In Her Campus’s series The College Try, our writers test out viral wellness, dating, fashion, productivity, and pop culture trends firsthand. This time, Natalia Suarez gives soccer workouts the ol’ college try.
I’ve always believed there’s a different kind of fitness that comes from playing a sport. You can spend an hour on the treadmill or in the weight room, but there’s something about chasing a ball, reacting in split seconds, and constantly changing direction that pushes your body in a way traditional workouts just don’t.
As someone who spent 13 years playing competitive soccer, I thought I knew exactly what to expect when I decided to revisit soccer workouts for a week. After all, I’ve survived preseason conditioning, endless shuttle runs, and coaches who thought “one more sprint” was a personality trait. I was wrong.
For seven days, I swapped my usual gym routine for drills inspired by soccer training: cone work, interval sprints, ladder exercises, agility circuits, explosive jumps, and plenty of ball touches whenever I could fit them in. The goal wasn’t to become match-ready overnight; it was to see how this training style compared with the workouts I normally do. And while I’m definitely not ready for the FIFA World Cup, I did end the week with an entirely different mindset.
Day 1 was instantly humbling.
Nothing checks your ego quite like sprint intervals. Five minutes into alternating short bursts of all-out speed with recovery jogs, I remembered why soccer players cover miles during a 90-minute match. It isn’t steady-state cardio; it’s repeated acceleration and deceleration that leave your legs burning. I finished the workout completely exhausted but strangely energized. Instead of staring at a treadmill timer, I was focused on movement and reaction.
By Midweek, I started noticing a difference.
By Day 3, my calves and glutes had opinions. Agility ladders, lateral shuffles, and explosive cuts activated muscles that my regular lifting split often overlooks. I also noticed that these workouts demanded mental focus. You can’t zone out while weaving through cones or timing quick changes of direction; you have to stay engaged. Oddly enough, that made the sessions go by much faster.
The biggest surprise wasn’t physical. Soccer workouts reminded me why I fell in love with the sport in the first place. They’re playful. Even when they’re difficult, there’s a sense of purpose behind every drill. I wasn’t counting down until the workout ended; I was trying to beat my previous time or clean up my footwork. It felt less like exercising and more like competing with myself. In an era where fitness can sometimes feel transactional — burn calories, close rings, hit step goals — returning to a sport-based mindset was refreshing.
By the end of the week, I hit my stride (Literally).
By the end of the week, I noticed that recovery between sprints became easier. My coordination felt sharper, and everyday activities like climbing stairs didn’t leave my legs feeling as heavy after lifting sessions. I also realized how much core strength soccer demands. Staying balanced while changing directions, accelerating, or controlling the ball quietly works muscles that standard crunches never seem to reach.
Soccer conditioning isn’t just about running. It combines endurance, power, agility, coordination, balance, and quick decision-making into nearly every movement. That’s probably why even short sessions felt incredibly efficient. You don’t need to join a league to borrow from the sport, either. Adding shuttle runs, cone drills, or quick footwork circuits into your weekly routine can make cardio feel far less monotonous.
After a week of soccer workouts, I’m convinced they deserve way more attention outside the world of competitive athletes. Did I end every session drenched in sweat? Absolutely. Did my legs hate me? Without question. But I also rediscovered a movement style that challenged both my body and my brain, making fitness genuinely enjoyable again. And in a world where staying motivated is often the hardest part of exercising, that might be the biggest win of all.
I may have started this challenge expecting a nostalgia trip, but I finished it with a new appreciation for just how demanding, and rewarding, soccer training can be.
