7 Footwork Drills for Building Speed And Agility

There are several drills you can use to improve your speed, coordination, and footwork. This article contains seven easy-to-implement footwork drills that you can try on your next workout.

What are Line Drills?

Athletes and coaches typically use line drills to improve coordination, footwork, and speed. They can be pretty advantageous to beginners since they require little to no equipment and are simple. To complete a line drill, all you need is a boundary line made from tape, chalk, or paint.

The cables can be made on a sports field, gym floor, or any nonslip, resilient surface. You can vary the difficulty of the line drills by changing the combination of lower and upper body movements. One can also make it pretty complex by altering the complexity of the footwork.

Here are the Footwork Drills for Building Speed and Agility

1. 180-Degree Traveling Line Hop

This footwork drill has you standing on the line with your hips and shoulders parallel to the line. You then hop to one side of the line rotating your body about 180 degrees in the air and then land right on the line while facing the opposite direction. You continue hopping and moving laterally down the line for a predetermined distance or set time. You need to have both feet land on the line after every hop when performing this drill.

Single Leg Variation

This is another drill that can be performed on one leg. Just as you would with the two-footed variant, you hop down the line, ensuring that your body rotates 180 degrees with every hop. Your foot after every hop needs to land on the line. The key to performing this drill well is to ensure that you execute it on both legs. As with the two-footed variant, it can be performed for a predetermined distance or length of time.

2. Travelling Scissors

This speed and agility footwork drill involves you standing parallel to the line with your shoulders. The next move involves stepping across the line with one foot placed in front of the line and the other behind it. This will enable you to straddle the line.

You then rapidly switch out the position of your feet, moving them backward and forwards in a scissor-like motion. At the same time, you should move laterally down the line for a predetermined distance or length of time. To ensure balanced training, you should perform this drill on both the left and right sides of your body.

3. Lateral Line Hops (Forwards and Backward)

This drill has you moving backward and forwards. You need to stand with your shoulders perpendicular to the line before you can do this drill. Then hop from one side to the next, ensuring that your feet are always together. Move down the line by hopping from one side to the other till you reach the end of the line.

Once this is done, you can go back to your starting position by simply hopping side to side and backward. This footwork drill is done for either a predetermined distance or a specific length of time. When practicing this footwork drill, your feet must be close together.

Single Leg Variation

You can perform the same drill by simply hopping from one leg to another. Typically, this drill is also performed for a predetermined number of repetitions or a particular length of time. The drill must be performed on each leg equally to balance your training.

4. Forward and Backward Line hHps

This footwork drill has you standing with your shoulders parallel to the line. You then hop backward and forward with your feet together. While doing this, you should begin moving down the line laterally for a predetermined number of repetitions or times. You can also use distance as a metric for how much you have done. When practicing this drill, it is important to move both your left and right sides to balance training.

5. Scissors

With this drill, you will stand parallel to the line and then step across using your left foot, and straddle the bar with your right foot behind it. After, you will shift your feet quickly, moving each foot to the other side of the line. You can continue the drill by changing the position of your feet using motion reminiscent of scissors.

6. Lateral Line Hops (Side to Side)

With this footwork drill, you will stand perpendicular to the line and then moving from one side to another over the line for several repetitions and time.

Single-Leg Variation

This drill has you hopping from one side to another, and it can be performed on one leg. This drill should be completed equally on both legs to balance the training.

7. Backward and Forward Line Hops

To do this drill, you need to stand parallel to the line and then hop over the line back and forth with your feet together for a particular number of repetitions or a time. Once you land on each hop, you should immediately push off to the other side. When hopping from one side to another, you should ensure there aren’t any additional bounces or hops.

Single Leg Variation

You could do this footwork drill by simply hopping back and forth on one leg. You hop back and forth for a predetermined number of repetitions or time to complete this drill. You must perform this drill equally on each leg to ensure balanced training.

Conclusion

The importance of speed and agility cannot be understated; speed and agility are considered two significant components of strength and fitness. They are essential qualities that must be present when engaging in physical activities or playing sports.

Speed and agility drills are pretty common in many sports such as basketball, football, soccer, rugby, hockey, martial arts, volleyball, and more. These footwork drill can go a long way in improving such skills.