![]() Sheppard and Young (2006) propose the following: To gain deeper insight, let’s briefly define each term, starting with agility. ” Or? Really? You don’t have to look very far to know that these terms are not one and the same. In a recent paper (Huggins et al., 2017), the authors begin with the following sentence: “Agility or COD is a critical physical attribute….” Notice the emphasis on “or. While popular for tennis, athletes in other sports can also do it. Video 1: The Spider Drill is a classic change of direction exercise that exposes athletes to different movement patterns that help prime general efficient mechanics. In order for us to better understand COD speed and how training means can improve this quality, we should first differentiate between these two closely related terms, as one is highly dependent on the other. For instance, you may think that a simple spider drill is an agility drill (see Video 1 below). While its importance cannot be overlooked, it’s also a term used loosely in sport environments around the world-often mistaken for the main topic of this post, COD speed. “Agility” is a real term and a very critical one at that. They’re closely related, but not the same, says Click To Tweet #Agility is often mistaken for #COD speed. The dynamics of the game, along with the court/field dimensions, just don’t allow for it. What are we referring to? Is it linear speed? Limb speed? Maximum speed? Or something else? If it’s top running velocity we’re after, you should know that in many field and court sports, athletes rarely reach top running velocities. In fact, prominent researchers in the field (Sheppard and Young 2006) disregard quickness as a sport science term altogether, claiming that it’s simply “too vague.”Įven the term “speed” is misleading. For the casual fan or observer, it may not make a difference, but for coaches working in elite settings, knowing the difference between key terms will weigh heavily on how these coaches organize their training programs.įor instance, what does the term “quickness” mean? There are books on the subject but, to be frank, I’ve studied this field for over a decade and I’m still not sure. While, on the surface, this may not seem like a big deal, with the cutthroat competitiveness of sport today every inch or second matters. Coaches from all sports use these terms liberally and interchangeably. Examples include: “they are quick/agile,” “those are some fast feet,” “good footwork,” and on and on. There are many terms used in today’s sporting environments to define movement. I do my best to offer examples from a variety of sporting disciplines, but don’t hold it against me if some examples are biased towards the tennis court. This article reflects my experience both playing and coaching elite tennis for the better part of two decades. This includes, but is not limited to, basketball, volleyball, soccer, football, and more. And while tennis is my bread and butter, I believe that the underlying mechanisms that contribute to elite movement outcomes on the tennis court can aptly transfer to other sports. I’ve competed at almost every level-juniors, college, and the equivalent to what other sports would call the “minor leagues.” Over the past decade, I’ve tried to merge my experiences on the court with my experiences off of it. ![]() While I hold a master’s degree in sport science, my practical experience comes from the tennis court. The goal of this piece is to present some of the more updated research on COD ability-in particular, what the underlying physical components of COD are and how coaches can organize different training means to enhance this very vital quality.īefore I continue, I’d like to mention something. While linear speed and acceleration are often the focal point, this post will take a look at another physical quality that’s highly valuable in today’s world of elite sport (especially when it comes to court and field sports): change of direction (COD) speed. If you’re a regular visitor to SimpliFaster, then you’ll know that one of the objectives of the site is to help coaches get their athletes faster.
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