Soccer players like Cristiano Ronaldo must maintain athletic builds to ensure they have functional muscles for their matches. Because of the grueling effort of practice, players like Ronaldo and David Beckham maintain low body fat levels that allow them to get these lean builds. Soccer in particular requires explosive sprinting, similar to that one does when performing high intensity interval training. Additionally, when a player is not sprinting, they are still running, similar to a steady state cardio workout.
Cristiano Ronaldo Workout
Cristiano Ronaldo Workout Day 1:
Total body weight training, followed by 30-minutes of cardiovascular training (goals – to improve strength, explosiveness and cardiovascular conditioning, while maximizing post-workout calorie-burning)
Complete 5 sets of 5 reps (with 45-seconds rest in between sets) for the following Exercises: weighted pull-ups, dumbbell chest press on stability ball, stiff-legged deadlifts, dumbbell front lunges, barbell hang cleans, barbell push-presses, standing calf raises, 1-arm kettlebell swings, dumbbell side lunges
After weight training, go immediately into cardio workout of a 30-minute treadmill run using rolling hills (various incline levels) and increasing speed slightly every 5-minutes. If you didn’t leave a pool of sweat on the treadmill, you weren’t going fast enough.
Cristiano Ronaldo Workout Day 2:
45-minute cardiovascular workout to improve endurance and raise lactate threshold.
Using treadmill or running outdoors, complete a 45-minute tempo run (a tempo run is where you’re going at an “uncomfortable” pace throughout the entire session)
Cristiano Ronaldo Workout Day 3:
Circuit training and plyometrics to enhance muscular endurance, improve explosiveness and burn lots of body fat.
Complete 18 repetitions of the following Exercises in circuit fashion (back-to-back, without rest): dumbbell front squats, decline push-ups (4-second lowering phase), 1-legged lying stability ball curls, bent over dumbbell rows, seated dumbbell shoulder presses, body weight dips
After 1 circuit, rest 60-seconds and repeat one more time, for a total of 2 circuits
When you finish your circuit training, perform 2 sets of 12 repetitions for the following plyometric Exercises (taking only 30 seconds in between sets and Exercises): box jumps, explosive push-ups (with clap), bounds for distance (standing still and with both feet together, jump explosively as far forward as possible, landing on both feet, pausing briefly and then repeating another bound), explosive burpees (with push-up at bottom and tuck jump at top)
Cristiano Ronaldo Workout Day 4:
Rest or 20-minutes of sport activity at low to moderate intensity (nothing hard)
Cristiano Ronaldo Workout Day 5:
Repeat Day 1 (try to improve weights and/or running speed and incline levels; after 6-8 weeks or plateau, use same Exercises but switch to less weight and moderate reps, for example – 4 sets of 8 reps)
Cristiano Ronaldo Workout Day 6:
Repeat Day 2 (again, shoot for slight improvements each workout)
Cristiano Ronaldo Workout Day 7:
Repeat Day 3 (switch the order of your circuit training Exercises and plyometrics, so that you’re always starting with a new movement)
Ronaldo Diet Plan
Behind any great body is a great diet plan. Cristiano Ronaldo is no exception to this. Combined with his intense training regime, Ronaldo’s diet allows him to maintain his lean, athletic physique and six pack abs. Here is Ronaldo’s typical eating routine:
Breakfast: wholegrain / wholewheat cereal with fruit juice
Lunch: chicken / meat with salad, wholewheat pasta, baked potato, or vegetables
Snack: tuna roll
Dinner: similar meal to lunch
As you can see, Ronaldo’s diet is built around eating healthy carbs (no refined sugars) and good sources of protein while limiting his intake of unhealthy fats.
During training, Ronaldo will consume energy drinks to replenish his glycogen levels. Keeping up his glycogen levels is very important for Ronaldo during matches as he needs these carbs to help him continue his explosive sprints.