Conditioning often is overlooked in youth sports, but it is important for development and success to incorporate conditioning drills into a youth flag football practice session. Younger football players typically are of similar size because of age-group guidelines, so each player should be able to perform the same types of conditioning drills. The best way to train is a variety of drills that condition the overall body.
Gassers
These 110-yard sprints are well-known, challenging sprints in football that involve starting under one goalpost and sprinting to the other end zone. For youth players, it's best to adjust the distance to 50 or 60 yards and adjust the number of sprints from 15 to 20 down to seven or eight. This drill will develop leg muscles and explosive speed.
Interval Sprints
Interval training improves endurance and speed, according to Happy Living Magazine. Have players start by sprinting for 15 yards, then go into a jog for 15 yards, then sprint 15 yards, then finish with a 15-yard jog. Another option is to start with a 15-yard jog and then sprint for 15 yards, as long as you do an equal number of jogs and sprints. Perform four or five repetitions, resting for about one minute between sets.
Indian Run
Bodybuilding.com calls the Indian Run a gut buster. To perform it, players line up in lines of 10 to 12 players. The players begin to jog around the outside of the field. A coach will blow a whistle or signal for the player at the back of the line to sprint to the front. When he gets to the front, he resumes jogging. The player now at the end of the line will sprint to the front on the coach's cue. Continue the drill for five to six minutes.
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