How healthy is playing soccer?
Playing sports tends to be healthy, but recent research has shown that soccer might well be one of the healthiest sports you can play.
This fast-paced sport creates not only physical benefits; but the excitement and the need to think fast also create many mental benefits. No wonder soccer is one of the most popular sports in the world, especially in Europe and South America.
In order to keep up with the game, you need a good amount of physical fitness. As a player, you need to follow the ball constantly. In effect, you’re jogging for nearly 90 minutes, with a few fast sprints involved depending on your position on the field. This aerobic exercise creates numerous health benefits and works out various muscles in the body, without you even being aware of it. In addition to aerobic exercise; the need to react fast also develops great flexibility, both physically and mentally. The cognitive benefits derive from having to follow this fast-paced game for nearly 90 minutes with little rest in between.
In summary, the main health benefits include building endurance, strength and flexibility while increasing bone and muscle strength.
Another great benefit of playing soccer is that there is a lower risk of injury in soccer than many other sports, such as its US counterpart, American Football. Carefully warming up your muscles before a game will reduce the risk of injury even further. All in all, it really does seem like the perfect sport to play; both for kids and adults.
In my opinion, sports such as soccer are the best way to keep fit. It’s a lot more fun to chase a ball with your friends than being stuck in a gym forcing yourself to run for 30 minutes on a treadmill.
In addition to all of the health benefits we’ve listed above, there’s also the benefit of fostering co-operation and developing teamwork skills. This is why team-sports such as this are such an important part of development and education. In order to keep up, a player will be forced to problem solve on the spot while working with his or her teammates.