Agile athletes quickly respond to stimuli and change direction without losing balance, motor control and functional postural alignment. United Kingdom sport coach Brian Mackenzie, who created the Sport Coach website, explains that agility training programs must incorporate dynamic balance exercise, resistance training, speed and coordination. In a paper presented as part of the National Strength and Conditioning Association hot topics series, Jason D. Vescovi, MS explains that agile athletes also posses qualities such as enhanced rhythmicity, spatial awareness and visual processing.
Benefits
The National Strength and Conditioning paper details three important speed an agility training benefits. These workouts enhance motor control and neuromuscular functioning, which improve overall athleticism. Since directional changes are a common cause of athletic injuries, enhancing the ability to make quick directional changes may reduce the risk of injury. Finally, the ability to make fast directional changes improves athletic performance by enabling the athlete to perform proactive offensive movements and reactive defensive movements. Examples of this type of workout include running drills. The athlete begins a run and must quickly change directions when the coach blows a whistle.
Time Frame
Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist Phil Davies, who created the Sport-Fitness Advisor website, explains that periodization is crucial for effective speed and agility training. He suggests that athletes should focus on strength and endurance training during the early pre-season. Sprint training is minimized during this period. Explosive power workouts, also called plyometrics, as well as basic speed and agility exercise training begins in the late pre-season. The medicine ball jump catch and squat is an example. Jump up as you toss the ball into the air. Catch the ball and land in a squat.
In season, the training is maintained at two sessions per week. Muscle recovery exercise is addressed in the immediate post season. Speed and agility training is not performed during this period.
Considerations
Speed and agility workouts are most effective when they adhere to the dynamic pattern theory, which suggests that coordination is enhanced by the brain's ability to memorize and recognize movement patterns. This implies that speed and agility workouts must be sport-specific. Sports medicine specialist Dr. Michael Yessis asserts that a sport-specific exercise must duplicate the movements of the sport, involve the same types of muscle contraction as the sport and use the same range of motion.
Types of Speed Training
Bounding integrates plyometric exercise with running. Plyomterics consists of a rapid stretching movement followed by a quick muscle shortening movement. Coaches at the University of Texas have athletes warm up with high knee lifts and butt kicks as they move down the track. After 5 minutes, perform a forceful push-off with your left leg, bringing your left leg and your right arm forward. You will be airborne for a brief moment. Repeat with the other arm and leg. Maintain this exaggerated running drill for at least 10 minutes or perform an interval training workout, integrating 5 minute bounding segments with 10 minute running segments. While this is a speed-training workout, Michael G. Miller, in a 2006 "Journal of Sports Science and Medicine" reports that a 6 week plyometric training program results in significant agility improvements.
Examples of Agility Training
The agility ladder is an example of an agility training workout. The ladder facilitates running, jumping, skipping and hopping movements, in forward, backward and sideways directions. Incorporate speed with agility by having a friend or coach time you as you go through the course. Medicine ball drills, when performed on balance training devices, integrate balance and agility training. Partners stand facing each other on balance boards and toss the ball back and forth to each other. Add challenge by varying the ball's direction.
References
- Brianmac Sports Coach: Agility
- Sport-Fitness Advisor: How to Design A Speed Training Program
- National Strength and Conditioning Association: What is Agility?
- Journal of Sports Science and Medicine: The Effects of a 6-week Plyometric Training Program on Agility
- University of Texas: Three Month Pre-Season Training Program to Improve Speed, Agility in Soccer Forwards
Member Comments