Building up intensity of referee training after a break

A new fitness exercise: building up intensity of referee training after a break. Usually after the season and in the half-way break you try to take some rest as a referee. Dutch pro referee fitness trainer Hilco de Boer has an important tip for you. When you get back into your fitness regime, make sure you’re building up intensity of referee training gradually. Because that prevents you from getting injuries.

Training session 1 after the break

The first training session focuses on endurance, because it’s not good to start with sprints immediately.

The training you’ll do firsty is an extensive endurance training. “If you follow an extensive endurance training you train at low intensity, but usually for a longer time.” So you will not overload your muscles right after a break. “Because of the duration of the training you’ll get fatigued”. Read more about the 4 types of referee training sessions.

Training 1 trains your recovery. De Boer gives three levels in his newsletter. Always make sure to do a proper warming-up first!

His advice for who measures heart rate: 60-75% HFmax

• 1st level: 3x 12 mins of running with a rest period of 2 minutes in between (walking)
• 2nd level: 3x 14 mins of running with a rest period of 2 minutes in between (walking)
• 3rd level: 4x 12 mins of running with a rest period of 2 minutes in between (walking)

When you repeat the sessions, make sure you’ll change the running pace every sixty seconds. Or you can also train by using the exercise pictured below.

Training session 2 after the break

You’ll pick up more speed this session, but no sprints for a whole session yet. Firstly, do a good warming-up.

Exercise 1

After the warming-up you’ll start with an exercises to prepare for more speed in the next week. In The Netherlands we use the German word Steigerung for this. You’ll start slowly, but your speed will increase the further you go.

8 times a Steigerung of 40 metres. After this distance you max sprint speed is 80%. Lets say you add some extra speed every 10 metres.

As you notice, this is not a long sprint. If you do more interval training, you’ll get used to do longer distances. For now: don’t start too quickly.

Exercise 2

The second exercises of this second training is an intensive endurance training. You’ll notice the resemblance with the training from session 1, but the time you’ll run is shorter. Advice: heartrate 76-85% HFmax. As you notice, this is quicker than in the first training. This means: quicker runs.

• 1st level: 4x 6 mins of running with a rest period of 2 minutes in between (walking)
• 2nd level: 4x 7 mins of running with a rest period of 2 minutes in between (walking)
• 3rd level: 4x 8 mins of running with a rest period of 2 minutes in between (walking)

When you repeat the sessions, make sure you’ll change the running pace every thirty seconds.

Building up intensity of referee training: your plans?

How are you building up intensity of referee training sessions? What makes an exercise a good one for you?