The Drills· Box Drills
o Linear- Start with one foot an a 3-4 inch tall box and the other directly behind on the floor. Rapidly switch so the floor side foot is on the box and the box side foot is on the floor. Repeat
o Lateral- Start with one foot on a box and the other beside it on the ground. Moving laterally, take the foot that is on the box to the other side of the box on the floor. Take the foot that was on the floor up onto the box (simultaneously).
o Down Ups-Start with both feet (supported by the front half of the feet) on the box. Drop down and rapidly rebound to the top.
o Down Ups Lateral-Start with both feet on the box, drop down to the side and rebound back onto the box.
· Landings-Step back off a 12-inch box (approximate) and land in a bilateral stance. Absorb through the hips, knees, ankles. You should end in the same position you use to jump. Try to land silently. Keep the knees in line with the ankles (do not let them drop toward the center) and the head up.
· Alley Angles- (Note: ALAN means As Long As Needed) Set up an alley of cones approximately 5 yards wide and 10-12 cones long. Each cone should be approximately 2.5 yards apart and split by the cone in the opposing lane. Start by walking through the exercise and work toward maximal speed as you master the drill. Start at the first cone and walk toward the first cone in the other alley. Lower your center of gravity as you approach the cone. Plant the outside foot in front of the cone and drop that knee inward (this is called a positive angle) creating a lower leg angle that pushes the body toward the next cone in the opposing alley. If the leg is left perpendicular to the floor, the force created when you push off will elevate the center of gravity, not push it toward the next cone. Perform crisp sharp cuts. Watch the inside leg and make sure in creates sharp angles, and that it does not “sweep” around the corner. At first, stop at each cone and re-adjust your stance. While in the stance, you should feel balanced front to back and side to side. Your back knee should be lower than your front, and the front knee should be bent. Explosively push toward the next cone (do not over extend the step or bound). Once you feel that you maintain good balance, use a more of a plant and cut walk. As this feels comfortable, increase to a jog and than into a sprint. Always remember to drop the knee and to explosive push. Focus on the stance that you practice and utilize it at all times.
· 40 Yard Ladder-Place cones on the floor at 0, 5, and 10 yards. Start at the first cone (at the 0-yard mark). Sprint to the 5-yard mark and return. Immediately sprint to the 10-yard mark and return. Immediately sprint back to the 5-yard mark and return. The clock should begin at the first movement and turn off when you cross the line after the last 5-yard sprint. Sprint past the 0-yard cone for an accurate time. Note: Stay low on the cuts, run in straight lines, and do not round your corners. Record your time on the worksheet in the __/__/__ area.
· Skipping Series
o Linear- Use a knee up-toe up action. Try to educate your body to dorsiflex (take the top of the foot toward the shin) when the knee is raised. Raise the knee high enough to create 90-degree angles at the hip and slightly less at the knee. Use a quick knee up and fast powerful knee down piston type action. Foot contact should be on the front half of the foot.
o Lateral- Start with a wide stance and begin performing the above described leg action. Start by skipping in place. Once this is established push laterally (slightly) with one leg to drive the body to the side. Perform moving both ways.
o Backward- Using the same leg action as described in the linear skip, drive and push backward to move your body posteriorly.
o Skipioca- This is a skipping exercise using the same footing as the carioca exercise (one foot will travel over and across the other on one-step and behind on the next).
o Ankle Skips- Start in a hips tall stance elevated onto the front half of your feet. Keeping your knee joint static, swing one leg forward until the heal is slightly in front of the other foot. During the leg swing, you should dorsiflex the foot maximally. Once it is in front of the other foot forcefully extend the ankle joint (planterflex) “popping” the floor. Let the foot rebound to create the skip.
o Multi-D Skip-Combine all of the above skips into one exercise. You can set up cones and change your skip at the cone, or have a partner call out the change of directions.
· Super Dots
o 13-32
o 12-3
o 45-3-12
o 3-1-2-1-3
o Set five agility hoops in a 2-1-2 hoop pattern with 2-3 feet separating the hoops (should look like an oversized dot pattern. Label the upper left hoop “1”, the upper right hoop as “2”, the middle hoop at “3” the lower left hoop as “4”, and the lower right as “5”. The above drills use this numbering. If there are two numbers side-by-side, as in 13 in the drill 13-32, you will start the drill with one foot on hoop “1” and one foot on hoop “3”. The left foot will always be the first number in the pair. The dash “-“, as in 13-32, indicates foot movement. For instance, on 13-32, the feet start on hoop “1” and “3”, and switch to hoop “3” and “2”. If there is only one number, as in the “3” in the drill 12-3, both feet should be on that hoop (hoop “3”). Do not allow your shoes to squeak on the floor (this means that you are increasing contact time and not efficiently applying force to the ground).
