Two drills I no longer use when training speed. This doesn’t mean...
Fred Duncan@Fred__Duncan
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Sep 14, 2025
~1 min read
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Two drills I no longer use when training speed.
This doesn’t mean these drills are inherently bad or that you can’t place them appropriately in your program, because you can. These are just my thoughts around them.
Wickets
What I often see is big groups of athletes running
This doesn’t mean these drills are inherently bad or that you can’t place them appropriately in your program, because you can. These are just my thoughts around them.
Wickets
What I often see is big groups of athletes running
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through identical spacing, with no individualization.
The problem is athletes often will focus on the wrong action. They’re thinking about lifting their knee up, when what we really want is to punch the knee forward and then strike down into the ground.
Too often, it turns
The problem is athletes often will focus on the wrong action. They’re thinking about lifting their knee up, when what we really want is to punch the knee forward and then strike down into the ground.
Too often, it turns
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into athletes just lifting the knee and lightly tapping the ground, basically a contest of who can get their thigh the highest.
If you have a coach there adjusting the spacing, teaching intent and explaining exactly how this fits, then great. But in my experience, it’s hard
If you have a coach there adjusting the spacing, teaching intent and explaining exactly how this fits, then great. But in my experience, it’s hard
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to get athletes to focus on force application when they’re just worried about clearing hurdles.
Wall drills
Wall drills run into the same problem. Sprinting is dynamic…posture, shin angle, and force application are constantly changing at high velocity.
Static positions
Wall drills
Wall drills run into the same problem. Sprinting is dynamic…posture, shin angle, and force application are constantly changing at high velocity.
Static positions
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against a wall don’t capture that. Sure, you can slow things down for a beginner or use them in rehab to retrain positions, but the carryover is often lacking.
None of this means these drills are bad in isolation. It’s just that our time is finite, and every drill in a
None of this means these drills are bad in isolation. It’s just that our time is finite, and every drill in a
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program should earn its place.
For me, wickets & wall drills no longer give the return on investment I’m looking for, so I’d rather use the ones that do.
If you want the full blueprint on how to program sprint work, drills, and progressions, the same system I use my athletes
For me, wickets & wall drills no longer give the return on investment I’m looking for, so I’d rather use the ones that do.
If you want the full blueprint on how to program sprint work, drills, and progressions, the same system I use my athletes