Many football speed and quickness drills involve coordination training. You cannot have quickness in movement without having proper coordination. The National Strength and Conditioning Association recommends incorporating speed and quickness drills four to eight weeks before the football season starts. Do these drills directly after the warm-up, before you start weight training exercises since they are non-fatiguing and sport-specific. Give yourself one to two days rest between workouts to allow full recovery of your muscles.
Agility Ladder Drills
Agility ladders improve your foot quickness and agility. Start with basic runs, placing one foot in each square. Advance to two feet per square. Run laterally and backward, too. Once you can run through the ladder, start incorporating multidirectional stepping patterns. Step with two feet in the square, then step your left foot out to the left side, your right foot out to the right side and return them to the square. There are limitless possibilities with the ladder.
Hurdle Drills
Hurdles increase your rebound quickness, allowing you to jump off the ground quicker and with coordination. Start with six-inch hurdles placed about two to three feet apart, but gradually progress to 12 to 18 in hurdles. Begin with basic two-foot hops over each hurdle forward, then laterally. Progress to single leg hops. Place the hurdles so they are staggered. Hop with two feet over one, the shuffle sideways to the next and hop over it, shuffle to the other side to the next one and continue to hop in that pattern.
Cone Drills
Cone drills still focus on quickness, but start to incorporate speed. Set up cones in a variety of patterns and sprint back and forth between them, touching the cone as you pass it. If you are a beginner, start with a square with one cone in the middle. Start at the middle cone and proceed to sprint to each corner, returning the middle cone each time. Do these with a basic speed sprint or add side shuffles, skips and backpedals for variety. Get creative with your drills by creating shapes, patterns or even alphabet letters to sprint in.
Speed Drills
According to Ron Jones, an American College of Sports Medicine Health and Wellness Coach, speed is your maximum velocity and should be performed in six- to eight-second increments with a full recovery in between. Resisted running drills help increase power and strength, which together improve speed. Resisted sprints involve dragging a parachute behind you as you run. You can also perform these with a resistance band around your waist, which a partner holds. Try treadmill or hill sprints at a 10 percent incline or in sand as well.
References
- Sport Fitness Advisor: Sample Agility Exercises
- Ron Jones: Speed, Agility and Quickness Drills
- "Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning"; Thomas R. Baechle and Roger W. Earle; 2008
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