Prep Like a Pro: The 20 Yard Shuttle
August 7, 2018
At his Plex facility in Houston, Danny Arnold has trained numerous NFL All-Pros, Hall of Famers, and First-Round Draft Picks, including Charles Woodson, Julius Peppers, Casey Hampton, Wes Welker, and Jadeveon Clowney. Widely recognized as the world's leading expert in NFL Combine preparation, Danny has generously agreed to share his training tips for The D10's Combine-style events with our community.
Come see the room where it happens. Plex hosts a D5 Houston August 25th. Sign up here.
When you look at the 20 Yard Shuttle, it’s a very confusing thing. The one thing I recommend to everybody is: split the shuttle into three parts. You want to separate it, get good at each different department, and then blend it all together.
All three parts are run very, very differently. In each case it’s about the proper steps.
FIRST FIVE
In all the years, I've only had one athlete out of thousands who opened up off the line, instead of crossing his legs over. That was Julius Peppers, because he’s a genetic freak.
Everyone else crosses over. It’s about flipping your hips, and then it’s about flipping your head back.
Don’t stare at the touch line. As you get closer to it, starting turning your head back toward the center. You don’t need to see the line to touch it. You should practice enough to know exactly where it is by feel.
Barely touching and touching is the same thing. This goes for the first and second touch too. Trying to make sure you touch the line is a mistake, because you're freezing your body.
Touching the line should be like touching a hot stove. You barely touch and then you snap back. Your whole body will assimilate that snap into a propelling movement.
It's not a drill that gets you that tired, so if you miss the line, you’ll get it on the next attempt.
MIDDLE TEN
The second part, which is the ten-yard sprint, is all about deceleration. If you don’t understand how to decelerate, you’re going to take a larger number of steps than you need to.
Think about a racecar going around a track. The driver is trying to pinpoint the speed where he can hang that turn. You’re not looking for your maximum speed, you’re asking, "How fast can I get, where my deceleration isn’t altering my run and making me take extra steps?"
You might never reach what you think is your top speed in your best shuttle. Your best speed doesn't do any good if you're running so fast that it takes you a long time to slow down and pivot.
I’ve seen it so many times: someone looks fast as hell, but then you look at their time, and they're not. Keep timing yourself to find your best speed, not your top speed. Your best speed will give you your best time.
FINAL FIVE
The third part is completely different than any run you’ve ever done. There is nothing that takes place after your body passes that center line.
The last two steps, technique is out the door, and you have to train that way.
You literally have to train for being as explosive and aggressive as possible, and for reaching and lunging and taking big steps across the finish.
The August 25th D5 takes place at Plex from 12 noon to 2pm. The order of events will be Pull-Ups, Broad Jump, Vertical Jump, 20 Yard Shuttle, and Bench Press. Benchmark your training progress and come check out your November competition.