Balance

1. One-Legged Balance
Start with this beginner's move, keeping a stable chair or a wall within an arm's reach. With feet
together, pick up one foot with the knee facing forward or to the side. Hold the position with
eyes open, then closed. Switch feet and repeat for four reps on each foot.

If any move feels wrong or unsafe to you, stop and check with a trainer. Depending on your
health and physical condition, some exercises may not be recommended.

2. Leg Swings
Stand on your right leg and raise the left leg three to six inches off the floor. With arms at your
sides, swing your left leg forward and backward, touching the floor for balance, while keeping
your torso erect. Now, repeat the moves, but don't allow your foot to touch the ground. And
finally, swing the left foot to the left side, holding the right arm out. Switch legs and repeat.

3. One-Legged Clock With Arms

Balance on one leg, with the torso straight, head up and hands on the hips. Visualize a clock and
point your arm straight overhead to 12, then to the side at three, and then circle low and around
to nine without losing your balance.

Increase the challenge by having a partner call out the different times to you. Switch to the
opposite arm and leg and repeat.

AGILITY
1. Lateral Plyometric Jumps
Lateral plyometric jumps help build explosive power, balance, and coordination by using our
natural body weight. This advanced agility training exercise is essential for any athletic position
that requires lateral coordination and power. For best results, be sure to perform this drill after a
thorough warm up.

2. Forward Running, High-Knee Drills

Requiring only a basic speed later and your body, this agility training exercise is designed to
improve foot coordination and speed for all field sport athletes. Simply run with high knees
forward through the ladder, landing in every ladder space. For this simple drill, proper form is
key. Be sure to land on the balls of your feet and drive forward with your arms.
3. Lateral Running, Side-to-Side Drills
Lateral running drills greatly improve both knee and ankle stability, making them ideal for court-
sports. For proper form, maintain a low center of gravity and quickly step side-by-side through
the ladder. Be sure to step both feet, one at a time, inside each rung of the ladder. While driving
your arms forward, always aim to land on the balls of your feet. Repeat from right to left and
then again, left to right. Proper form is the key to your success!

COORDINATION

One-Legged Hops

Fitness consultant Pooja R. Mottl recommends doing a form of hopscotch to improve your
coordination at the same time you build endurance. You can do the exercise at home or outside;
simply spot an object 10 to 20 feet away that will be your target. To reach it, jump on one leg,
jump again and land on both legs, and finally jump on the other leg. Continue hopping in that
pattern until you reach the target, then turn around and head back. The catch: hold your arms
above your head while you do the jumping. That will force your core muscles to engage and
work with your legs to improve stability and control your hops.

Juggling

Juggling isn’t only for circus clowns. Keeping a few balls going in the air can improve your eye-
hand coordination, rhythm, reaction time and even your brainpower. If you can’t do it, start with
one ball or bean bag. Toss it gently from hand to hand, with the top of the arc reaching about eye
level. Then add another ball, making two throws. Alternate your starting hands. Finally, start
with two balls in one hand and a third in the other. Throw one of the balls from the two-ball hand
and then continue throwing the balls in controlled arcs, trying to make smooth scooping motions
with your hands as you catch the balls and throw again.

Side Plank Raises

A basic isometric side plank, in which you hold the pose for 30 to 60 seconds, works the
stabilizing muscles in your core and challenges your balance. Adding a coordination component
makes the exercise more difficult and forces your obliques to work along with your hips and
thighs. First, get into a side plank position. Place your right hand on the floor under your right
shoulder, and straighten your arm. Keep your legs long, with your feet stacked. Your body
should be in a straight line from the top of your head to your ankles. Tighten your abdominal
muscles, making sure you’re in a stable position. On an exhale, lift your left leg up as high as
you can, keeping it straight. Inhale and slowly lower the leg. That’s one rep; do 10 to 15 reps on
each side. If you find the exercise too difficult, you can hold the side plank from your right
forearm instead of your hand, or you can drop your knees to the floor.
POWER
1. Add balance exercises
A good starting point to building power is to ensure you have good core balance and strength, so
including some exercises using a “wobble board” or include moves which strengthen alternate
between both sides of your body, including one-legged squats or yoga’s Tree Pose.
When beginning a new program, it may take a while for your body to gain the muscle control
and strength to keep you steady. Take your time and be safe! This may include using the wall or
holding onto a chair for balance when balancing on one leg initially before developing the
strength and power to self-balance on one leg.

2. Leg Press
The leg press is a good exercise for people who may struggle with squat positioning. Work with
your Personal Trainer to determine suitable weights, reps and sets based on your current exercise
levels and plan to develop a very solid strength foundation.

3. Medicine Ball Squat Throws

This is a great exercise for building explosiveness. The important point is that you must THROW
the medicine ball while transferring your body off the ground.

SPEED

Bounding
This is a plyometrics exercise. Along with a strength training program, plyometrics will help to improve
your sprinting power.
1. Jog into the start of the drill for forward momentum.
2. After a few feet, forcefully push off with the left foot and bring the leg forward. At same time
drive your right arm forward.
3. Repeat with other leg and arm.
4. This exercise is an exaggerated running motion focusing on foot push-off and air time.
Alternating Strides
Speed training drills like these help to develop foot speed and co-ordination.

1. Set up a series of cones in a straight line. The first 10 cones should be about 1 meter/yard apart.
The next 10 should be 2 meters/yards apart.
2. From standing start sprint the total length of the cones taking one step between each marker.
3. The cones close together will encourage faster, shorter strides. You can gradually decrease the
distance between cones as you progress. Walk slowly back to the start to recover.
Alternating Starts
The basis of these speed training drills is a 10-20 meter/yard sprint. You should focus on accelerating as
quickly as possible by powering away with your arms and legs. If your sport involves reacting quickly
from different starting positions (as most sports do) try to vary the starting position. Examples include
doing a press up then sprinting, sitting on your hands, lying face down, doing 5 squat jumps before
sprinting etc.
 REACTION OF TIME

Test your reaction speed by having a friend drop a card. Cut a piece of cardstock
so that it’s about 8 inches (20 cm) long and 2 inches (5.1 cm) wide. Ask a friend to hold
it vertically by the top. Line up your fingers with the bottom edge of the card and ask
your friend to drop the card without warning. When the card is dropped, grab the card
with your fingers as quickly as you can. This will show you how quickly you’re able to
react.
 If you grab the card near the bottom, you likely have good reaction speed.
 If you grab the card near the top or miss it completely, you may have poor reaction
speed.[1]
Try ball drills. If you are practicing for a sport, this is a great way to work your athletic
skills and reflexes at the same time. Play a game of catch, kick around a soccer ball, or
practice another sport-related drill. You could also get creative and use the ball for a
different sport. Add more partners to make for an extra challenge. For example, if you
are a baseball catcher, have your partner throw the ball behind you and then see how
fast you can turn around and retrieve it.[2]
 Give juggling a try. The balls flying through the air forces you to think and act quickly to
catch them. Practicing regularly can decrease your response time and increase your
speed, and give you a great party trick too.[3]
 You can also use a reaction ball. This small, six-sided ball will move in unpredictable
ways when bounced or thrown.[4]
Try agility drills. Place a few cones at a distance apart and run between them as fast as you
can. Switch up the position of the cones or run in a different way to mix things up. If you are
playing a sport, ask your coach to suggest some specific agility drills that you can do. They’ll be
impressed with your dedication, and even more impressed with the results.[5]

 For example, try weaving through the spaces between each cone on your first run. In your
second run, weave through every other space.