“Dude, can you like, write me a full workout for football? Ya know, like maybe a full year’s worth of football workouts and a diet and stuff? kthanks!”

Beggars.

I’ve been hit with this minor request at least once a week since I was in high school. I used to be quite happy to do it, but then I realized three HUGE problems when writing these kind of football training plans:

1. Most Won’t Even Bother to Do It

Yes, I’ve written huge program outlines for friends and then found them on the floor (the paper, not the friend, unfortunately).

Hell, I get emails from people who bought the Explosive Football Training Program who send me their workouts and they look NOTHING like what’s in the book, then wonder why they aren’t getting results.

2. Football Workout Plans Shouldn’t Be Planned So Far in Advance

A 4 – 6 week workout block is good. Sure, we can outline the basics of the program, but to plan every workout for the next year is silly. How the hell do you know how you’ll progress or feel 4 months from now?

3. Most People Think They are Way More Advanced Than They Really Are

This is the biggie. Most young football players read some fraudulent “NFL Football Training Program” in Flex and think they should be doing what the 11-year NFL Vet is doing. As if the NFL guy is doing the garbage they write in the magazine.

In reality, if you’re 14-years old, you need to train at your level, not someone who’s been training for longer than you’ve been alive.

So, without further bitching from me, here is a very, very simple football training program that I wrote for a friend. Notice it’s short and sweet. Hard to F it up, eh? It’s meant to be done for a few weeks and then we re-asses and go from there.

Day 1

Bench – 6 X 4

DB Incline – 3 x 8
Low Cable Rows – 3 x 8 (super set these)

Shrugs – 4 x 8

Lat Pull Machine – 3 x 10

Lying Tricep Extensions – 4 x 6

Day 2

Front Squats – 8 x 3

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Clean Pulls – 5 x 4

Romanian Deadlifts – 3 x 8

Band Leg Curls – 3 x 10

Kneeling Cable Crunches – 4 x 12

Day 3
Dumbbell Press (standing) – 3 x maximum reps

DB Shrugs – 3 x 15
Face Pulls – 3 x 12 (super set)

1 Arm DB Row – 4 x 6

Preacher Curls with the EZ bar – 4 x 6
Behind the Head Extension (with cable and rope) – 4 x 6 (super set)

That’s it.

You’ll notice that some of the accessory work is rather high rep; this is because this friend needs to gain some overall mass. But, the root of the program is there:

Max Effort work followed by accessory work and some Rep Effort mixed in as well.

Hard work and heavy weights can do wonders for any football training program.

Explosive Football Training Program Manual