THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME

Without wasting any more time, Coach Bjørn Peters commenced the stretching routine. He started with neck stretches and then performed a series of upper body and standing quad stretches before finishing with a set of Hip Flexor stretches in one go. He was intense, passionate, and highly focused while going through even the simplest of stretches the entire time.

"Don't just stand there, staring," Coach Peters yelled, his tone commanding, without pausing his stretching routine. "Follow my lead and go through the routine carefully, starting with the next repetition."

"Aye, coach," Zachary replied, also beginning the routine. He didn't idle in the slightest for the next fifteen minutes and mirrored Coach Peters' every movement. He performed all the stretches uniformly and flawlessly, like a programmed robot, without any pause until he was out of breath when the session ended. By then, beads of sweat had long settled upon his skin like newly melted snow crystals, showing the degree of intensity associated with the seemingly simple stretching routine.

"Okay, that was a relaxing warm-up," Coach Bjørn Peters intoned, flexing his biceps. His muscle-laden chest and arms were well-toned, making him look more like a bodybuilder rather than a football coach. Just by observing him, you could tell he was a gym fanatic to the very core.

"Let's continue and move on to weights training before our muscles start cooling down."

Without waiting for a response from Zachary, the coach moved towards the rack with weights on one side of the room and picked up a pair of dumbbells effortlessly.

"In today's session, we'll start with a set of single-leg dumbbell deadlifts," he said, turning around to face Zachary. "The single-leg dumbbell deadlift is an exercise mainly comprised of hip-dominant movements targeted towards strengthening the hamstrings. You'll be able to avoid the most common injuries to hamstrings as long as you diligently train following this exercise daily. It will also improve your lower body control in the long run. Are we together, Zachary?"

"Yes, coach," Zachary replied, nodding.

"Then, let's start right away," the fitness coach said, getting into position on the training mat.

Without wasting time, he got into gear and began going through the motions of the single-leg dumbbell deadlift. He started the routine by driving his left foot back — as if he was stamping the bottom of his foot on an imaginary wall behind him while keeping his leg straight. Simultaneously, he gradually hinged at the waist, tipping his torso forward until it was almost parallel to the floor. All the while, he kept the dumbbells in his hands, held straight at shoulder height. His arms remained perfectly perpendicular to the floor. After half a dozen or so breaths, he steadily pulled his left leg forward, keeping it straight while lifting his torso until he was standing again.

"That's the first rep of the single-leg dumbbell deadlift," Coach Bjørn Peters said immediately after. "Have you managed to capture all the motions of the exercise?"

"Yes, coach," Zachary replied, also moving towards the rack to fetch a pair of dumbbells. "I have already captured the entire routine, and I'm ready to join you, starting with the next repetition."

"That's good, then," the fitness coach said, nodding. "Get into position first. We'll go through four sets of ten repetitions while alternating between each leg within the next ten minutes. We'll be taking a 60-second rest between sets and a ten-second rest between repetitions. Are we together, Zachary?"

"Yes, coach," Zachary replied, getting into position on the mat beside the fitness coach. "I'm ready to begin the routine when you are."

"Good," Coach Bjørn Peters said with a smile. "Let's start right away."

Without further ado, Zachary and the coach started going through the motions of the single-leg deadlift with a hundred percent concentration. They performed the routine to the best of their ability until they were sweating all over. However, they didn't just stop at the single-leg dumbbell deadlift for that session. They switched to Barbell Back Squats, followed by Lateral Barbell Lunges and Barbell Bulgarian Split Squats before finishing with Dumbbell Calf Raises an hour later. By then, they were already well out of breath.

"That was a refreshing and enjoyable workout," Coach Bjørn Peters said with a grin after they'd completed the motions of all the weight training routines. "Wasn't it?"

"Yes, it was," Zachary admitted, chugging down some water. He'd fully exerted himself and enjoyed the intensive session designed by the fitness coach. He could already judge that the session had been highly effective — a fact that reinforced his belief that he'd made the right decision by hiring a professional trainer.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," Coach Bjørn Peters said with a smile. "Let me elaborate on a few points first before we move on to the warming-down stretching routine."

"Firstly, the purpose of the Barbell Back Squats and the Barbell Bulgarian Split Squats is to build the functional leg strength necessary for football. The exercises build vertical pushing strength in the quads while also hitting the glutes and hamstrings. These will translate into jumping and shooting power on the field."

"Secondly, the Lateral Barbell Lunges will help your strength in the lateral plane, which will help streamline your side-to-side movements. Training diligently with the exercise will also strengthen the adductor muscles and reduce the risk of suffering a groin injury."

"Lastly, the Dumbbell Calf Raises will help strengthen your calves, thus improving your running and jumping ability. The exercise plays a massive role in stabilizing the plantar flexing of the foot, thereby reducing the risk of non-impact injuries at the ankle and knee. FYI, the calves are also an important determiner of your agility. You'll find it hard to raise your agility to another level without strengthening calf muscles. So, this is an important exercise for you. Are we together, Zachary?"

"Yes, coach."

"That's good," Coach Bjørn Peters said, taking up a position on the mat once again. "There are a lot of other beneficial exercises that I have included in your training regimen. You'll be able to make a remarkable improvement as long as you persist and go through them together with me for the next three months. I can promise you this. You will feel the true worth of your 210,000 NOK by the time we complete our training together. But that's if you can work hard and follow my instructions to the letter."

"No worries, coach," Zachary said, nodding. "I'm ready to do my best to take my skills to another level. This time around, I'm prepared to spend the months of November, December, January, and February training to the best of my ability. I'll only reduce the intensity before important matches."

"Then, I'm glad," the fitness coach said with a smile. "Let's end our session by stretching to warm down our muscles. We'll meet again tomorrow early, just before your team training, for another session. Please don't be late."

"Aye, coach."