/This presentation was given by Willem Timmermans at the Cyprus International Soccer Conference, Nicosia. ( Act2Prevent ). Meaning was to share the basic principles of Applied Functional Science, developed by Gary Gray ( Gray -Institute ) with the soccer/football world and share some idea's to bring more logic into 'flexibility' and 'functional strength for soccer/football'. The presentation combined the theory and slides with the practical part, training demo. More information about our soccer DVD/ Functional Stretch and Strength Program / training demo's and presentation : www.act2prevent.com

1. Soccer Education :
Injury prevention by ‘functional
stretching’
Willem Timmermans
Act2Prevent
CISC, Nicosia, May 26th 2012
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

2. Willem Timmermans
• Physical Therapist, Personal & Lifestyle
Trainer
• Fellow of ‘Applied Functional Science’
• Soccer Coach
• Creator of the soccer DVD: ‘Injury
Prevention and Strength training’.
• Author and Educator
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

3. Injury Prevention
• What do we need to know about injuries?
• Differences between acute or chronic?
• Causes of injuries?
• Principles : Understanding of the body and
biological sciences ?
• Strategy : So what can we do about it?
• Techniques : How?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

4. Your advantage?
• More insights in the physical part
• Personal growth
• Teach your players !
• Your players and you deserve ‘the very
best’
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

5. Most common injuries in soccer
• Muscles : hamstrings, calf, Q-ceps,
abdominals, adductors, groin, …
• Tendon : Achilles, Patellar, …
• Ligaments : ankle, ACL, knee, shoulder,
…
• Joints : cartilage, luxation, …
• Head : nose, concussion, …
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

6. Diff. : Chronic < > acute injuries
Most chronic injuries?
• Muscle attachments : Abdominals, groin,
…
• Joints : cartilage knee, ankle, hip, …
• Tendon inflammation : knee, heel, …
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

7. Cause of chronic injury?
• Too much?
• Not enough recovery?
• Nutrition?
• Repetitive?
• Other?
Or is some part of the body not doing its
job?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

8. Chronic < > Acute injuries
Most acute injuries?
• Muscle injuries : strain, tear
• Tendon : partial or full tear
• Ligaments : sprain, tear, …
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

9. Cause of acute injuries?
• Contact < > non contact?
• Tiredness / fatigue?
• Bad luck / coincidence?
• Circumstances? Environment?
• Not prepared : Warming-Up?
How can we help the body achieve a safer
performance?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

10. Understanding the body and the
biological sciences!
• Chain Reaction : The body as a whole !
• Dynamic
• 3D muscles
• 3D joints
• Gravity and GRF
• Unconscious
• Task Driven !
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

11. Chain Reaction
• Top down drivers
• Example
• Bottom up drivers
• Example
Which body parts influence the knee in
playing soccer?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

12. Dynamic
• The body is made to move, not to hold still
• Body stabilizes by movement
• Load to unload : example
• Should we prepare a dynamic sport static
or dynamic?
When do we hold ‘still’ in soccer?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

13. Understanding 3D muscles
• Muscles function in 3 planes of motion
• Sagittal : forward – back
• Frontal : left –right lateral
• Transverse : left –right rotational
• Example :
When do we have a 1 dimensional
movement in soccer?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

14. Understanding 3D joints
• Joints function in 3 planes of motion
• S–F–T
• Example
• In which directions does the knee go… in
soccer?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

15. Gravity and Ground Reaction Force
• Muscles function differently depending on
their position
• Example
• The body use those forces to react : load
to unload
• The nervous system gets a different input
In what position(s) do we play soccer?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

16. Conscious - Unconscious
• ‘The body is a reactor’
• ‘The body recognizes movement – not
muscles’
• Will conscious training/exercises help us
in
unconscious movement?
• Example
Which muscles and joints are activated in a
KICK? Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

17. Task Driven : soccer
• The nervous system regulates our
muscles and joints by ‘proprioceptors’
• Muscles and joints react differently
depending on position
• The body recognizes movements like
‘kicking’, ‘heading’, ‘jumping’, ‘running’
How will this influence our strategy and
exercises?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

18. Make it functional !
• There is often a GAP between our
exercise and the task : soccer
• What is the task of our soccer player?
• What do we want to improve?
• Making it ‘functional’ : Do the exercises
look like soccer?
How will exercises in a supine position help
us in ( upright ) soccer?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

19. Stretching
• Useful or not? Depends on …
• Static or dynamic?
• Position?
• Does it look like a soccer movement?
Which stretches are dynamic and look like
soccer?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

20. Functional stretching in soccer
• Bridging the gap between the exercise
and the task
• Preparing the nervous system
• Tweaking in 3D
• Not a matter of correcting and avoiding
‘bad movements’ but “preparing the body
for its tasks : soccer !”
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

21. Advantages
• More logic for muscles and joints
• More logic for the nervous system
• More holistic movement : ‘FLEXIBILITY’
• Building more resistance for elongation
For which activities can static, one-
dimensional stretches be useful?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

22. Stretching or … Flexibility?
• Flexibility as injury prevention
• Working the whole ‘chain’
• Basis for strength training
• Basis for performance : loading the bow !
• = saving ENERGY ?
Does more elasticity increase or decrease
performance?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

23. Practical part
• Starting with the feet !
• 3D dynamic stretches : lower limbs
• 3D dynamic stretches : trunk & upper
limbs
Which way takes more time : dynamic
stretching or holding for 20-30 seconds?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

24. From Flexibility to Strength
• Same Principles
• Strategy : think ‘functional’!
• Techniques : 3D movement with ‘extra
load’
• Examples
What do we want to strengthen in soccer?
Muscles? Or movements?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

25. From Stability to Mostability
• Stabilizing by using movement
• Reality : ‘controlling movement’
• Example
• Should we teach the knee to only move
forward? Or controlling 3D movements during
soccer?
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

26. Interesting or necessary?
• We are used differently
• Our athletes are used differently
• Avoiding resistance : try, feel and teach
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

27. Conclusion
• Mobility and flexibility
• 3D and dynamic
• Think Functional : task = soccer
>>> Functional Flexibility and Strength !
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

28. Feedback
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

29. ‘Transform yourself into an athlete’
• Educational concept for clubs,
trainers/coaches and players
• Personal Development in sports
• From recreational to top-sports level
• From intro to ‘soccer-pro’
• 1 day up to max. 3 months
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012

30. More information
1. www.Act2Prevent.com
2. Willem Timmermans : +32 477 / 80 50 50
info@Act2Prevent.com
3. Soccer DVD : ‘Injury Prevention and
strength training by …’
Willem Timmermans
www.Act2Prevent.com
© Copyright Willem Timmermans, St-Kat-Waver 3/4/2012