"L" Cone Drill

This is a drill that I learned from one of my favorite trainers. It emphasizes several different motions as well as quick changes in directions. I call it the L-drill simply because I don’t have another name for it. It’s a drill that uses cones and I have a lot of those drills stashed away in the back of my mind.

The reason it’s called the L drill is because the cones appear in an L shape, or a right triangle. The cones are about six feet apart, a little over one body length. The L can also be in reverse but I’ll talk about that a bit more later. If you decide to do this drill on grass you want to make sure there are no hazards like holes or sprinkler heads. You also want to make sure that the grass is dry so that you won’t slip. One thing you’ll notice in my drill is that I use filled water bottles with a wide base instead of cones. I personally don’t own cones but water bottles work just as well as long as they aren’t top heavy.

Start this drill at the top of the L facing toward the bottom. You want to imagine there is a net parallel to the front two cones, the ones that make up the bottom of the L. Keep your shoulders parallel to that net throughout the drill. Start low and stay low throughout the drill. Run forward just past the corner cone and then shuffle to the next cone. Don’t cross your feet when you shuffle and make sure you are low and staying at one consistent height. Once you reach that cone, quickly do a single block jump and then upon landing, shuffle back to the corner cone. Backpedal to the starting cone to complete one rep. As soon as you've completed one rep, change direction and sprint forward to start the next rep. On your final rep, you want to backpedal all the way through instead of stopping right next to the final cone.

Check out the video below to see a demonstration of the drill. Forewarning, it is a bit quiet, I didn't use my volleyball voice.

You want to do three sets of three reps in both directions. To change which direction you are shuffling in, switch the back cone to be directly behind the other cone, making a reverse L. You’ll do the same motions, the shuffling is the only thing in the other direction. Try to overemphasis the penetrating action on your block since you don't have to worry about interfering with the net.

Like I said in the beginning of this post, this drill emphasizes several key movements in volleyball as well as focusing on quick changes in direction. Shuffling, backpedaling, sprinting, and blocking are all included in this one drill. Volleyball constantly requires players to be on their toes and changing directions quickly. This drill is best done with a partner so that you have rest between each of your sets.

I’ll post more cone drills in coming weeks. Enjoy!