North of Scotland Referees Association Web Site, NOSRef

NORTH OF SCOTLAND REFEREES ASSOCIATION
Training and fitness tests.

Physical fitness is one of the most important aspects of refereeing at all levels of football.

Weekly physical training sessions take place during the football season (August to May) every Wednesday at 6pm until 7.30pm at Queens Park Stadium, Bught Park, Inverness. The training sessions are under the guidance of the North of Scotland Associations Trainer Mr John Johnston. All are welcome to come along.

Fitness test

A fitness test set by FIFA has to be passed twice a year for all senior listed officials and for Referees who officiate in Junior League Football in Scotland. The test is available for all registered officials to try and is a good benchmark for measuring your fitness.

The minimum criteria for passing the test:

S.F.A. Listed Officials.....

Average running speed during repeated fast runs over a specific distance.

6 * 40 metres sprints (6.4 seconds for Referees, 6.2 seconds for Assistant Referees) with 1 minute recovery between sprints.

Capacity to perform repeated high-intensity runs.

10 laps consisting of 150 metre sprint in 30 seconds followed by a 50 metre walk in 40 seconds = 20 runs in total.

Senior Listed officials aged over 45 must achieve minimum of 8 laps, (16 runs in total)

Highland League Assistant Referees.....

6 * 40 metre sprints; in 7 seconds with 1 minute recovery between sprints

8 laps consisting of 150 metre sprint in 35 seconds followed by a 50 metre walk in 45 seconds = 16 runs in total

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Test dates are the last Monday of March, June (S.F.A Officials Only) and October.

Every member who requires to sit the fitness test will be expected to make every effort to participate on the stated dates. Alternative dates will not be arranged as a matter of course.

TOP TIPS FOR INJURY PREVENTION

Avoid training when very tired.
Increase carbohydrate consumption in periods of heavy training and frequent matches.
An increase in training should be matched by an increase in resting.
Treat minor injuries with great respect to prevent them becoming serious.
If in pain when training, STOP!
Do not train hard if stiff from a previous session.
Pay attention to nutrition and hydration (always take fluid to training).
Keep to soft surfaces whenever possible.
Introduce new sessions or activities very carefully.
Be assiduous with warming up and cooling down.
Wear appropriate shoes.
Monitor daily for signs of fatigue.
Have regular sports massage.

NUTRITION

Diet significantly affects sports performance.
Have five portions of fruit and veg each day e.g. glass of fruit juice, banana, apple & 2 x veg.
Eat no less than 2 hours before exercise.
After exercise, try to eat Carbohydrate-rich food 30 minutes after to restock fuel stores

HYDRATION

You can lose 500 - 1500ml per hour during exercise.
600 - 800ml is the maximum you can replace.
Dehydration causes your blood volume to go down resulting in less oxygen getting to the muscles.
Water suppresses thirst and contains no electrolytes.
Check the colour of your urine for state of hydration. a pale colour is better.

SPORTS DRINKS

Sports drinks contain glucose and sodium. These increase the rate of transfer from the stomach to the bloodstream. The combination of 6% carbohydrate and electrolytes aids quick fluid transfer.

Do-it-yourself drinks
20ml concentrated juice + 1 litre water + salt OR 1 litre unsweetened juice + 1 litre water + salt.

Hypotonic
Carbohydrate content of 3-4% + sodium --- Lucozade Hydroactive; Liquid Energy
Before, during and after sport.

Isotoniic
Carbohydrate content 5-7% + sodium --- Powerade; Lucozade Sport; Isostar
Before, during and after exercise.

Hypertonic
Carbohydrate content 10% + --- Fanta; Cola; Lucozade
ONLY for recovery after exercise.

WEIGHT LOSS TIPS

Stretch your meals to 20 minutes.
Water is necessary for the metabolism for stored fat. Drink 8 glasses of water a day.
Be confident about yourself.
Hot & Spicy foods can increase your metabolism by 40%.
Negative emotions interfere with weight loss.
Caffine leads to an increase in insulin in your body and this retards the burning of stored fat.
Exercise. You burn more stored fat in the evening than in the early morning on an empty stomach.
Metabolism slows down after 8 hours so exercising before dinner will increase metabolism for another 3 hours.
Don't skip breakfast because then your metabolism will not start until lunchtime, losing a few hours of fat burning time.