Without it, the sport would be unrecognizable.

This article (and accompanying videos) are intended to help coaches and parents of young soccer players develop basic passing skills in an appropriate and effective manner.

Even the world’s most prolific playmakers had to start by mastering the basics.

Basic Passing Technique

Basic passing technique is pretty straight-forward, as outlined in this video.

One foot will be used to strike the ball, while the other foot will be used to maintain connection with the ground. The latter is often referred to as the “plant foot.”

The plant foot should be placed right about even with the ball.

The kicking foot should swing through and contact the ball with a stiff ankle.

By “stiff ankle,” we mean that the foot should not be flimsy. Rather, it should remain relatively stable throughout contact and follow-through.

As for the contact point on the foot itself, the inside of the foot offers the most control for shorter passes.

For longer passes, the top portion of the foot (where the laces are usually located) can offer a good combination of power and accuracy.

As for where to hit on the ball, the lower you strike the ball, the more loft the ball will have.

The higher you strike on the ball, the lower the trajectory will typically be.

Players can set up anywhere from 5 to 15 yards away from one another to practice short passes.

Staying on their toes between passes can help players stay spry and engaged.

Players can start off with light-to-medium velocity and gradually work up to high-velocity passes.

A perfect pass has enough velocity to reach a player quickly, but not so much velocity that they’ll have difficulty controlling it.

To help create balanced players, they should practice an equal number of passes with both feet.

The receiving teammate should focus on “softening” the incoming pass to keep it close to their body.

Trap, Push, Pass Drill

This drill adds a bit of dynamic movement to the execution of basic passing and trapping while also adding in some light foot skills work.

Have two youth soccer players stand 10-15 yards away from one another.

Each player should have a cone a yard or two in front of them.

As player one passes to player two, player two should trap the ball, then use the outside of their foot to push it to the other side of the cone, then use that same foot to deliver a pass back to their partner.

As player two is trapping and pushing the ball, player one should “show” on the other side of the cone to receive the ball.

Repeat that same sequence with player one now trapping, pushing and passing back to player one.

Keep your ankle locked as you deliver the pass. Do not have a flimsy foot.

Once both players total 25 passes, stop and set-up so they’re now using their opposite foot to deliver the pass.

How to Loft The Ball

Sometimes, playing a ball close to the ground just doesn’t make sense.

Perhaps the intended receiver is quite a ways away, or there’s a defender (or multiple defenders in your way).

Perhaps you want to loft the ball into the box to give your teammate a chance for a header.

No matter what the reason, knowing how to loft the ball is a valuable skill for soccer players.

This video details how to play the lofted or “flighted” ball.

The technique is quite similar to a normal pass, but the contact point on the ball is very low (almost as if the foot is scooping beneath the ball) and the shoulders and chest are drawn back on contact.

Players should think of “leaning back” as they strike the ball to produce more loft.

Using the lower portion of your laces as the contact point generally allows for better leverage and loft.

Practice playing lofted balls of varying distances with both feet to become a more productive playmaker.

Controlling Balls in the Air

One thing many youth soccer players struggle with is controlling balls that arrive in the air.

Whether they’re looking to pass, shoot or settle that ball, many young players simply don’t have the timing and/or foot-eye coordination to pull it off.

The only way to improve in this area is practice.

This video details a simple “Aerial Touches” drill that can help young players get comfortable with playing balls that arrive in the air.

Begin with the two players standing 3-6 yards away from one another.

One teammate will toss an arcing ball to right around knee height.

The receiver will use the inside of their foot to make contact with the ball, keeping their ankle locked.

The goal is for the ball to direct right back at the thrower’s chest.

The thrower will catch the ball and then throw the ball towards the receiver’s opposite foot.

Once the receiver gets the hang of it, they can bounce on their toes between touches.

As the players get comfortable, the distance between them can increase.

Be sure to perform an even number of touches with both feet, with partners switching roles between sets.

A progression of this drill is to perform it 6-15 yards away from a goal and have the receiver volley the toss into the net.

READ MORE:

• 7 Effective Soccer Foot Skills Drills
• The Drills and Skills That Drive FC Barcelona’s Youth System
• What American Youth Soccer Can Learn From Youth Hockey

Sending a screamer past the keeper is one of the most satisfying feelings in sports.

It’s also essential to winning—your team can’t emerge from a match victorious if no one finds the net.

