Agility – 2 Drills to Increase Lateral Movement in Both the Serious and Recreational Athlete!

I have worked with many athletes and the one thing that can give any athlete an edge in competition its having quick agility! Yes, I’m talking about shaking your opponent out of their shoes! Check out the following 2 drills to gain that kind of footwork.

Drill 1: (3 Cone Shuffle) The concept of this drill is rather simple, but the exercise itself is brutal. First you need 3 barriers (preferably cones) to set up beside one another with about 2 to 3 foot of space between them depending on your stride length. Next you want to get into an athletic stance and position yourself in front of the cones with your inside foot lined up in front of the middle cone, and your outside foot with the outer cone. From here you take a single lateral stride with each foot to transition your weight until you are touching the outside cone on the opposite end. For example, if you move from left to right then your left foot is aligned with the left outer cone and your right foot is aligned with the middle cone. When you transition you’ll end up with your left foot aligned with the middle cone and your right foot aligned with the outer right cone. Execute quickly back and forth for the desired number of reps.

Drill 2: (3 Cone Figure 8’s) This drill is set up exactly like the 3 Cone Shuffle. This time you want to get into an athletic stance with your body aligned perpendicular to the 3 cones standing in front of the middle cone. Then you go move around the middle cone and “S” between it and the cone in front of it. Go around the front and “S” back around the middle to the cone behind you. Continue this motion in a figure “8” motion. Do not cross your feet, and always face forward when going through the drill.