Today, I want to clear up a huge misconception around training agility. Too many coaches and parents think loading up athletes with endless cutting drills is the answer. But here’s the truth: real agility doesn’t start with cone drills; it starts with building the right foundation.
Change of Direction vs. Agility
First, let’s define our terms:
- Change of Direction (COD): Predetermined drills like running cone patterns or set zig-zags.
- Agility: True agility is reactive, responding to a visual or audio stimulus in real time.
The mistake? Coaches jump athletes straight into “reactive” drills without giving them the physical tools to decelerate, redirect, and reaccelerate.
Why Progression Matters
Just because an athlete plays sports doesn’t mean they’ll automatically improve agility. Sports alone don’t train the physical thresholds required to cut and change direction under force.
The real issue isn’t knowledge of movement—it’s physical capability. Without the strength to absorb and redirect force, athletes compensate, usually favoring one leg or breaking down mechanics.
That’s where structured progression comes in.
Plyometrics Build the Base
Plyometric training is the key to developing agility thresholds. By stressing the muscles, tendons, and nervous system, you teach the body how to:
- Decelerate
- Redirect force
- Accelerate again with control
Example:
A single-leg broad jump into a 90° cut demands far more deceleration and redirection than just sprinting.
Over time, you can increase complexity:
- Basic deceleration drills → multidirectional jumps
- Static landings → reactive landings
- Bodyweight → medball or resistance added
- Low jumps → higher/longer continuous jumps
For advanced athletes, try drills like a single leg triple jump into a 90° cut, forcing them to handle serious momentum before redirecting.
Mechanics Still Matter
Yes, strength and plyometrics set the threshold, but you can’t ignore mechanics. Break down the chain: foot, ankle, knee, and hip. Train control at each joint then reintegrate those mechanics back into full drills.
Always finish with the corresponding cutting movements so the body learns to apply those skills on the field.
Train With Purpose, Not Just Volume
Agility isn’t about drowning athletes in random drills. It’s about purposeful progression: layering plyometric thresholds, movement mechanics, and reactive components over time.
When athletes build the foundation, the results are obvious:
- 90° cuts become sharp and crisp
- Deceleration and reacceleration look effortless
- On the field, they can “stop on a dime, redirect, and break ankles”
Off Season Strategy
Most athletes only get a 3–4 month window in the off season. That time is better spent building threshold capacity than wasting energy on endless low intensity drills.
By building the foundation first, you set athletes up for sustainable improvements in agility when it matters most, in competition.
Final Thoughts
The truth about agility?
It’s not just about reactionary drills. It’s about:
- Building physical thresholds with strength and plyos
- Layering in mechanics
- Progressing toward reactive agility drills
Do that, and you’ll see higher level results where it counts, on the field.
Coaches: if you want to learn how to apply systems like this in your own programming, check out Performance Coach U. My certification that pulls back the curtain on over a decade of training athletes while scaling a successful business.