As such, teaching even the youngest level of soccer players basic shootings skills is essential.

This article (and accompanying videos) are intended to help coaches and parents of young soccer players develop basic shooting skills in an appropriate and effective manner.

Even the world’s deadliest goal-scorers had to start by mastering the basics.

Basic Shooting Technique

Youth soccer players often have a nasty habit of either shooting dribblers with very little power or sending the ball soaring well above the crossbar.

Strong, well-aimed shots are a bit of a rarity.

That’s because most youth soccer players haven’t mastered basic shooting techniques, which is outlined in this video.

It starts with placing your plant foot about even with the ball.

As you approach the ball, focus on keeping your shoulders and head down and overtop the ball to keep your shot on target. Leaning back on contact will cause the ball to fly.

Strike the ball with your toe down and ankle locked, making contact on the top-inside position of your foot (right about where the laces are located on most cleats).

By ankle locked, I mean your foot is firm and stable through contact as opposed to flimsy.

Allow your body to twist through the ball to generate additional torque and power.

Always aim for a target inside the net, be it real or imaginary.

Practice taking shots with both your left and right feet.

Once you’re confident with a stationary ball, you can have a partner roll you the ball with a short pass so you can work on striking a moving target.

Touch, Roll, Push and Hit

Once a player’s mastered stationary shooting, they need to simulate how they’ll execute the action during games.

Odds are, they won’t be striking a stationary ball.

The Touch, Roll, Push and Hit Drill, as shown in this video, integrates some basic foot skills and helps youth soccer players learn how to shoot on the move.

At the top of the box, set up three cones equidistant apart in a triangle formation. Start with the ball at your feet about 5 yards away from the first cone.

As you approach the first cone, use the outside of one foot to touch the ball either to the left or right.

Next, roll the ball with that same foot to split cones two and three.

Now, use the opposite foot to push the ball out in front of yourself.

Finally, use the same foot you just pushed the ball with to deliver a shot on goal.

Perform 10-14 total reps, taking an equal number of shots with both feet.

Scissors and Shoot Drill

Once a player has mastered shooting on the run, they can add a little flair and deception to the action.

The Scissors and Shoot Drill, as shown in this video, integrates foot skills with shooting on the move.

Set up a cone 10-20 yards in front of the goal.

Begin with the ball at your feet about 6 yards behind the cone, facing the goal.

Dribble toward the cone.

When you’re within a couple yards of the cone, perform a “scissor” or “step-over” move with your left leg. Stay low as you whirl your foot in front of and around the ball.

Once you complete your scissor, plant your left foot and push the ball to your right with the outside of your right foot.

Your next touch will be a right-footed shot on goal.

Perform 10 reps that end with a right-footed shot and 10 reps that end with a left-footed shot.

Start slow and gradually increase our speed as you gain confidence.

READ MORE:

• 7 Effective Soccer Foot Skills Drills
• The Drills and Skills That Drive FC Barcelona’s Youth System
• What American Youth Soccer Can Learn From Youth Hockey

Multiple elements are involved in ball security. You need a strong and fatigue-resistant upper body to keep a firm grip on the ball when massive defensive opponents paw at you. The most important muscles are in your fingers, hands, forearms, lower biceps, chest, shoulders and core.

Of course, you also need good technique.

Over the years, there have been various techniques like rice pinches, plate pinches, football holds and advanced grip training. I believe training with a balloon takes ball security drills to the next level.

Why Train With a Balloon?

The beauty of the balloon is that you can squeeze it forcefully so your entire upper body is tense and your nervous system is firing on all cylinders. But if you’re not careful the balloon will naturally squeeze its way out of your hands. So you need perfect technique. Do your favorite drills with a balloon, then try them with a football. You’ll notice how your ball security improves.

Here are the key points you need to focus on when performing ball security drills with a balloon.

For other skill positions, you can use the balloon for specific drills as well; you just have to use different drills to make it work for you.

1. Keep the balloon locked into your body while maintaining a high and tight position with the nose of the balloon pointed up and hugged tightly. This is important because the balloon will try to pop out due to the consistent perturbations of running and contact.
2. As you were taught in Football 101, squeeze down with your thumb and index finger and up with the bottom three fingers.
3. To secure the balloon effectively, use your palm, securing the surface of the balloon.
4. Tuck the balloon against the inside of your biceps and keep good pressure against your chest. The balloon will not pop.
5. Support the balloon-like a baby. Keep your elbow at an acute angle so the ball is tight against your chest.

