Non Linear Speed Exercises
One Leg Standing Calf Raise
 Begin flat footed.
 Slowly lift right knee toward chest with toes pointed forward while maintaining balance.
 Slowly lower leg and repeat process with opposite leg.
 Add calf raise to rep once athlete has achieved consistent balance.
Wall Marches
 Stand facing wall
 Lean forward and place both hands on wall
 Keep 45-degree body angle
 Drive one knee toward chest; point toe toward shin
 Hold for 2-3 seconds
 Drive leg back down and drive opposite knee to chest
 Hold for 2-3 seconds, repeat
“This drill helps athletes who can’t hold good drive angles when they start accelerating. The hold helps the athlete learn
to keep proper running posture by working the core—the abs, low back and hips.”
Balance Hop
 Stand in front of a + on the floor with knees slightly bent.
 Take 3, two footed bounces in place.
 On the 3rd bounce, jump explosively upward.
 Land in a bent knee or kneeling position with the right foot forward, landing in the center of
the +.
 Alternate forward landing foot.
Step Off/Balance Hop
 Begin with the Step Off exercise but land on both feet.
 Explosively jump into the Balance Hop landing trying to have feet contact the floor as little
as possible.
One Leg Lateral Jump
 This is done entirely on one leg.
 Begin with right leg in slightly knee bent stance and the left leg lifted from the ground.
 Explosively jump laterally while maintaining balance with the jumping leg.
 Initially, the athlete will jump OVER a small object and land on the line. They will progress
to a box or bench in later training.
Alternating Leg Hop
 Begin in the same position as the One Leg Lateral Jump.
 Athlete will explosively push with the inside leg, hopping laterally across a distance of 1-2
meters.
Two Foot Alternating Hop
 Athlete will use both feet to laterally jump over a box or bench. Apply quick touch
principles (landing and re-jumping in as little time as possible).
Tuck Jumps
 Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent.
 Jump up bringing your knees to your chest.
 Land on the balls of your feet and repeat immediately.
 Imagine the floor is like hot coals to reduce contact time with the ground.
 Perform 10 continuous jumps for 1 set.
Line Jumps
 Stand facing a line drawn on the floor and place toes on the line.
 As quickly as possible for 30 seconds, jump forward and backwards over the line without
touching it.
**Do all jumps with slightly bent knees and stay on your toes, do not let your heels touch the ground.
Quick Feet
 Begin with both feet on the floor in front of a small box 4-6” high.
 Step onto box with the right foot
 Immediately bring left foot onto box.
 Once the left foot has safely landed remove the right foot by stepping back down. Repeat
with left.
 Increase speed.
 As foot speed increases try to make as little contact as possible with the box and the floor.
High Knees
 Bring knees up as high as possible while moving forward, as if stepping in and out of
boxes. Do slowly at first and quickly second. Make sure the feet touch the ground as
quickly as possible while pushing explosively upward with balls of feet.
Step Off
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Stand on a small box 8–10“ high.
Athlete will initiate forward movement by leaning off the box.
As the landing foot touches the ground, the athlete will explosively push out of the landing
into a sprint of 5 -10 meters.
Alternate landing foot.
Scramble Ups
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Start on ground on stomach in push-up position
Place hands flat on floor next to chest; point toes toward shins
Get up and sprint forward on partner’s command
Do not round back when getting up
Sprint 20-30 meters
Repeat 4-6 times
“When you get out of push-up position, you’re almost in the perfect drive position to come out and accelerate through
the sprint. Make the drill a race by performing it with a partner. Every athlete runs faster in a race.”
Resisted Sprints (with towel or flex band)
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Place towel around waist
Have partner stand behind you and hold both ends of towel
Sprint forward against partner’s resistance
Keep forward lean during sprint
Sprint 5-10 meters
Repeat 5 times
Sprint once without resistance
Repeat entire sequence
“Working against extra resistance improves your rate of force development and teaches you to overcome inertia. This
trains the nervous system to produce changes, which helps create greater force when the extra resistance is removed.
This helps achieve greater speed.”
Resisted Sprints W/ RELEASE(with towel or flex band)
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Place towel around waist
Have partner stand behind you and hold both ends of towel
Sprint forward against partner’s resistance
Keep forward lean during sprint
Sprint 10 meters
Partner will release towel or band (only 1 hand) for final 5 meters
Repeat 5 times
Sprint once without resistance
Repeat entire sequence
“Working against extra resistance improves your rate of force development and teaches you to overcome inertia. This
trains the nervous system to produce changes, which helps create greater force when the extra resistance is removed.
This helps achieve greater speed.”
3600 Sprint
 full 3600 turn in mid sprint
Hill Runs
 Sprint up a hill with five-to-30-degree angle
 Sprint 10 – 20 yards depending on steepness
 Repeat 4-6 times
“Running hills puts you in the perfect body angle to work acceleration. Many believe Walter Payton was so great
because he ran hills.”
Backward Shuffle
 Shuffle done in defensive stance moving backwards and changing directions diagonally
Forward Shuffle
 Shuffle done in defensive stance moving forward and changing directions diagonally
Lateral Speed Lunges
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Defensive stance side to side shuffle done across lane. Head up, chest square, knees
bent; push off hard with plant foot while maintain height – don’t stand up!