The FC Barcelona players left the Ciutat Esportiva on Friday with a detailed work plan under their arms drawn up by the physical trainers. The priority objective is that footballers do not lose physical conditioning, bearing in mind that they will spend no less than fifteen days outside the club's sports facilities.
In this work plan there are two basic sections that footballers will have to strictly follow. On the one hand, strength exercises, basically with dumbbells or gym equipment -Most soccer players are lucky to have a small gym at home to exercise- and on the other, the physical circuits. The one recommended in this case by the club is known as the fartlek circuit.
The fartlek circuit (speed game in Swedish) consists of training that takes advantage of changes in pace and repetitive series. With the changes in rhythm, the body and mind are sought to adapt to recovery and effort, while with the series, the objective is to seek speed and performance.
To do a fartlek training you only need an open space of a minimum size. In the work plan given to the soccer players it is detailed that they can carry it out even in the garden of their houses, so they do not even need to leave the residence. They will start with a five-minute warm-up, circling the circuit at a moderate pace. Subsequently, they will work using different combinations of speeds (by time or distance) with a duration between fifteen to thirty minutes. And finally, one more lap of calm at a slow pace of five minutes.
The duration can not exceed one hour in any case and must be alternated with strength training. In principle, three days a week it is recommended to practice a fartlek circuit and two more a session in the gym with dumbbells. The other two days of the week, they will be rest and rest.
With fartlek workouts, you basically look for three things for the duration of the confinement period: maintaining aerobic capacity, managing your breathing at fast paces, and getting used to changes of pace.
This will be the work plan of the players, who also have to monitor the diet in a very special way, following the advice of nutritionists, with the intake of special shakes before work sessions, to reduce muscle fatigue and injuries, in addition to having a diet based on carbohydrates and proteins.
In the case of injured players, they will continue with their recovery plan, although it will be somewhat conditioned, as they will have to follow the guidelines from home and under the supervision of a recuperator.