RELATED: 

• Strengthen Your Grip on the Football with 7 Moves
• Improve Ball Security With Grip Training

The first time I ever played organized basketball in the first grade the game was 4 v 4, and due to league rules we were required to play zone defense. So the key was split into four equal boxes that determined the zones and had corresponding numbers painted in the middle of each.

So after every offensive possession, I would run back on defense to whichever numbered section I had been designated by my coach and stand there playing as much defense as I could without leaving that space.

This was the case for the first two years of my basketball playing experience until in third grade man-to-man was allowed, and while I knew what man-to-man defense was, having never practiced it for two years the only defensive fundamentals I knew were standing in a box with my hands up reaching to contest shots and deflect passes usually to no avail.

This made transitioning to playing man to man an adjustment.

Leagues that implement this rule do so because of how much it simplifies the game and makes it easier for volunteer coaches to get their players to be able to play passable basketball having never done so before.

But even in leagues that do not require this rule, coaches all over the country at the youth level employ zone because it will win them games.

Let’s first examine exactly what it is that zone defense does to the youth game on both ends of the floor. Designated boxes or not, a zone defense has the same effect.

Defensively

• Reduces the need for proper defensive fundamentals
• Devalues on-ball defense
• Promotes standing and watching away from the ball
• Leads to less communication
• Leads to less defensive decision making
• Requires less defensive movement and footwork
• Disables players from playing defense on different positions and on different spots on the floor
• Inhibits opportunity to encounter defensive situations such as screens and rotations

Offensively

• Reduces overall application of offensive fundamentals
• Reduces offensive schemes and concepts that can be run; fewer offensive opportunities
• Often turns offense into a series of perimeter passes before an outside shot
• Reduces dribbling and dribble penetration
• Requires more long-distance shots, which are more difficult at this level
• Devalues off-ball movement
• Reduces opportunities to learn to execute screens
• Reduces offensive decision making, and decision making under intense ball pressure

Now if you are a youth basketball coach or league coordinator and you value winning or simplicity over player development, then implementing zone defenses will get you the results that you want.

Listen to Detroit Pistons head coach Stan Van Gundy (then with the Miami Heat) discuss youth  basketball players’ development in America and comment on the use of zone at this level.

Zone defense works and will win games because these young players from the first to the fifth grade or so are not strong enough, skilled enough or experienced enough to exploit a zone.

The zone leads to more outside shots than anything else and forces youth players to struggle to shoot behind a 3-point line that is too far away for their strength level and ultimately leads to a low-percentage shot.

Also due to strength at this level, it is harder to make the long skip passes necessary to make a zone defense move and then lead to more open shots or penetration, so play is more stagnant and offenses are limited in scoring options.

This is why the zone will be effective at this level. To put it simply, it will force young players to shoot the shots that are most difficult for them.

But it will not only hurt the offensive development of your opponents but your own players and their defensive development as well. The use of the zone will not prepare them for future success on the defensive end of the floor.

As your youth players continue to play basketball at higher levels they will encounter less and less zone. While zone defense is still used frequently at the high school level, it is used much less in college and is even more rare at the professional level.

(The NBA has a “defensive three seconds” rule that prohibits being in the paint without “actively guarding” a man for more than three seconds, effectively eliminating traditional zones.)

Youth players who have used more zone concepts than man-to-man will have a more difficult time when forced to guard players man to man, having to break the poor habits listed earlier that a zone will create in young players.

But applying sound man-to-man principles as far as positioning, movement and communication to learning a zone will make the process simpler and lead to a more effective defense.

Defensively the zone itself is not what is hindering youth development. If a coach had enough time and knowledge to teach and instill proper man-to-man principles, the use of a zone from time to time would not necessarily be setting players back in their defensive fundamentals.

However, even if this was the case, which it is often not for volunteer coaches who usually practice only 1-2 times per week, teaching a zone will take up more time that would be better spent on teaching the offensive and defensive fundamentals that are key for youth basketball.

The argument for the elimination of the zone at the youth level boils down to winning games vs. developing players for the future. Now that is not to say that playing a zone will immediately lead to more wins and man-to-man more losses. However, the potential cost of winning games here is the benefit of your players in learning the game and building skills.

