Contestants from the 2018 Florence’s Biggest Loser got a chance to work out outside of the gym Saturday morning for their first fitness challenge of this year’s competition.
Hosted by the Francis Marion University women’s soccer team, the challenge gave the contestants the opportunity to test their new fitness skills by completing soccer-themed drills and workouts.
For some of the contestants, this was their first time playing soccer.
“Going through these drills really shows you how in shape you have to be, because we are using almost every part of the body,” contestant Betty Lawrence said. “Hats off to those who do play soccer, because this has been a tough workout.”
Even those contestants who had played soccer before found the workout to be challenging.
“I’ve always enjoyed playing soccer, and being out here has brought back old memories,” contestant Kevin Dwyer said. “Even though I’ve done drills like this before, it has been a long time, so I’m definitely getting a good workout today.”
This is the second year that the FMU women’s soccer team has partnered with the Florence’s Biggest Loser to offer a fitness challenge to the contestants. Coach Lindsey Morgan said after the success of last year’s event, the team could not wait to work with the contestants again.
“As college athletes, the girls are very passionate about their health, and to have the chance to work with those who have goals of losing weight and getting healthy and being more active seemed like the perfect fit for us,” Morgan said. “It’s also great for us to have the chance to not be so businesslike and to let loose and laugh and remember how much fun the sport we love truly is.”
If you would like to work out like a Florence’s Biggest Loser contestant, grab a few friends or family members and try this soccer-themed workout. …
Kickin’ It With FMU Workout
Before you begin the workout, you should spend 5 to 10 minutes performing dynamic stretches to help warm up the muscles. Examples of dynamic stretches you can use include walking quad stretches, walking lunges, walking calf stretches, high knees and side shuffles.
>> Drill 1: Step up a series of cones and have each player line up at the first cone. Player One will start by dribbling the ball around each cone, and after they make it around the last cone, they will pass the ball to the second player in line. Have each player dribble through the cones as many times as they can for five minutes.
>> Drill 2: Have two players face each other about 6 to 10 feet apart. The remaining players will divide up evenly and line up behind either Player One or Player Two. Player One will pass the ball to Player Two by kicking it with the inner part of the foot and then run to the back of the line. Player Two will then kick the ball to Player Three and run to the back of their line. Continue to pass between each player as many times as possible for five minutes.
>> Drill 3: Line the players up again just like they were in Drill 2. Instead of passing the ball with their feet, Player One will hold the ball at their chest and pass the ball by throwing it to Player Two. Player Two will catch the ball and then quickly pass it back to Player One. You can either have both players remain stationary while they pass back and forth or they can shuffle sideways as they pass for an extra challenge. Each pair can either pass stationary for 30 seconds or they can side shuffle pass for several feet before passing the ball to the next pair.
>> Drill 4: Line the players up again just like they were in Drill 2. Instead of passing the ball from the chest, the players will instead throw the ball overhead to each other. Player One will start by throwing the ball overhead to Player Two and then run to the back of their line. Player Two will overhead throw to Player Three and so on for five minutes. If you want to make it more challenging, after each player catches the ball, they can do one air squat before throwing the ball to the next player.
>> Drill 5: Have two players face each other about five feet apart and then have the remaining players all line up behind just one of the players instead of both. The player without a line behind them will have the ball and will toss it high in the air so the second player can head it back to them. The player heading the ball can either keep their feet planted or jump to head the ball, but they need to make sure to move their head toward the ball to hit it and try to hit the ball with the center of the forehead along the hairline. Each player will take turns heading the ball for five minutes.
>> Drill 6: For the last drill, decide on one player who will be the caller and then put the remaining players into teams of two. Each team of two will be assigned a number and will start facing their teammate about 10 feet apart. The group of players on the left will be the taggers and the group of players on the right will be the runners. The caller will randomly pick one team number to yell out, and whichever team number is called, the player who is the runner will have to try to run to a base before the player who is the tagger can touch them. After two minutes of playing, the runners will become the taggers and vice versa.
After you finish all of the drills, you can either continue the workout by playing a few games of soccer or you can finish the workout by performing 5 to 10 minutes of static stretches. The stretches should target the full body, especially the quad and calf muscles.