Football Fitness, created in Denmark in 2011, is a football-based workout that anyone, regardless of age and fitness level, can do. It consists of various exercises practiced with a ball followed by small games on small courts (a five against five, for example) in which the result does not matter. It’s about having fun, playing games, and improving your health.
And works. Research conducted by the University of Southern Denmark has shown that its regular practice significantly reduces blood pressure in hypertensive women.
Healthy goals
The experiment studied 31 women between the ages of 35 and 50 with hypertension who had not touched a soccer ball in their lives. For a year, they practiced an hour of Football Fitness two or three times a week. Result: a significant reduction in your blood pressure. But also a decrease in your body fat percentage and an improvement in your bone density, as well as a better general physical condition.
The research director, Professor Peter Krustrup, says that this is the first time that the long-term positive effects of Football Fitness have been demonstrated in women. This Health Sciences teacher and biomechanics specialist has been studying the physical benefits of soccer for 14 years, and argues that soccer is useful for preventing and treating lifestyle-related ailments such as cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes, and which may be more advisable than medication.
Convinced of the benefits of football to improve the health of adults in poor physical shape, Krustrup invented Football Fitness in collaboration with the Danish Football Federation, and now he is dedicated to studying and proclaiming its good results.
Photo: Mia Kjaergaard, DBU.
