Clyde Simms is widely regarded as one of D.C. United’s fittest players. So why the heck would he need a personal trainer?
Because after ironman 2008 and 2009 seasons in which he led United with a combined 58 regular-season starts out of 60 games and 5,154 minutes played, Simms got derailed in 2010 by his second sports hernia in consecutive years and had to cut back as much as possible down the stretch. Although he played 20 games (18 starts), Simms was essentially preserved as an emergency backup for the last couple months of the season, and he took off for his second trip Munich immediately after the regular-season finale.
With the scaled back end to the year, the quick surgery right after, and yes, the help of a personal trainer, Simms starts the 2011 preseason at 100 percent and ready to do what he’s done for the last three years, anchor D.C. United’s defensive midfield.
“I feel great,” said Simms last week. “Zero pain, and I’m in pretty good shape starting off, with the fitness tests and everything. I think the key is just staying healthy, and that hernia caused off balances and a bunch of different problems last season. That’s all gone. After training, no pain at all, it’s a good feeling.”
But seriously, how could Simms possibly need extra help? For one, just look at the D.C. roster, where all of a sudden Simms is the fourth-oldest player on the team at the age of 28. Simms also knows guys don’t just keep their positions – they have to hold onto them with a death grip. A little extra core work should help him do that, in part because it’ll make him less susceptible to the types of injuries he’s battled off and on the last two years.
“The strengthening, that’s key to a lot of injuries, especially getting older,” said Simms. “When you have weaknesses, that causes those muscle pulls and off balances and things like that. A lot of the strengthening I was able to do in my core that I wasn’t able to do when I had my hernia. We got after that a little bit, and I feel great.”
And Simms has no concerns about the overwhelming number of defensive midfielders that have filled up the United roster. Kurt Morsink, Stephen King, Conor Shanosky, Dax McCarty, and even Perry Kitchen can all play just in front of the back line. But Simms is the guy who will be there for D.C. when the season starts. He had no concerns over his future when McCarty was acquired – his name in offseason trade talk was other teams seeing if they could pry him away, not D.C. shopping him – and Kitchen seems destined to start his pro career in defense. Shanosky is still a project who will have plenty of U.S. under-20 duty this year while King and Morsink are both capable back-ups that keep the locker room strong and practice sessions at a good clip.
“The biggest thing is all these guys are great guys,” said Simms. “There’s no animosity so I think it’s healthy competition. That’s what good teams have, and that’s what teams need in order to be good teams and be successful. You get some teams, they have good players, but they’re not pushed day in and day out, and ultimately they fall off a little bit. This roster so far, I think the depth is fantastic.”
