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Reactive agility may be the most underrated and underused training method for athletes.  Think about it, how often in a game does Allen Iverson or Ladanian Tomlinson know where a defender will be, how fast they will be attacking them, and from what angle?  The answer is they don’t. They rely on their gifts of instinct and reaction to their environment to make a highlight move. Moves like this cannot be taught, you either have it or you don’t, right?

Wrong!

Reactive agility can be the bridge that links training for a sport and actually playing the sport well. We have all seen the athletes who look like Tarzan and play like Jane.  It is frustrating to see these players do so well in off-season training and, when game time comes, they are performing under expectations, or worse, they are watching the game from the sidelines. We eliminate this problem for our athletes by utilizing reactive agility as one aspect of our entire agility progression.
  
Recent studies have shown that better players have better reactive agility.  One study found that an athlete’s reactive agility was the only significant factor determining performance. (1) It is the decision-making aspect, and the reaction to an external cue, in these drills that make them so beneficial. Incorporating these drills will improve play on the field or court by helping the athlete react faster and anticipate the next move of the opponent.  

Here are a few of our athlete’s favorite reactive agility drills. Our guys love these drills because they have fun, and it doesn’t seem like dreadful work to them.  We love these drills as coaches because it breeds competition and you get to see who is willing to compete.

Partner Lane Slides: This drill is effective because it closely mimics actual sport moves. Watching the video you can envision defending an opponent in basketball, soccer, or volleyball. Easy set-up and the ability to perform it almost anywhere puts this drill on our top three:  

4-Corner Agility Drill:  This is another one-on-one drill, but now the athletes can move in multiple directions. We try to time the work to rest ratio to match the sport the best we can. Example: most football plays last 6 seconds with a 30 second rest between plays, or a 1:5 work to rest ratio. This increases the carryover to the sport that coaches and players love. The drill only involves 6 cones and we like to set up a few stations if a large number of athletes need reps.

Mat Drills:  This can be timed in a specific ratio as stated above, or as a conditioning tool by going longer.  Florida State, Georgia and many other top programs use this regularly in the off-season group training as a way to enhance toughness, conditioning, competition, team cohesion, and of course…reactive agility.  

Sources:

1.  J Sci Med Sport. 2006 Aug;9(4):342-9. Epub 2006 Jul 17

Josh and his brother Tyler Fagan are Strength & Conditioning professionals specializing in training young athletes. Join their FREE newsletter and check out their site at www.Improvingathletes.com.

Exercise 7 – Kick Boxing – Kick boxing is perhaps my favorite hanging core exercise.  It taxes the grip, core, and is really an enjoyable challenge.  Hang a bag in front of your chin-up bar.  Start in a hanging position and perform a series of kicking strikes on the bag.  Strikes may be roundhouses with the right or left foot, straight kicks, or axe kicks.  

A harder variation, while not being exceptionally good kicking form, band the feet together so all strikes must be with two feet.  Attempt three sets of two minute rounds with one minute of rest in between, your hands, forearms, lats, hips flexors, and core will be on fire!

Kickboxing.

More Kickboxing.

There are many more variations out there and I truly enjoy learning about them.  I recommend working hanging core into your workout program weekly.  You will see your back, core, and grip strength improve drastically.  As always, be creative and make these exercises your own (then come back and tell me about them!)

Exercises are demonstrated here:

Joe Hashey is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the NSCA.  Joe is a former D1AA college football player and the owner of Synergy Athletics in Endicott, New York and is enjoys creating innovative athlete training methods.

Author Joe Hashey.

Joe can be reached through www.Synergy-Athletics.com or via email at CoachHashey@synergy-athletics.com.  Take advantage of the Synergy Athletics Free Newsletter by signing up at the website!

When people venture into the world of bodybuilding, most have expectations to improve their physical appearance, increase their strength, and improve their overall health. Pages upon pages of inspirational material could be, and have been, written that discuss the health advantages of bodybuilding. Among some of the abundant positive physical aspects of bodybuilding are increases in muscle mass and support, a thickened skeletal structure, an increase in strength, and a more efficient circulatory system, just to name a few. While this physical progress that can be achieved through pumping iron should not be ignored, prospective bodybuilders should also take deep interest in the mental effects that working out can have. Examining these effects can provide just as much, if not more, motivation for one to strive to succeed in the world of bodybuilding.

Size and strength provide the foundation for the discussion of the physical effects bodybuilding has on a person, but they also tie in closely with the mental aspect as well. How much you increase in size, and how much more you lift each week both provide direct and powerful evidence for your accomplishments in the gym. Seeing your hard work pay off in terms of a better physique will immensely increase your confidence. However, confidence does not increase just because of a more commanding stature. It can also increase because of the fact that your newly developed body is proof that you can accomplish what you set out to achieve. With this proof instilled into your mind every day as you look in the mirror, it becomes easier to apply this accomplishment-driven attitude towards other aspects of your life. If you can accomplish a transformation of your body inside the gym, then why not pursue and conquer other endeavors outside?

Working out not only makes you bigger in the literal sense, but it can also make you feel bigger and stronger. Physical progress is slow and gradual, but the feelings of a bigger and stronger you are immediate. It realistically takes weeks of dedication to see noticeable results. However, once you step out of the gym after your first workout, you will not be able to help but have a more positive outlook on your physique.

When one begins a workout schedule, the positive mental aspects can be felt immediately after your first day in the gym. The euphoric feeling that follows a completed workout is rivaled only by the hardest drugs. Your body releases endorphins into the bloodstream, which overthrow your thought process. A person could have one of the worst days ever, but after a solid workout, any type of negativity is irrelevant. Even outer-body experiences have been reported by people after extremely intense workouts. Although you should not walk into the gym expecting an outer-body experience, you can feel assured that a mind-state of overall well-being is absolutely guaranteed after a thorough gym session. Whether it is your first time stepping into the gym or one of many workouts, as long as enough energy is invested into your gym time, then the feeling of this wonderful, endorphin-driven heaven will be experienced. This is the main reason why exercise is considered to be a great stress reliever. The mental stability that is achieved through exercise is unrivaled by any pill that can be prescribed.

Engaging in, and embracing, the mental state required to have a satisfactory workout is an accomplishment in its own right. Bodybuilding should be done in an intense manner, reaching muscular failure during each set. This requires an enormous investment of mental energy, since unrestricted focus is necessary in order to prepare for the intensity and stress you are about to inflict upon your body. Overcoming these mental barriers is crucial to overcoming your physical barriers. In other words, if you can gather the focus and drive to complete an intense workout, you will reap the benefits of gaining a muscular physique. This is what success in bodybuilding is all about.

Contemplation of the positive mental effects that bodybuilding has on the mind should be viewed as the main motivational factor for anyone who is considering to adopt a gym schedule into their daily routine. Bodybuilding can help you develop confidence because of your superficial appearance, but more so because of the great accomplishments that are possible to achieve at the gym. It can make you look at yourself in a more positive light, not just because what you see in the mirror is more appealing, but because you feel stronger, bigger, and healthier. The endorphins that saturate your body after a workout give you a natural “high” that is irreplaceable. Bodybuilding can help you dominate the intense meditative mind-state you must be in, in order to successfully push your workout, and your muscles, to their fullest potential. Few things are more inspirational than knowing you can complete this arduous task on a daily basis. This is how bodybuilding can mentally empower you, and as a result, improve the quality of your life.