Figure-eight warm-up

A calm jogging warm-up that keeps its own order: two lines of four that cross each other at the cone and run two full loops across the court. Everybody covers the same distance, nobody stands still, and the pace is low enough that you can explain what the session is about while they run.

8 players 8 phases ± 8 min 1 cone, the full court All levels

Phase 1 of 8Two lines of four ready on the sidelines

Two lines of four Equipment Ball

This animation comes straight out of the Koach app. In the app you play it at your own pace and the positions carry your players' real names.

Open in the app

How the drill runs

What you are training

Easy jog-in drill: eight players run two loops across the court and switch sides halfway to get loose.

Getting going gradually: the heart rate climbs over two loops instead of in one sprint.
Crossing without collisions: looking and giving way while you keep moving.
A fixed opening routine the group steps into by itself, even while you are still talking to one player.

Coaching points

Two meters of space between players in each line.

Without that agreement the line turns into a straggling tail and the last player has to grind to catch up. At the crossing point, space is also the difference between giving way and colliding.

Raise the pace each loop: the first one calm, the second a bit faster.

Starting cold at full pace gains you nothing and feels like punishment to players. A warm-up builds in steps, and two loops is exactly enough for two steps.

You cross by looking, not by braking.

Players who stop at every crossing take the rhythm out of it. Spotting space and running around it is the same skill as finding your position between two teammates on the court.

Use these minutes to announce your session.

This is the only quiet moment in a practice where everybody is moving and can still listen. After this the gym is loud and nobody has any attention left for a plan.

Variations

Easier: One loop at walking pace, with the lines behind each other instead of crossing.
Harder: Add a task on your signal along the way: skipping, sideways, or two block jumps at the cone.
With twelve players: Three lines of four and a second cone, so the loops do not end up on top of each other.
As a game: The group has to finish two loops without anyone having to slow down at a crossing. If they fail, one more loop gets added. Together against the task instead of against each other.

Volleyball drills

4 players · 6 phases SafeVolley base round Warm-up 3 players · 5 phases Shoulder activation with band Warm-up 2 players · 6 phases Dynamic movement patterns Warm-up 5 players · 5 phases Core plank with rotation Warm-up

Read on in the knowledge base: drills without queues for a big group · building your practice in blocks · the RAMP method for a warm-up