Indian football players are usually dismissed because of their small stature.

How important is a beep test or a yo-yo test in determining the running ability of a player?

Here is the importance of running such tests as explained by Sharath Kamath, who is a Strength & Conditioning coach in Bangalore at Outperform which is a sports high performance and sports injury rehabilitation center. Sharath is also a football coach at Dream United Football Academy, which is a residential football academy in Bangalore and specializes in grassroots football and youth football development.

We see a lot of football coaches running yo-yo tests and beep tests to figure out how good their players are in terms of running ability. The reality is that there are a lot of technicalities involved in running up to a test like this because players need to have basic strength for football and no movement deficiencies in order to run such high volumes in a test like this. Unplanned testing will lead to a lot of injuries and it needs to be done in a very systematic and scientific manner. Players need to be taken through a solid strength and conditioning program in order to achieve best results out of a test like this. Running a test like this will give you an indication of their VO2 max or running ability.

What do you really do with that information once you have it? 

There is a lot of work still to be done in order to take them from the current level to the next level by using this information with a solid strength and conditioning program.

“Either way, for me as a football coach, or a strength and conditioning coach in India, I dont really think the running ability of a player matters. It is all about how well we tailor a program. The merit or the quality of the football program will decide how well the player will perform in the system.” - Sharath Kamath

Here at Dream United residential football academy, we want players to experience the best football coaching in Bangalore and we make sure we give tailor-made programs to every player who walks in here.