NSCA COACH 2.1 | NSCA.COM 12 FARZAD JALILVAND, MS, CSCS, RSCC, USAW DEVELOPMENT OF BIOMOTOR ABILITIES FOR SOCCER S port specificity has become a term where the word specificity is often misunderstood by professionals in athletics. Training methods that are based on simulation can deviate from sound training principles and distort the true nature of goal-oriented training, in regard to sport. The objective of this article is to provide insight on the interactions between strength, power, speed, and agility for soccer players, examine the scientific evidence on improving athletic performance, and provide basic programming guidelines that adhere to current research and anecdotal experiences. DEVELOPING BIOMOTOR ABILITIES USING THE PRINCIPLE OF DYNAMIC CORRESPONDENCE For all sports, a comprehensive needs analysis is necessary to ensure that the goals of the training program are met and that the training is specific to that sport. With the growing body of non-empirical information, it is easy to deviate from established training principles and to start adopting the idiom “reinventing the wheel.” Basic principles, such as the SAID principle (Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demand), lay the foundation of any training program and need to be critically evaluated before developing a training program. In order to develop adaptations into a positive transfer of training effect, the principle of dynamic correspondence needs to be applied. Training athletes is not simply lifting weights. There is an inherent relationship between biomechanical, physiological, and psychological factors when training athletes. Therefore, methods of training dictate training effects. As Mel Siff explained the concept of dynamic correspondence, he stressed that sport- specific movements are goal oriented and the expression of strength is specific to those movements (28). In other words, training methods need to be biomechanically and physiologically specific to the demands of the sport. To enhance motor qualities, Siff outlined the following criteria to achieve a positive training effect (28): • Amplitude and direction of movement (the direction of force relative to the performed movement) • Accentuated region of force application (positions in the movement where forces are the highest) • Dynamics of the effort (whether a concentric max effort or eccentric slow effort is desired for each lift) • Rate and time of maximum force production (being able to apply maximum force in less time) • Regime of muscular work (task-specific strength in regards to the sport) Siff identified three main target goals when applying dynamic correspondence to training: 1) to understand motor tasks/abilities involved in the sport, 2) to train those motor tasks with proper exercise selection, and 3) to apply biomechanical and metabolic specificity to elicit desired training effects (28).