The changing of the calendar year always brings new resolutions to work out more, get fitter, and eat healthier. So, for our first 'Five for Friday' of the New Year, we spoke with Josh Beaumont of 90strong.com, a site dedicated to physical enhancement of a soccer player.  Besides being the co-founder of 90strong.com, he worked for several years as Athletic Trainer with Chivas USA, and is currently with the US Women's National Team as their Athletic Trainer during Olympic qualifying.  He gave us his insight on working with professional athletes, weightlifting for soccer players and even answers some 'Best of' questions about players in Major League Soccer.  Follow 90strong.com on twitter @90strong                                                                                 

Soccer Banter:  First, please describe 90strong.com and your involvement in it?

Josh Beaumont:  90Strong.com is a website dedicated to the physical and performance enhancement of a soccer player.   Strengthening, conditioning, and injury prevention are often neglected in a soccer player’s development.  The website is designed to serve as a resource to address those needs as well as provide other information such as nutrition and recovery.  90Strong.com provides all information necessary to improve your game outside of a team training session.

I am one of the co-founders and contributing authors.   My partners and I have extensive experience at the highest levels of soccer: US Soccer National Teams, USYSA Region teams, Major League Soccer, Women’s Professional Soccer and NCAA Division I.

SB:  For the past several years you served as the Head Athletic Trainer for Chivas USA and before that you worked at the NCAA Division I level. In terms of prevention of injuries and rehab how would you describe the differences physically and psychologically between professional athletes and collegiate athletes?

JB:  Psychologically, there is a major difference between the two.   The professional player tends to be more fanatical about their body because it is how they make their living.  They are more sensitive to even the slightest changes.  They are more likely to show up and initiate rehab.  College players often are just beginning to truly understand their bodies. The concept of invincibility still is present.  If it isn’t mandatory, they aren’t going to want to rehab.

Physically, the pro player has finally stopped growing. They typically can continue to increase their strength, speed and power, until they are about 28-30.  At that point, gains are minimal and recovery from playing and injury becomes more challenging.  Strength and conditioning programs become more about maintenance than gains.  A college athlete has just finished growing and is ready to make leaps and bounds in the strength and conditioning area.  The biggest challenge for a college player transitioning to the pros is their bodies are used to getting a break ever few months.  In the pros, you get a break once a year.

Professional players tend to have access to a full time strength and conditioning coach.  At the collegiate level, that individual usually has multiple sports and soccer is a “secondary” sport.  They get a few sessions of general work in the gym and that is it.  This is one of the areas that 90Strong.com assists a college athlete.

SB:  You have dealt with both men's and women's soccer players - what are the major physical differences that you have noticed as it relates to injuries?

JB:  The most common difference is the rate of ACL injuries between men’s and women’s.  Women have a rate of injury that is 4-8x times higher than the men.  The men tend to have a higher rate of sports hernias, although that rate is starting to increase on the women’s side.  In terms of healing times, there is not much difference between the genders and the end result is more based on the individual’s bodies and their intrinsic motivation to get better.

SB:  How important is lifting when it comes to soccer athletes - what lifting exercises should soccer players be focused on?  

JB:  Lifting is an underrated part of a soccer player’s development. For example, upper body strength is necessary for throw-ins, holding off defenders, and between 5-20% of your vertical jump. I don’t think there is any lifting exercises per se a soccer player should focus on.  Soccer athletes need both muscle strength and endurance.  Their strength extends throughout the core, into the legs.  

My favorite exercises are a Bulgarian split squat because it is a single leg exercise and it puts the body in a position similar to running and striking a ball.  I am a big proponent of eccentric hamstring strengthening such as Romanian Deadlift or Russian hamstring curls because they increase the body’s ability to decelerate, resist injury in the knee and hamstring.  While there are so many different core exercises that all are of benefit, I am a big proponent of ones the emphasis a neutral pelvic position.  For example, during a pelvic bridge most people tend to push their hips as high as they can and “lock” out using their back muscles rather than using their abdominals.  Over time, an in-balance develops as the back muscles get stronger and the pelvis sits in a position that exposes the player to injury. Maintaining pelvic neutral involves contracting equally the back and abdominal muscles to stabilize the core.   During a pelvic bridge, the abdominals should be contacting to lift then support the torso.  This concept can be applied to most exercises: a squat, a lunge, and a med ball toss.

SB:  Serious questions over let's have fun with a few best of questions. In your time in MLS give us your top five players you watched live?

JB:  Juan Pablo Angel during his first few years in NY was the prototype forward.  Dominant in the air, could possess and distribute.  DeRo (Dwayne De Rosario) and Stu Holden when they were paired together in the Houston midfield always were doing something special.  Sacha Kljestan was great to watch.   He had an offensive flair to him and scored some fantastic goals.  I always appreciated Jesse Marsch taking a piece out of Beckham a few years ago.  He treated him like any other player and stood his ground.  He and Paulo Nagamura were so good defensively.  The most skilled player was John O’Brien.  He is probably the best player to come out of the US.  People would be looking to make a tackle on him and he’d be 3 steps past them.

SB:  Fastest women's player over 10 yard sprint?

JB:  Sydney Leroux, her and Alex Morgan have game changing speed.

SB:  Most self-motivated player you have ever worked with? 

JB:  I would have to say that is Dan Kennedy.  He came back from back-to-back season ending surgeries to have a very successful 2011 season.