The Winter Void: Stop Training Harder, Start Training Smarter

It happens every year, but it's most noticeable in the winter. The season ends, and most teams hit the brakes: practice slows down, weekend games disappear, and players are suddenly left to figure out the next three months on their own.

This is a critical lapse.

The moment players are actually craving more training and looking to capitalize on their down time, clubs offer no guidance, support, or true development pathway.

Sure, they'll suggest a futsal league, offer a few generic winter clinics, or recommend some strength work.

But are those things right for your player?

The two issues I see are universal:

1. The More-Is-More Trap: Players sign up for six different programs hoping that doing everything will lead to progress. In reality, this often leads to the opposite—burnout and minimal gains.

2. The Alignment Crisis: When you're juggling five or six types of training, and none of them align with a singular, tailored plan, they often counteract what you're trying to achieve.

The issue isn't that players don't need to train harder; it's that they desperately need to train smarter.

The Illusion of Effort

I hear it all the time. Players come to us at the end of the season, excited to get extra work in because their club team is only meeting once a week. But when we try to schedule a private session, their availability is nonexistent. They're booked solid: futsal on the weekends, the club's winter "training," and a new strength session at the local gym.

These are well-meaning players and parents wanting the best for their development. They think that by just doing more, they must be making progress.

The problem is the lack of context. On their own, futsal, strength training, and extra touches are all beneficial. But without a plan, you're spending massive amounts of time chasing marginal gains. Is the time spent driving to a futsal game just to play 20 minutes more beneficial than getting 500+ quality touches in a structured session? Does your player actually need to go lift heavy weights, or would a 30-minute recovery session or yoga class be more valuable for preventing injury and ensuring they can perform at 100% in their next training?

You're already overbooked. The issue is not training harder, it's training smarter.

The Generic Advice Camouflage

The deeper problem is the lack of genuine, actionable guidance. Coaches and clubs fail to provide individualized feedback, leaving players to guess what they need based on generic, end-of-season advice: "Get stronger," "Improve your shooting," "Work harder."

Naturally, they sign up for everything: a gym's weight program, a personal trainer for shooting, and a speed and agility coach. The commitment is commendable, but the results are often wasteful because there is zero alignment.

You may be with a speed and agility coach, but are you working within a soccer context, or are they teaching you to run like a running back? Do you need to be squatting 150 lbs, or is the real issue developing hip and ankle mobility? If you have joint issues, should you be loading heavy weights, or would a barre class to strengthen unused stabilizing muscles be more appropriate?

The Power of Alignment

For our committed players, we ensure total alignment. We use tools like match analysis to identify specific areas for improvement, and then we implement those insights directly into their training sessions. We go to their games and watch film, giving immediate, actionable feedback. These are the players who see the biggest progress in a short amount of time.

It pains me to see hard-working players waste effort. The problem is simple: most trainers operate without diagnostic context. They resort to the same generic drills because they haven't taken the time to truly diagnose the player's specific weaknesses. Now, I understand that from the outside, it might look like all trainers are doing the same things—running cones, passing drills. But the truth is, while we operate under a proven curriculum and exercises, the nuance applied within each exercise is tailored to the specific case and player. We might work for an hour on receiving the ball away from pressure, only to see the player’s next session completely negate that progress. This isn't about one coach being better; it's about the wasted time, money, and effort that occurs when a player's various activities have no singular, aligned plan.

Challenge the Status Quo

Players, keep your work ethic high. Keep putting in the effort. Just make sure it’s the right kind of work.

Don't assume that because the majority is doing something, it's right for you. Be brave and walk your own path.

Instead of going to the gym at 5 AM for a heavy lift, try 20 minutes of breathing and mindfulness exercises before bed to ensure deep sleep and recovery. Go try a barre class or watch game film. Seek opportunities outside the standard, low-guidance youth soccer offerings.

If you do what everybody else does, you will end up where everybody else is. I challenge you not to train harder, but to train smarter.