3 Quick Feet Drills for Athletes

No matter the sport, quick feet can be the difference between a good athlete and a great one. There are endless drills that can be done to improve a player's foot speed, and here are a few that will help you in any sport.

Here are 3 quick feet drills that I like to do with my athletes:

Drill #1:The grid- There are endless drills that can be done with the grid and here are just a few. Put some tape on the floor if you are in a gymnasium and make a "T" or a cross. If you are on a field you can use some field paint and paint a square. The there will be 4 quadrants numbered 1 through 4. You will pick numbers to call out and jump from one quadrant to the next. Make sure that your hips and shoulder stay square during the course of the exercise. Perform for 20 repetitions. Rest for 30 seconds between repetitions doing sets of 4.

Drill #2 Tire- You've all seen the old football movies where players are running through tires, athletes can use tires or rings. High-step through tires or outstretched string forces the athlete to get their knees up, be precise with their feet, stay on the balls of their feet and keep their balance. To keep the athlete on the balls of his feet, try having him backpedal back to the starting point instead of just jogging.

Drill #3 The square- Set up four cones in a 10 x 10-foot square. Have the player start by shuffling (side-stepping) from left to right along the outside of one side of the square. Once she gets to the end, have them backpedal, then shuffle back the other way, right to left, and then have her sprint to the front and repeat. Depending on age and ability, have the player do this anywhere from five to 12 times. Make sure the player takes short steps as she shuffles and that she doesn't cross their feet. Also make sure as the player gets tired, that she keeps her knees bent and her torso upright.

Remember, reading these drills will not make you quicker. But actually performing them regularly two or these times a week will provide you with great results and a noticeable increase in your foot quickness and explosion.

If you have trouble at first on some of the drills, don’t worry. Just slow yourself down until you master the movement. Always remember form before speed. It takes over 17,000 times to build a new habit so be persistent.

We Breed Champions!

Charlotte Speed and Strength Coach

The Importance of Agility Training and Youth

Recently I have had the opportunity of the last month and a half to train a plethora of youth during the speed programs that I am operating both male and female ranging from ages 5 years to 15 years of age.

Today we're going to talk about the importance of agility training in speed programs for youth athletes.

'Agility' is defined as quality of being agile; the power of moving the limbs quickly and easily; nimbleness; activity; quickness of motion; as, strength and agility of body. Agility is one of those words that when asked, has a lot of different responses to what it is. When people talk about agility, most often they are talking about an athlete's ability to make cuts and change directions quickly. In my opinion, the primary components to improved agility are through the development of BALANCE, COORDINATION, and TIMING WITH RHYTHM.

What is balance? Balance is the ability to maintain equilibrium when stationary or moving (i.e. not to fall over) through the coordinated actions of our sensory functions (eyes, ears and the proprioceptive organs in our joints). There are two different types or categories of balance:
1. Static Balance - ability to retain the centre of mass above the base of support in a stationary position
2. Dynamic Balance - ability to maintain balance under changing conditions of body movement. Dynamic balance is what most of the parents and athletes that are reading this article are interested in with their speed training.

Agility rhythm is the coordination of balance and body control. Every agility drill and exercise has its own timing and rhythm. Timing and rhythm helps develop what is needed in improving special athletic skills. Sports specific training with athletic gain requires that agility of the movement be practiced to make the movement of the exercise be as close as possible to the actual sport's movement.

Before you introduce any complicated drills that have athletes going in multiple directions over the course of a time period, one must take a step back and address the athletes' level of coordination, balance, and rhythmical patterns.

In my experience, even the best athletes have problems in these areas.

The thing about agility is this:

The earlier this issue is addressed, the better the long-term results. If your athletes don't begin developing their balance, coordination, and rhythm until their mid-teens, they will be limited in the amount of development they can make.

That's why I train kids as early as possible, preferably before pre adolescence.
I'm not saying a 18 year old senior can't improve their agility to a significant degree, but then if they had started when they were 5, they'd be much better off. See the video!



Just something to think about for those coaches who work with youth at an early age.

OK, here is what to do...

STEP 1: Improve balance, rhythm, and coordination

My favorite way to both expose an athlete's lack of balance and coordination and also develop it is through the use of an agility ladder.

You can do an infinite number of drills that focus on single leg movement, double leg, linear, lateral, backward movement, change of direction - The list goes on and on.