READ MORE:

• 2 Drills to Help You Play Lockdown Basketball Defense
• Use These 3 Principles to Improve Your Basketball Defense
• 4 Youth Basketball Drills That Teach the Fundamentals
• 3 Great Drills for Coaching Youth Basketball

FatCamera/iStockImages

You can use a one-handed bounce pass to feed the post, swing the ball, or hit a backdoor cutter. When you have a defender on you, it’s difficult to use a two-handed pass. Most of the time, players use their bodies to shield defenders from the ball and their opposite hand to throw the pass.

When you throw a bounce pass, you want the ball to hit the floor three-quarters of the way between you and your target so the ball rises to your teammate’s chest level.

To execute a two-handed bounce-pass, start the ball at your chest, step toward your teammate and push the ball (flicking your wrists) to your teammate.

Here are three tips to remember when you throw a bounce pass.

1. Pass with Your Feet

Step toward your intended target so the ball follows where your foot steps. You also need to use your feet to step around a defender when he or she is between you and your target.

2. Pass with Your Wrists

Great passers throw crisp passes. This is especially relevant for a two-handed bounce pass. Flick your wrists so your thumbs point toward the floor. A lot of turnovers are committed when a player throws a soft, lofted pass, giving the defender extra time to intercept the ball. Unless you’re throwing a lob pass to a low-post player, you want the ball to get to your target as quickly as possible.

3. Pass with your Eyes

Great passers move the defense with their eyes to avoid committing needless turnovers. If a teammate is wide open, faking a defender out with your eyes is not important. However, if you’re throwing the ball to a closely guarded player, use your eyes to make the defense think you’re passing to another player. This is especially relevant when playing against zone defenses.

READ MORE:

• How to Shoot Free Throws Better
• How to Dribble a Basketball
• How to Throw a Basketball Chest Pass Properly 
• Learn How to Shoot a Basketball with the BEEF Method

1. Bulldog Drill

This drill helps players develop dribbling skills while running at high speed, such as on a fast break. It requires players to keep their heads up when they dribble, which is essential during a game when looking for an open teammate.

How to Perform:

1. The coach chooses one or two players as bulldogs, and they stand in the middle of half-court.
2. All the other players line up on the baseline.
3. The players have 10 seconds to advance past half-court while maintaining their dribble.
4. The bulldogs try to knock the ball out of the hands of the other players while also maintaining their dribble.
5. If a player has the ball stolen from him/her or knocked away, he or she becomes a bulldog.
6. The game continues until only one player is left.
7. The player who wins becomes a bulldog for the next game.

Coaching Points:

• Keep your head up.
• Change dribbling hands.
• Change directions and speed.

2. Terminator Drill

This is one of my favorite fun basketball drills because, as a point guard, I know how important ball handling is. Terminator helps players develop dribbling skills in tight corners, like when you are trapped or double-teamed on the baseline during a game. The drill forces players to keep their heads up and dribble with both hands while also improving their awareness of the other players around them.

How to Perform:

1. Form groups of 8 to 10 players.
2. Each player starts off with a ball and must continuously dribble within a designated area (e.g., inside the 3-point line) while trying to knock away another player’s ball.
3. When a player loses control of his/her ball or goes outside the designated area, he or she is out of the drill (i.e., “terminated”) and must vacate the designated area.
4. As the number of remaining players is reduced further, the coach restricts the area of play.
5. The last player to remain dribbling the ball wins.

Coaching Points:

• Keep your head up.
• Change dribbling hands.
• Strategize and pick your moments.

3. 3-Man Weave Drill

This is an excellent drill to improve ball movement and speed. It helps teams synchronize their movements and tendencies to help them “gel” on the court. The goal is to move the ball down the court as quickly as possible without letting it touch the ground. Probably every coach you have ever had has told you that a pass is quicker than a dribble.

How to Perform:

1. Players form three lines at one end of the court, behind the baseline.
2. The middle player starts with the ball.
3. The rule is to pass the ball and go behind the receiver.
4. The middle player passes the ball to the player on his/her left and then runs behind the receiver.
5. This is repeated all the way to the other end of the court, where the player who is closest to the basket goes up for a layup. (It’s better to practice going up for a layup without dribbling since this could be useful in a real game situation.)
6. The trailing player gets the rebound and becomes the middle player to start the 3-Man Weave back down the court, where a different player goes up for a layup.
7. The next three players in line go next.

Coaching Points:

• Keep your head up.
• Make hard chest passes.
• Make sharp, quick movements.
• Be aware of the other players.

