Tempo Stop & Starts
- Prescription
- 6 × 20 yd · 60 s restabout 8 min
- Players
- Solo
- Equipment
- Cones (recommended)
The change of pace worked for its own sake, with no route around it: three speeds in the same twenty-yard run, marked by cones (or other markers: bottles, bags). You start flat out, throttle down halfway, and accelerate again over the last five yards. It’s what makes two routes look identical to the defender. Six twenty-yard runs.
Key points
- Slowing down doesn't mean stopping: you maintain your frequency, but you lose your amplitude.
- The re-acceleration takes three steps, not a gradual build-up.
- The upper body does not straighten up when the pace changes; otherwise, the entire body signals the deceleration.
- In a group, with a ball: your partner throws to you as you come out of the break. Same movement, plus the catch.
Common mistakes
- Three paces that eventually merge into one: the average pace.
- Standing up to slow down, which costs two steps on the re-acceleration.
Demonstrations
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Related drills
LEVELS : Beginner · Intermediate · Advanced
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