Today I would like to talk about one of my favourite agility drill: the 5-0-5 acceleration test.
The idea of this drill is to found out how fast an athlete can fully stop from max speed and sprint back again.
This drill can be used in those sports where agility is a "must", such as American football, basket, football etc etc.
Let's see how this drill works.
Our pinkish cubic athlete will sprint from a distance that allows him to reach sub max speed before the 5 meters mark; generally, 10 meters away is a good distance. So, he will run toward the stop line, stop in front of it, turn back, and sprint again to the starting point.
The time starts when the athlete pass the 5m mark for the first time and we will stop the clock when he pass the 5m mark for the second time.
One key point of this drill is the stop phase. When the athlete reaches the stop line, he does NOT perform a change of direction (one foot on the line and sprint back); instead, he places boot feet in front of the line and then sprint back. Basically, he has to perform an 180° spin.
Moreover, the athlete, on the way back, has to sprint toward the starting point and not decelerate after the 5m mark.
We can adjust the marks according to our needs. For instance, we can start the clock at 10m and stop it when the athlete reach the 10m mark again.
In order to have an accurate result, is better to perform this test three time, allowing the athlete to have enough rest between sets. Moreover, we can do a practice set before the drill begin.
The idea of this drill is to found out how fast an athlete can fully stop from max speed and sprint back again.
This drill can be used in those sports where agility is a "must", such as American football, basket, football etc etc.
Let's see how this drill works.
Our pinkish cubic athlete will sprint from a distance that allows him to reach sub max speed before the 5 meters mark; generally, 10 meters away is a good distance. So, he will run toward the stop line, stop in front of it, turn back, and sprint again to the starting point.
The time starts when the athlete pass the 5m mark for the first time and we will stop the clock when he pass the 5m mark for the second time.
One key point of this drill is the stop phase. When the athlete reaches the stop line, he does NOT perform a change of direction (one foot on the line and sprint back); instead, he places boot feet in front of the line and then sprint back. Basically, he has to perform an 180° spin.
Moreover, the athlete, on the way back, has to sprint toward the starting point and not decelerate after the 5m mark.
We can adjust the marks according to our needs. For instance, we can start the clock at 10m and stop it when the athlete reach the 10m mark again.
In order to have an accurate result, is better to perform this test three time, allowing the athlete to have enough rest between sets. Moreover, we can do a practice set before the drill begin.
