The Endurance Efficiency: How Rice and Bellingham Go and Go Again

Jude Bellingham often exceeds 10 kilometres (6.2 miles) a game for Real Madrid, offering an attacking impetus to Los Blancos as well as winning possession in defensive areas. He is a ‘todocampista’, tasked with covering every proverbial blade of grass, and often at high intensity.

Data recorded in 2024 revealed that he trekked 130 metres per minute per match in Spain and this yield is nothing new. When excelling at Borussia Dortmund he typically topped the Bundesliga rankings for distance covered.

It is a testament to the midfielder’s durability therefore that he has made 130+ appearances for Madrid despite not yet being three seasons deep into his time there. In 80% of his starts he has competed up to, and beyond, the 85th minute.

It is presently England’s good fortune that they possess another elite box-to-box talent in Declan Rice who, like his international colleague, has a robustness that can be considered one of his most notable qualities. Since 2018/19 only Everton centre-back James Tarkowski has played more Premier League minutes than Rice and whether it’s August or May he can be relied upon to track back, maraud forward, and generally be a one-man hive of industry for the Gunners.

The 29-year-old is a Rolls-Royce of a player, one who is crucial to Arsenal’s trophy aspirations. But more than this, he can be entrusted to go and go again.

Taking A Position: Identifying Natural Stamina

To an extent, such consistent and reliable endurance is innate, each player blessed with an engine that would make them long-distance runners if transferring their athleticism to the track.

Yet, of course, the invaluable trait of natural stamina is meticulously honed in training, developed and heightened. In time the full potential of their staying power is unlocked and then maintained thereafter.

Naturally this requires a distinctly different training programme to that of many of their team-mates. They are, after all, thoroughbreds and their drills, recovery sessions, and even gym-work suitably reflects this.

Lohann is a youth coach based in France and he offers a fascinating insight into how players are initially identified, according to their strengths and weaknesses, with their training disciplines allocated accordingly.  

“By working with a method close to tactical periodization, the process is based on a wide range of tests with the aim of knowing the player inside out.

“We compare the player’s qualities and weaknesses with the demands of their position. Then we implement position-specific work on the pitch through integrated game-based training, followed by support in the gym to develop the key attributes required for their role.

With a box-to-box midfielder, we will work more on repeated efforts, endurance over time, and changes of direction when receiving the ball. We are talking about sustained effort, therefore mainly aerobic, with moments involving the alactic anaerobic energy system.”

Prior to this, VMA (Maximum Aerobic Speed) and VMI (Maximum Intermittent Speed) tests are undertaken pre-season, mid-season and at the end of a campaign.

Dedication to Durability: Daily Routines and Ice Baths  

Bellingham was identified as an all-action, all-purpose midfielder very early on in this journey, as a young boy at Birmingham City. For Rice it took a little time for his chief attributes to come to the fore, initially pegged as a centre-back when coming through the levels at Chelsea.

Once their best position was determined however drills and practices will have been put in place, a daily routine that will now be second nature to both players.

Each will maintain their elite-level endurances via high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and tailored recovery, including ice baths and a diet consisting of a high carbohydrate intake (5–12g per kg of body weight daily) to fuel muscles, along with adequate protein for repair and healthy fats for long-lasting energy.

Training will often feature shuttle runs, 70m sprints, and recovery runs at speeds over 33 km/h to sustain their box-to-box stamina.

Crucially too their training loads will lessen as seasons progress, relying on a chronic base of fitness that has been build up from August to the festive period. Beyond that, matches – that tend to come thick and fast in the latter half of each campaign – tops up their sharpness. Thoroughbreds after all, should never be flogged.

Strength-work, such as using a prowler push and doing Bulgarian split squats, continue, though with fewer reps. Cardio work is extended into Spring also, but with less sets. From Christmas onwards the priority becomes preservation, to ensure the all-action player avoids injury or burn-out. Muscle soreness is monitored to an obsessive degree.

In the first half of any season the demands made on Rice and Bellingham’s bodies is brutal, with the equivalent of a half-marathon run twice a week amidst a fiercely competitive environment followed by full-pitch shuttle runs and transition drills on the training field. The second half, by comparison is relatively genteel.

All of this is designed to keep the cylinders firing, for players expected to run upwards of 250 miles in league matches alone per season.

When Jude Bellingham or Declan Rice are next on your television screen, or competing against your side live in the flesh, and they are chasing down an opponent, while team-mates around them wilt, consider the pain barriers they have pushed through. Consider the dedication shown to their durability.

Consider too the countless hours spent behind the scenes, enabling an ability to go, go and go again.