Adding Competition Can Help You Reach Fitness Goals

The ol’ gut isn’t as firm as it used to be and you know you need some exercise but there are so many obstacles to getting into a regimen. First, you struggle with time, whether it’s overloaded while at work or running kids around for activities once you clock out, the amount of time available for personal exercise is limited for most adults. Secondly, like the rest of humanity, you struggle with motivation. The stress of trying to wake up early or to squeeze a quick work out in between the commute from the office to home seem to be the most common options but many working parents struggle to create openings in their packed calendars. Should you do decide to join a gym, you soon find yourself out of place in the politics of waiting for an exercise bike that isn’t designated as the property of the Armstrong wannabe or getting a few reps in on the weight bench from the semi-semi-pro that looks like they could compress you like a tin can. Statistics show that as high as 80% of persons who join a gym in January, the New Years Resolution folks, will drop off within five months (Lake 2014). Many adults are finding fulfillment and success with league based sports such as indoor soccer as they provided a fun way to exercise in a structured, exciting and competitive environment.

​Structured
Most people thrive with some sort of structured activity. While we may be motivated to get healthy we may not know where to start. Unless you can afford the expense of gym membership and a personal trainer, your willingness to pursue your goals may be uprooted by your lack of experience in devising a realistic plan for success. Indoor soccer provides youth and adults with an opportunity to exercise within the structure of an organized activity. The objective is simple enough that all skill levels can immediately engage in the sport. Indoor soccer league play provides non-stop physical activity that engages the mind, challenges the body and activates that competitive spirit. 

When compared to running on a treadmill or other static cardio workouts, soccer provides a more complete workout. Soccer places positive stress on your muscles, heart and lungs within the structure of an activity that is fun to participate in. Depending on your body composition and intensity in the activity, 30 minutes of soccer can burn an average of 300 calories, whereas running an average pace of 6 miles per hour or 1 mile every 10 minutes burns roughly 135 calories for an averaged size person (many variables to both). Indoor soccer provides year round opportunities to engage in a higher intensity cardio activity that challenges the whole body. Thirty minutes of soccer will test your body and engage you in physical activity that would otherwise be rather mundane if that same amount of time were spent on a single piece of exercise equipment.

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Exciting
The primary objective for soccer is to work with your teammates to kick a ball down the field (aka pitch) and into a net (the goal) while stopping the other team from trying to kick that same ball into your team’s net. Like many organized activities, as participants engage in the sport they often develop a desire to progress in the essential skills. Many parents are recognizing that soccer provides a fun introductory sport for children of all ages and skills and there are few sports as fast paced as soccer for young ones to enlist in. Rather than enduring long periods of inactivity or the potential to participate in an entire game without having ever touched the ball, children and adults will enjoy constant action through competitive soccer. In this way, competitive sports can also serve as a supplement to a fitness routine as the testing of cardio health, endurance, physical skill, coordination, flexibility and friendly competition are all positive enhancements in building overall health. Indoor soccer adds the convenience of being sheltered from weather conditions enabling year round participation and allowing parents to enjoy a snack or get some work done while children participate. Many indoor facilities such as Kick City Sports Park in Springfield, Oregon have a full pub onsite with warm food and cool drinks (Kick City in particular hosts 20 taps of local craft beers and ciders). Indoor soccer adds opportunities for connection with other players, friends and family as the indoor facilities has shelter and amenities which other sports programs cannot provide.

Competitive
As an adult your first time on the pitch for an indoor soccer game will confirm just how out of shape you are, as there is constant running combined with non-stop activity that will thoroughly test your endurance. The good news for indoor soccer league participants is that you can substitute as often and as many times as needed, again allowing persons who aren’t where they would like to be physically to engage and build their stamina. If you stay with the sport you will soon notice a hunger developing to be fit enough to complete (meeting your exercise goals) as well as the growing thirst to progress in your soccer skills (activating your competitive spirit). Exercising the body while challenging the minds through coordination of skills, the competitive nature of the sport of soccer becomes a fun means of keeping all ages focused in the setting and reaching of goals. Indoor soccer leagues provide opportunities to develop or deepen relationships with persons that will challenge as well as encourage you. Soccer provides a host of physical, mental and developmental challenges including cardio fitness, muscular dexterity, coordination, respect and teamwork.

Whether you are an individual seeking an activity to help you get healthy or a parent who needs an activity for your children, you will find that soccer meets your needs and more. For the health conscious adult, as you consider your fitness goals for the following year, grab some friends and start an adult indoor soccer team or register with your local sports park and join a house team with the opportunity to meet new friends. If you are a parent looking for an activity to help your children burn off their energy, indoor soccer is about as good as it gets with regards to a fun activity to observe, has no bad weather days and provides opportunities to network or get some work done while your children participate. All ages and skill levels will find that indoor competitive soccer provides a fun way to exercise in a structured, exciting and competitive environment.

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Lake, Rebecca (2014, December 28) 23 Gym Membership Statistics That Will Astound You. Credit Donkey. Retrieved from https://www.creditdonkey.com/gym-membership-statistics.html