Merriam-Webster defines stamina as endurance and endurance as "the ability to withstand hardship or adversity; especially the ability to sustain a prolonged stressful effort or activity." Based on that definition we know at least one thing; building stamina is not going to feel good, nor should it, at least not during the workout. Building endurance is about extending your limits; for your workout to be effective you have to work at or close to your limit. Remember to set the bar high; no sense in underachieving.
The type of workout you undertake depends on the type of stamina you're trying to build. You would not run to build muscular stamina in your arms, and bench pressing all day won't do much for your cardiovascular stamina. Most of us are concerned with improving muscular endurance, cardiovascular endurance or both. It's very important to remember that workouts may not produce the same results for different people. Nobody knows your body better than you do, so you must find out what methods and workouts work best for you.
Always consult a physician prior to starting a workout regimen; this is especially indicated when working on endurance, as lactic acid and oxygen debt will soon be close personal acquaintances.
Track Interval Workout
For cardiovascular endurance, try a 2K run. You'll need a watch to time intervals.
Warm up:
Jog 1200m or 3 laps around the track. Always stretch well, paying special attention to your lower back and hamstrings.
Intervals:
Run 800 m at a comfortable pace; it should not be easy, but it isn't a race. (Record your time.)
Walk 600 m. (Record your time.)
Run 600 m, again at a comfortable pace. (Record your time.)
Walk 400 m. (Record your time.)
Run 400 m. Att this point you should be a bit winded; record your time.)
Walk 200 m. (Record your time.)
Aggressively run 200 m. (Unleash your inner Usain Bolt; record your time.)
Cool Down:
Walk / slow jog 800 m, and stretch lightly.
Every two weeks,drop the times of your run intervals as much or as little as you feel comfortable with, but you must decrease each rest (walk) time by 30 seconds . This shortened rest period is what will force your body to adapt how it uses oxygen, building your stamina.
For those of us who prefer slightly shorter distances, "The Off-Season Football Speed Training Workout" contains some great and painful interval workouts.
Muscular Endurance Workout
Most of us know the formula for training muscular endurance: high repetitions, lower weight. Many of us, however, go with high repetitions and too low weight. When endurance strength training, you should aim for 65 percent or your 1-rep max and 15 to 20 repetitions; this applies to your core exercises such as bench press, leg press and hack squat. For supplemental exercises we will instead focus on shortening the rest period between sets. Another key is to train your muscles in the proper sequence to maximize your results. The workout is arranged in the following order: Exercise/ Repetitions/Sets/Percentage (%) of Max, if no percentage use moderate weight/Rest Period between sets (seconds)
Day 1:
Bench Press: 15 to 20 reps; 4 sets at 65 percent; rest as needed
Incline Bench Press: 15 to 20 reps; 4 sets at 65 percent; rest as needed
Military Press: 15 to 20 reps; 4 sets at 65 percent; rest as needed
Upright Row: 15 to 20 reps; 4 sets at 65 percent; rest as needed
Dumbbell Shoulder Raise: 12 to 15 reps; 4 sets; 30; 60; 90; rest
Dumbbell Triceps Extension: 12 to 15 reps; 4 sets; 30; 60; 90; rest
Pec Fly Machine: 12 to 15 reps; 4 sets; 30; 60; 90; rest
Day 2:
Shrugs: 12 to 15 reps; 4 sets; 30; 60; 90; rest
Lat Pulldown: 15 to 20 reps; 4 sets at 65 percent; rest as needed
Seated Rows: 15 to 20 reps; 4 sets at 65percent; rest as needed
Straight Bar Curl: 12 to 15 reps; 4 sets; 30; 60; 90; rest
Parallel Squat or Squat Press: 12 to 15 reps; 4 sets at 65 percent; rest as needed
Leg Extension: 12 to 15 reps; 4 sets; 30; 60; 90; rest
Leg Curl: 12 to 15 reps; 4 sets; 30; 60; 90; rest
Calf Raises: 12 to 15 reps; 4 sets; 30; 60; 90; rest
If the strength work is a bit too easy, combine both days into a single workout.
Stairs
Close each week with stairs, lots of stairs. If you're using an average high school stadium, up and down one flight of bleachers counts as one repetition. If you don't have access to stadium stairs you can use an office building stairwell.
Stadium:
3 sets of 10 reps, which is 30 flights of bleachers total
Stairwell:
3 sets of 10 floors.
If either workout is too much, decrease the number of sets or reps as needed until you have built up enough stamina to finish, and if it happens to be too easy then increase them.
After several weeks of this workout you should see significant gains in stamina.
Good luck and happy training
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