Speed and Agility Performance Training

If you have a young child in sports, I imagine you have considered some athletic training. In my opinion, coaches and parents vastly underestimate and under-appreciate the role proper training can have in developing an all around athlete.

All sports require a certain level of movement efficiency. The best athletes are those with great body awareness and control. They make difficult tasks look effortless. Being able to run fluidly, change direction, make explosive movements and absorb force safely.
These are all skills that can be learned and improved upon. Athletic development today is a science. We understand how these abilities can be realized and maximized to build a strong, fast, and efficient athlete.
At ABC Athletics Sports, we focus on Long Term Development. This requires following certain phases of development for youth athletes from age 6 up to high school/college athletes. While all training is beneficial, regardless of age, there is value in having an early start.
No matter if your child aims to be a professional soccer player, 1st baseman, point guard or a starting wide receiver, agility training is beneficial in all sports like basketball, football and baseball. Most moves that require agility happen in 10 seconds or less, which means there is a tiny window of time when you either have the agility or you don’t. Catching a football and immediately cutting in to avoid a defender is an example.

Agility is a skill that’s difficult to measure, which is why it is so often overlooked for direct training in youth sports. It’s much more difficult to measure reaction time and intuition than it is to measure speed and strength, but agility could be the difference between a game winning catch or watching your opponents’ fans rushing the field.
Regardless of the sport, speed and agility training exercises are essential to developing a young athlete’s performance and ability. Agility training exercises help to teach young athletes healthy habits, proper body positioning, balance, coordination, and hand-eye coordination

Many children participate in sports when they are young and have intentions of participating on a team when they get older. As children get older, they may not be able to sign up or walk on a team as they did when they were younger. In middle and high school, children almost always need to try out in order to make the team. Some children may be cut and are then unable to participate in the sport that they once played as a walk on. There is no better way to practice for a team tryout then by working on strength, speed and agility. While strength training is important for sports, speed and agility has a place in training too. Having quick agility is about being able to have good control of your body. It also means that athletes must be coordinated and be able make quick moves. This is important whether an athlete is dribbling a ball up the court or performing a back flip on a mat.
There are many benefits toward developing good speed and agility that include reaction time, balance, and coordination. In addition, being quick with proficient speed and agility can build confidence that will lead to better performance in their sport. While children are growing up, it’s important to work on these skills since “Building a solid foundation of athletic abilities and motor skills allows the child to develop sport specific skills in a balanced and healthy way. Once a child establishes a foundation, they can enjoy their physical activity and progress in their sport as far as they choose to go. All of these aspects are important for all sports in their own way.
There are also many ways to work on speed and agility including drills to increase motor skills and flexibility. This would include doing fast pace workouts such as speed drills, cone drills, ladder drills, flexibility workouts, etc. It has been shown by the National Strength and Conditioning Association that “Exercise specialists suggest that children between the ages of 5 and 8 should be exposed to a variety of movement patterns, which include arm and leg movements performed from a stationary position, jumping moves and exercise that promote spatial awareness. Skill mastery is enhanced between ages 9 and 13.”(Livestrong, Lisa Mercer, 2013). While children are playing sports for fun when they are younger, parents should realize that working on their children’s speed and agility at younger ages may help their children become more involved and enjoy their sport much more as they get older.