Questions about soccer

Well it's currently the off season for soccer and I have a few questions. Before I go any further, I'm 15, 60kgs (133lbs) at around 1.75m (5'9"), my body fat percentage is around 11-12% (I haven't actually measured, I'm just comparing myself to others at that BF%).

I've been lifting for around 1 and a half months now and I've really enjoyed it, I've really improved my physique and I've enjoyed getting a lot stronger. I've been using my custom made program:

Day 1:
Bench Press 5x5
Pec Deck Machine 3x8
Bicep Curls 4x6
Chin Ups 3xfailure

Day 2:
Shoulder Press machine 5x5
Dumbbell Front Raise 3x8
Pull-ups 3xfailure
Seated Cable Row 3x6
Deadlifts 5x5

Day 3:
Squats 5x5
Leg Curl 3x8
Dips 3xfailure
Tricep Extensions 3x8
Push ups 2-3xfailure

I do cardio three times a week but it's mainly sprints as my cardiovascular is already good and I've heard that cardiovascular training isn't as effective, if I do any cardio I try to keep it 15-20 mins.

and my nutrition is generally to shoot for 250g of carbohydrates (I often go up to 280 but I'm not bothered), 130g of protein and 70g of fats (mainly unsaturated).

Now come the questions:

Is it suitable for me to continue lifting and eating this way as a soccer player? I play as a defender and I want to bulk up a little so that I can be more dominant on the field and make more successful tackles. Will I end up becoming too big to play or will I become slower? I've heard so much about how soccer players should avoid weights and only focus on press-ups, chin-ups etc. but I really enjoy lifting weights and I don't wanna have to quit it just because of what lots of others think. So are there any soccer players who lift weights here? How do you think I could improve my routine(s) and nutrition? Any feedback is welcome though.

Sorry if this seems like a rambling.

Cheers,
Danny

Hey Danny, I play soccer as well. Becoming too big or too slow won't be an issue for you. You weigh 130 pounds. I had a soccer coach in high school who preached avoiding weights like the plague. Here's the thing, we were constantly pushed off the ball by players who played American Football as well as soccer. Now you tell me if strength and size from lifting heavy weights won't improve my soccer ability. I've found that as I've begun to train powerlifting style, I have become faster and stronger. I'm probably playing the best soccer of my life after a couple years of serious training.

You say you play defender but if you really want specific advice, you have to specify whether you play left back, center back, etc. Each position has a different responsibility as well as a general archetype. The best center backs are you usually big and tall in order to defend in the air. The right or left backs are usually quicker as they can become engaged in the offensive attack.

Here's what I would do. Go to this link: http://www.defrancostraining.com/art...rds-part3.html
Scrap your program and do this one instead. Follow it religiously. I'll be honest, your "custom program" is not very good nor efficient. Do Defranco's as it's set up for athletes.

You talk about cardio. Are you still playing soccer while lifting or is this more of an offseason thing? If it's during the off-season, you don't have to worry so much about cardio. If you are a defender, do you run all over the field for 90 minutes? Probably not if you have any discipline. You might sprint 15-20 yards at most every other minute. Otherwise you move at a slow jog. Also, sprinting and long distance running are two very different beasts. In the defranco program, he addresses cardio, so just do what he recommends.

Nutrition: Don't worry about what you eat. You are fifteen years old. If you seriously want to get stronger, eat seconds or thirds at every meal, drink a gallon of milk a day, etc. Unless you are eating fried foods every day, you are probably fine. You will not get too big or too slow.

You can't ever worry about being too big for soccer. If you condition and do agility drills as you progress through gaining strength and size you should see only improvement. If it's any cosolation, I started on our state soccer team, defender, at 195 lbs and about 13% BF. Our other defenders were 205 and 190, and both all-district selections. The only bad thing about being big and being a defender is people run into you and flop a TON to try to get cards. It's actually pretty ridiculous. No offense to you, but most people your size are easy to accidentally take to the ground with a wrong lean of the shoulder or something. But that's about the only disadvantage you'll see. Other than that when you can out physical a player as a defender it is awesome. People are afraid of you. So get big, please!