Injury preventionAnalyticMovement
Goalkeeper-specific adductor prevention
Activate and strengthen the adductors before training — a 2021 literature review shows adductor strain is the most common injury subtype in goalkeepers, unlike field players, where the hamstring dominates. A generic warm-up copied from field players doesn’t protect the right joint.
Choose a session and the exercise is added to today’s plan.
Load
- minutes
- 8
- Intensity
- Low
- Sets and reps
- 2 × 8
Microcycle days it fits
MD-4, MD-3
Each bar’s height is that day’s dive ceiling.
Setup
- Goalkeepers
- 1
- server
- 0
- outfield player
- 0
Space: 3 × 3 m
Equipment: Resistance band
The coach serves and manages the breaks.
A resistance-band adductor sequence — resisted abduction, side plank with leg raise, paused sumo squat — done individually before technical work begins.
Coaching points
- Controlled range through the whole movement; speed isn’t the goal, full muscle activation is.
- Feel the effort specifically in the adductor, not compensating with the hip or glute — if that happens, reduce resistance.
- Always do both sides equally, even when the goalkeeper feels one side clearly stronger.
- This routine adds to the team’s general warm-up — it doesn’t replace it, because it covers a demand the goalkeeper has that field players don’t carry the same way.
Progressions
- Move to controlled maximum range.
- Add a dynamic variation, with the lateral step under resistance.
Regressions
- Reduce band resistance.
- Reduce the number of reps per set.