Agility is the ability to change directions and speeds efficiently. It takes muscle explosiveness, coordination and balance to have good agility. Many sports that require quick bursts and change of directions, including basketball, soccer and volleyball require agility skills. For improvements to be made, it's important that you perform the exercises at full speed. Be sure to adequately warm-up by jogging and stretching before participating in agility drills.
Line Drills
Line drills improves your ability to not only change directions, but accelerate out of that change of direction. Mark out baselines that are 10 yards apart. Start at one line, and sprint 10 yards to the other line. Touch the line with your foot, then explode, change directions and sprint back to the starting line. Perform three up and backs before you rest for a minute, then repeat. You can vary this drill by trading side shuffles and back pedals for sprinting.
Figure Eight Drill
The figure eight drill teaches you to maintain an athletic position as you change directions. Place two cones five yards apart. You're going to make a figure eight around the cones while facing forward and keeping your shoulders square and forward the entire time. It requires you to sprint, side shuffle and back pedal to complete. Bend your knees and keep your hips low as you create the figure eight. Complete three rounds one direction, then switch and go the other direction.
T-Drill
The T-drill exercise is very effective in teaching one how to change directions and quickly get into a position to play defense, which is important in sports such as soccer and basketball. Create a "T" shape with four cones, each cone being five yards apart. Start at the bottom point of the "T." Sprint straight ahead five yards to cone in front of you and touch it with your hand. Immediately shuffle step to the right and touch the cone at the right edge of the "T" before you change directions and shuffle left all the way to the cone at the left edge of the "T." Shuffle back right to the middle, then back pedal to the starting cone at the bottom of the "T."
Square Drill
The square drill is designed to teach your feet how to move quickly, as well as body control. Use masking tape to draw an intersection of two lines. Start in one square and two foot hop into the subsequent squares, moving clockwise. Stay light on your feet and try and move from one square to the next as quickly as possible. Perform for thirty seconds before resting and then switching counterclockwise. You can also do this drill with single-legged hops.
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