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Four Square for Athletic Performance

by Taylor Tollison

This four square drill can be used in many ways. The drill can be used to develop: Agility, Quickness, Footwork, Coordination, Power.  You will find illustrations of the four square agility drill below in a PDF.

Far left drill:

  • Start by standing in box 1. The first move is to leap into box 2 with both feet, then to box 3 then 4. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
  • Focus on being quick and on the balls of the feet. Stay balanced. (Important: This is a quick response drill therefore if the athlete hops too high in the air, it is done incorrectly.)
  • Repeat this drill by going the opposite direction.

 Middle drill:

  • Start by standing outside and to the left of box 1. The first move is to leap into box 1 on one foot (left foot). Next you will hop to box 2, 3 and then 4. The next move will be to hop diagonally back to box 1. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
  • This is a quick response drill and therefore should not entail large high hops. The athlete should focus on being quick, on balance, and on the balls of the feet.
  • This drill can be repeated on the right foot as well.

Far Right drill:

  • Start with your left foot in box 1 and right foot in box 2. The first move is a quick leap forward with both feet simultaneously into boxes 3 and 4. To continue the drill quickly leap backwards to 1 and 2 then forward into 3 and 4. Repeat this for the desired repetitions.
  • Be quick, on balance and on the balls of your feet.

Click here to download the foursquare images in PDF format

To make your own  

To make your own drill you can paint the lines on the field or use chalk on a sidewalk or pavement. The great thing about this drill is there is not any kind of fancy equipment needed.  

How to make the drill fun  

Create competition with the drill by timing the repetitions. Try to improve your time for each set. For example, time the top right drill by repeating 6 consecutive repetitions. Record that time and try to beat that time.  

Summary  

I have only included three examples. But you can expand the list to as many possibilities as you want. You can do scissor kicks, one leg hops, two leg hops, two legs up turn two legs back and so on. Be creative. Just keep in mind that you should be quick, on balance and on the balls of your feet.

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