All of these movements are sport specific because it trains their body to imitate the movements that they will go through during their competition.

As we get those down, we implement the traditional cone drills that allow for more instruction on movement patterns that are more applicable to game situations.

I always preach to my athletes that technique comes before speed when doing any agility ladder drill. The emphasis should not be placed solely on how fast someone completes the drill, but if their technique is sound and they are able to perform the skill correctly.

Transfer of sport

As stated earlier in this article, I use agility work with all my athletes no matter what type of sport they participate in field or court. Transfer of the timing and rhythm is necessary for improvement. The separation of the good athlete from the great athlete lies in developing the creative characteristics of timing and rhythms in agility. Each sport and each athlete of that sport has a synchronized timing and rhythm which defines their relationship to each other. The more specific the agility drill is to the actual sport's task, the more benefit will come from the drill and exercise. From the practice field, court, mat, or diamond, the physical and mental rehearsal is the trigger to accomplishing the most difficult movements.

Repetition of the Agility Drills

By practicing repetition of agility drills and exercises, the athlete is better able to:
• Limit wasted motion;
• Limit wasted movement;
• Develop a natural flow and athletic grace;
• Become more competent in agility of speed and strength;
• Become more efficient in movement - eliminate incorrect arm action, etc.

RAQ-Reaction, AGility, Quickness Speed Training in Charlotte, NC

The Need For Quickness Training

As a speed coach, I get asked by parents and coaches if speed and quickness are different, or the same, or if one is more important than the other. Every coach and parent wants the same result, for their athlete(s) to be faster and quicker. I always say that usually athletes need to be quicker to get to one point before their opponent does and then speed to finish off the play. In most sports the average time of a play is a couple of seconds. For example, in football the average play takes about 3-5 seconds. In addition, athletes are required to cover a small amount of distance in a short amount of time. You seldom see athletes that are required to run for a long distance or for a long period of time.

So to answer the question they both speed and quickness are important in order for the athlete to be successful in whatever sport they are participating in.

Quickness training is one of the most overlooked areas in speed training - and sometimes seldom addressed or forgotten.

Just as the myth that some think that athletes are born with speed, the same applies with the concept of quickness. Quickness too can be taught and learned over a period of time if taught properly.

Quickness is how fast someone responds to a stimulus; whereas, reaction time is a part of someone's quickness and can be trained. Quickness training drills can be implemented in an athlete's agility training so that they can also train for speed and quickness during the same session.

Here are some training drills you can use for quickness development:

-Ball Drop
Your partner holds a tennis ball out in one hand. You start in an athletic stance and when the tennis ball is released/dropped, you sprint to the ball and snatch it before it bounces more than once. This is a great drill for first step quickness training.

You can change the distance that you partner stands away from you.

-Partner Mirror Drill
This is like the shadow game that you use to play as kids. This drill is performed between partners. One partner starts moving and the other partner follows and doesn't allowed to be juked. You need to try and mirror the movement and match each reaction.

-Fox and Hound
One person will be designated as the fox (leader). The other will be designated as the hound (chaser). The leader’s/ fox job is to try to elude the chaser/ hound as much as possible without the hound touching him/her. Place four cones in a square and designate the distance between the four cones, with a fifth one in the middle. The fox can run around the cones in any order or direction trying not to get touched. Remember the hound has to follow the same pattern as the fox. Note: have the fox run out about five yards or 5-6 seconds before releasing the hound to make the drill harder for the hound if the goal is to work on reaction for the defensive player. For offensive player, have the hound released earlier to have the fox work harder to elude and cut harder.

Variation(s): Have a third person (coach) with a watch or a whistle to time the two for a designate amount of time during the drill. At the beginning, the coach yells “Go!” and the drills begin for the amount of 20 -30 seconds. Then the coach yells “Stops!” The roles are switch. Points are awarded to each player. If the hound is able to catch and touch the person he/she is awarded one (1) point. If the fox is unable to get caught, he/she is able are awarded two (2) points. Penalties: (1) one point is taken away from the fox if he/she runs outside the designate boundaries. Also if the hound dives, then one (1) point is taken away. Have the loser perform a designated amount of push ups or some other form of punishment in order to make the game or drill better. For a more reaction and situational setting have the coach blow the whistle at unexpected times to change the role from the fox to hound and vice versa.

These quickness training drills with help your athletes become faster and should be added to every sports speed training program.

Speed and Performance Coach in Charlotte, NC