness As many of the Academy players have heard me say, 98% of the game (individually) is spent without the ball. There are multiple phases within the game and training activities that each player must understand if they are going to be successful in the ASA Academy […]

After School Fuel: Snacks for Your Child’s Backpack

by Jennifer Schwartz, Alexandria Soccer Injury Prevention & Fitness Making sure your kids eat well as they go from school to after school sports and activities can be tough. It’s important to plan ahead and have healthy snacks ready in your child’s backpack so they can fuel their bodies properly in between activities. Having tasty […]