4. Knockout Drill

This drill helps players develop quick shooting skills, helpful when a defender closes out on you in a game. It also develops speed, quickness, and shooting under pressure with a heightened sense of urgency.

How to Perform:

1. All players line up at the free-throw line.
2. The first two in line have a ball.
3. The first player shoots a free throw.
4. The second player shoots a free throw.
5. If the first player makes the free throw, he or she gets the rebound and passes it to the next player in line, who shoots a free throw.
6. If the first player misses his/her free throw, he or she must get the rebound and make a layup before the second player takes a shot.
7. If the first player makes his/her shot before the second player, he or she goes to the back of the line and waits for another turn.
8. If the second player makes his/her shot before the first player, the first player is knocked out, and the second player goes to the back of the line and stays in the drill.
9. Each time a player makes a shot, the next player in line shoots to try to knock the preceding player out.
10. The drill continues until only one player remains—the winner. He or she starts the next round as the first person in line.

Coaching Points:

• Keep your head up.
• Maintain proper shooting form/mechanics.
• Be aware of other players.
• Stay confident and calm.

5. Loose Ball Drill

This drill creates a 1-on-1 competition that builds mental and physical toughness. It helps players learn to sacrifice their bodies for the team and give maximum effort on the court. It also helps to develop reaction time and quickness, which are essential skills needed for basketball.

How to Perform:

1. Two players line up on the baseline at equal distance from each other with their backs facing the open court.
2. Standing in front of the players, the coach rolls a ball out onto the open court.
3. When the coach blows the whistle, the players instantly turn and sprint to the ball.
4. The player who reaches the ball first immediately tries to score on the other player.
5. If the player with the ball scores, the drill is over.
6. If the player with the ball misses or gets the ball stolen, the drill is also over.
7. Once the drill is over, the two players go to the back of the line, and the next two players compete.

Coaching Points:

• Be aware of the other player and the ball.
• Focus on speed and quickness.
• Dive and fight for the ball.

RELATED

• 10 Essential Point Guard Drills From Skylar Diggins
• The Best Basketball Shooting Drills for Kids
• Team Shooting Drills for Your Next Basketball Practice

But before we get to the nitty gritty, a few guidelines:

• It’s best to include all of your players, infielders and outfielders, in these drills, since some infielders may end up playing the outfield sooner or later.
• You can do all five drills inside a training facility or outside on a field.
• Encourage all your players to take a direct path to ground balls and fly balls. Angle on the ball is vital to taking a shorter path.
• A player’s first step can be the difference between making or missing a catch. Players should take their first step with the foot closest to the ball. Instruct them that every time a ball is hit, take two steps in the direction of the ball—even a foul ball into the parking lot.

1. Ground Ball Drills, no runner on base

The coach rolls or hits a ball to the outfielder. The outfielder gets into an “infielder” position to field the ball. The player stays in this position to field the ball out front. After fielding the ball, the player steps with his throwing foot forward, then his glove foot, to get into throwing position. Encourage players to stay upright when fielding ground balls, because of the potential for a “bad hop” on the field.

 RELATED: How to Build Arm Strength for Baseball: Throwing Drills

2. Ground Ball Drills, runner(s) on base

The coach rolls or hits a ball to the outfielder. The outfielder continues to move through the ball, fielding it in front or just inside his glove foot, while maintaining momentum to make a strong throw to the cutoff man. Coaches should encourage working on this technique until the player is comfortable fielding the ball on the move.

3. Throwing to the Cutoff Man

Do this drill with the above techniques; perform #1, then #2. If you’re indoors, allow the outfielders to throw into a net. Tape or use a string to set a target on the net. If you’re outside, have the outfielder throw 100 to 130 feet.

RELATED: 5 Little League Baseball Drills to Teach Fielding and Throwing

4. Catching Fly Balls

This is one of the most difficult outfield drills for youth baseball players. Some youngsters are afraid of the ball; therefore, we start this drill with a tennis ball. While preparing to catch the ball, the outfielder should say “mine” or “I got it” to alert everyone.

Key to this drill is for the outfielder to gain confidence. We allow younger outfielders to kneel and have a coach toss a ball directly to them. After that step, the outfielder learns how to stand and catch the ball over his glove shoulder, to ensure that he sees the ball all the way into his glove. When that task is conquered, he learns to catch the ball over his throwing shoulder to allow for a quicker catch-to-release time when a runner is tagging up and trying to advance.