· Skaters- Stand on one foot (try to sit back in the stance with the knee and hip joints bent to about 20 degrees). Drop the base leg knee inward toward the direction of the jump. Explode to the side allowing the trail leg to swing behind the lead leg. In the initial stages of this drill, stick and hold the landing. Absorb through the hip, knee, and ankle. Once you have regained your balance you can explode to the other leg allowing the trail leg to swing behind the plant leg. Once the balance becomes instantaneous, use more of a hit and go action.
· Wave Drill- (Note: ALAN means As Long As Needed) Start in an athletic stance. Drop a knee to create a positive angle. Push with that leg and perform a shuffle type step. Focus on keeping a balance oriented stance. Do not “step over” with the lead leg when you push with the trail leg. Keep your center of gravity (COG) in a flat plane, do not let it oscillate when your push. Do not let your stance width decrease when your recover from the push. Once you have regained your balance and corrected your stance, push again. Repeat for the give number of reps. Once you have master your form, use more speed up the drill.
· ProSlide- Place cones on the floor at 0, 5, and 10 yards. Start at the 5-yard cone and shuffle to the 10-yard cone. Sprint to the 0-yard cone and shuffle back to the 5-yard cone. Perform the drill leading off with the other direction on the second set. Keep time from the first movement until you cross the center cone line after the last shuffle. Record your time on the worksheet in the __/__/__ area.
· Vertec Jumps
o Standing V- Prepare to jump by rapidly dropping your COG. Immediately reverse the counter movement and maximally jump and reach with both hands. Lightly slide the Vertec slats that you can reach out of the way. Land, recover, and jump again.
o Approach- Use a running jump. Volleyball players can use either an approach or side step jump (make sure to record which you use so you can use it every time), while other athletes can use more of a running one foot jump.
o 85% for Reps- Calculate 85% of your standing maximal vertical jump. Set the Vertec to this height. Jump and touch this height (do not over jump). Use a “pogo stick” type action where you hit and go with minimum contact time. Jump until you can no longer touch 85%. Record your number of reps in the __/__ area.
· Banded Walks
o Squat Walk- Fold a mini Jumpstretch band in half and create a figure eight. Place one foot through each hole of the figure 8 and take the foot through up to the ankle. Widen out your stance maximally (you should be stretching the band considerably), squat down to parallel, and walk for the prescribed distance.
o Lateral Shuffle- Start in an athletic stance. Push laterally and let the trail leg slowly slide back into place. Do not let the tension slack in between steps. Work both directions.
o Half Moon- Start in the widest stance possible. Draw a half circle with your foot toward the centerline and forward. Repeat on the other side for the give distance.
· Chango Balance Claws- Place the CBCs on the front half of your feet. Jog for the prescribed time.
· Balance- Set up a balance circuit with 5-10 stations. Try to implement as many different types of balance equipment and stimuli as possible. Spend 30-60 seconds on and 15-30 off.
· Z-Ball- Stand 15 feet away from a wall (make sure you have lots of open space and no dangerous obstacles). Throw the Z-Ball off the wall, let it bounce once and try to catch it. If you miss it after the first bounce, get it as fast as possible.
· Down Ups- Step back off a 12-inch box (approximate) and land in a bilateral stance. Absorb through the hips, knees, ankles. You should end in the same position you use to jump. Try to land silently. Keep the knees in line with the ankles (do not let them drop toward the center) and the head up. Rapidly return up to the box and regain your balance. Try to minimize contact time on the floor. Once you have re-established your stance repeat.
· Barrier Jumps- Place collapsible barriers approximately 3-4 feet apart. Jump over the first barrier and land softly, regain your balance and jump over the next barrier. Absorb through your hips, knees, and ankles. Continue through the rest of the barriers (as dictated by the number of reps to be performed). Once you can consistently land softly with balance perform the drill with “pogo action”.
