Athletic Movement 101

Overview

Movement Skills is the training component in ISUDU Sports Performance programs that focuses on speed techniques that are specific to your goal. The drills or exercises you perform during this portion of your training sessions will help you develop linear speed (in a straight line), lateral speed (side to side), as well as multidirectional speed. In short, it will help you become a better athlete.

Movement Skills Progression

The initial focus is to work on specific speed techniques, but as you progress through your training program, we’ll work on integrating those skills into more complex movements, and lastly apply them into sport-specific movements.

The Benefits

Movement Skills helps you improve quickness, agility, speed and power, while reducing your injury potential. But just because the primary focus of Movement Skills is on speed and athleticism doesn’t mean it won’t help you if you don’t play any sports at all. For lifestyle training programs (build strength or lose weight, for example), you’ll still improve the way you move by working on the drills in this portion of your workouts. Ultimately, this will help you move more efficiently, which reduces your risk for injury and helps you get more out of the rest of your training.

Training Equipment

In the Movement Skills portion of your workouts, you’ll perform drills with your bodyweight only, as well as with equipment like cones and hurdles. Other useful training tools for Movement Skills include weight vests, bungee cords and sleds.

Coaching Keys

One of the biggest mistakes when performing drills in this section is to attempt to go faster or add weight without first honing your technique. Aim to master the movements at a speed you can control, and then build on your success, progressing from simple movements to complex movements and from slow to fast.