RELATED: Agility Drills to Improve Baseball Fielding

5. Backing up Bases

This outfield drill is not much fun for youth baseball players, but it can save a game when done correctly. From little league to the big leagues, players make bad throws and need a teammate to back up the throw.

When a ground ball is hit to the second baseman, shortstop or third baseman, the right fielder should sprint to back up the throw to first base. The left fielder and center fielder need to back up the infielder who is making the play on the ball.

When an opponent bunts, outfielders should sprint in to back up the base in front of them, because at that point the infielder has not thrown the ball.

As an age grouper, I was doing 10 workouts a week plus a couple of weightlifting sessions while in school. My life felt perpetually water-logged and smelled of chlorine. At the end of the day, as I emptied my bag of soggy towels and a sopping suit, I would write out my workouts in my workout journal.

Though writing out my practices was a good start, simply logging a ton of meters isn’t enough. Your workouts also need to be focused and purposeful, with an eye on progression. This kind of attention to your training results in faster swimming and is much more enjoyable than going to swim practice and just going through the motions.

Here are 5 things you can start doing right away to get more from your swim training:

1. Regularly evaluate your training

When things aren’t going our way, we tend to sag our shoulders and accept that this is the way things are. With some regular evaluation, however, you can more clearly see where things fell off, where things are going well, and what you can do more of. Regularly evaluating your swim training provides critical feedback. Self-evaluation and awareness are essential the more elite you become; tiny differences in technique and effort magnify the more competitive you become.

2. Count the metrics that matter

You know that specific parts of your workout have a disproportionate impact on your overall swimming—things like swimming with proper technique, or the number of race pace meters you perform, or how many underwater fly kicks you do off each wall. A handful of things matter most with your training. Overall volume and attendance aren’t indicative of swimming intensity or focused effort.

Here are a few things you can measure that have high impact:

• Number of meters that you freestyle kick at a specific pace.
• Grade your effort after each practice.
• How many meters you perform at specific intensities/heart rate zones.

3. Set training goals

Every time you walk on deck, you should have a couple of goals in mind for your workout, even if you aren’t the one who designed it. There are things you can control and can decide to work on, regardless of what coach write on the whiteboard.

Here are some of my favorites:

• Do 10 minutes of extra core work after each workout.
• Perform a minimum of 4 underwater fly kicks off every wall for the whole practice.
• Really focus on a high elbow catch while swimming freestyle.

Think of these as your goals, the extras you are going to do to keep yourself engaged in your workouts, but also differentiate yourself from your competition.

4. Ask questions

Going through the motions and swimming through sets are all too common with age group swimmers. This is a communication failure on the coach’s part, yes, but at some point athletes need to take responsibility for their swimming.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Ask your coach what you should focus on, or what the overall purpose of the set is. Having purpose is crucial: when we don’t know what the point or purpose of a set is, we don’t know where to direct our energy, or we simply become apathetic about it and sail through the workout without really doing anything.

5. Be willing to fail

Katie Ledecky’s training is legendary, even beyond how fast she goes and how much yardage she logs per session. She goes out of her way to fail. This means choosing a just-out-of-reach stroke rate or interval and “failing” until the moment that she nails it.

The top swimmer on the planet will rinse and repeat this, perpetually cycling up toward becoming a faster and better swimmer. This willingness to fail is harder than it looks and sounds. It’s not just a physical toll, it’s the mental resilience to come back day after day and try and try and try. Each day, show up ready to break barriers, to do something new, and to risk failure. You aren’t going to achieve a best time every day, but if you keep banging away, breakthroughs will happen.

RELATED: 

• Olympian Swimming Skills: Five Ways to Improve Your Freestyle Form
• 10 Tips for Effective Strength Training Programs for Swimming
• Improve Your Swimming Times with These Starting Drills

These five softball catcher drills are designed to increase throwing power and lower pop time—the time it takes to transition from your catching position to a two-foot platform to throw the runner out. They also increase power from a single-leg kneeling position, when the catcher goes from the catching position to kneeling on one leg to throw the ball.

To build off-season strength, add this program to your routine two to three days a week. To maintain during season, keep at it one or two days a week (games and travel allowing).

1. Goblet Squat

This is a great drill to build leg strength and develop proper core alignment.

• Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart.
• Hold a kettlebell with a hand on each of its horns. If you’re using a dumbbell, hold it in a vertical position with both hands under the top plate.
• Imagine holding a goblet with two hands. Flex your arms so your elbows point out and the weight is against the center of your chest.
• Perform a Squat as you would with a barbell. Your weight should be over your heels and your lower back should be straight. Don’t lean forward from your hips.
• Squat until your hips are below parallel or as close as you can get. Try to squat lower at every workout.
• In the bottom position, your elbows should be inside your thighs, pointing slightly down and toward the ground.
• Pushing with your heels, return to a standing position.

Sets/Reps: 4×5-8 explosive reps. Increase weight when you’re able, but not at the expense of form or movement speed.

2. Rotational Med Ball Throw

Once you’re on your feet, you need rotational power to develop arm speed so you can make a hard throw to the base where the runner is heading. This drill works great when you use a block wall as a rebounder.

• Begin in a shoulder-width stance with your feet in a heel-to-toe alignment.
• Hold a medicine ball approximately at navel level (right and top left).
• Rotate your trunk, shoulders, arms and head to one side as far as possible and immediately twist back in the opposite direction to throw the ball.
• Focus on rotating your feet, hips and shoulders first and finishing with your upper body.

Sets/Reps: 3×6-10, focusing on rotational speed, not heavy weight

3. Kneeling Rotational Chop

This exercise trains the body to handle rotational forces. Throwing with power while kneeling requires the ability to stabilize against rotational forces.

• Clip a rope attachment to the highest level of a cable machine.
• Kneel with the knee of your working side (facing the weight stack) bent 90 degrees.
• Grab the rope with an overhand grip with your hands shoulder-width apart.
• Angle your shoulders toward the rope with your torso facing forward.
• Keeping your arms straight, brace your core, squeeze your hips and use your torso to pull the rope down and across your body, past the opposite hip.
• Return to the starting position.

Sets/Reps: 3×8-12 slow controlled reps on each side

4. Kneeling Throws

Kneeling Throws require specific upper-body strength and build upper-body throwing power. Ball speed is more important than ball weight.

• Kneel with your knees shoulder-width apart and your torso 1 to 2 feet away from and facing a wall.
• Take the ball behind your head and immediately throw the ball into wall. Catch the ball and immediately repeat.

Sets/Reps: 3×8-12

5. Dumbbell Pullover

This one is good for developing stable shoulders and a strong rib cage. Keep the weight light.

• Lie on your upper back perpendicular to a bench.
• Flex your hips slightly.
• Grasp a dumbbell with both hands under the inner plate and position it over your chest with your elbows slightly bent.
• Keeping your elbows slightly bent, lower the dumbbell over and beyond your head until your upper arms align with your torso.
• Pull the dumbbell up and over your chest.

Sets/Reps: 3×10-15

RELATED: The Catcher Workout

Golf Swing Drills

Aim Drill

Lining up correctly is a problem for players who only get out on the course once or twice a month. But having the correct alignment will eliminate or reduce slices and hooks, and make the game more enjoyable.

• You will need two separate clubs and one golf ball.
• Drop the ball at your feet and take a normal stance.
• Place the second club in line with the tips of your shoes.
• Take a step back and see if the club on the ground is pointed directly at your target. Adjust the club to line up with the target and retake your stance.

This drill will help you develop a better understanding of where you’re actually aiming and where you need to hit the ball. Over time, your eyes and brain will match up and have you aiming properly at your target.

High Dime

If you tend to hit the ball fat, place a dime on the practice tee and start with a pitching wedge.

• Take your normal swing and try to hit the dime in the air.
• The higher the coin goes, the better contact you’re making with the club face.

Practicing with an object smaller than a golf ball will increase your confidence when you’re actually standing over the ball. Try this drill with each iron in your bag. Over time, you will become much better at making solid contact.

Delay Drill

Most average golfers hit a big slice or hook, usually caused by their bodies moving faster or slower than their swing.

• Take your normal stance and begin the swing.
• At the top of the swing, stop, count to three and then finish. This allows your body and swing to connect and move together.

This drill is difficult at first—but with some practice, you will hit the ball farther and straighter than before.

Want more golf swing drills? Check out:

• Improve Your Golf Swing Without Touching a Club: The Secret Revealed
• Stability Training to Improve Your Golf Swing
• Increase the Speed of Your Golf Swing With Strength Training and Plyometrics
• Get Serious About Improving Your Golf Swing with Core Exercises