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What Is A Shuttle Run? (And Why You Should Do Them)

What Is A Shuttle Run? (And Why You Should Do Them)

Playing soccer at a professional standard requires an extremely high level of physical fitness. Not only do pro players need to be muscular and capable of using their bodies to battle for the ball, they also need to have excellent stamina and the ability to run for miles every single matchday. This is of course true of the top athletes who play in the Premier League or the UEFA Champions League, but it's also true lower down the football pyramid, too.

In daily training sessions, football coaches use a variety of different drills and routines to ensure that their players' fitness levels are maintained at a high standard. Some of these drills will be simple stamina-centric exercises while others will be more complex routines that incorporate different tactical and technical elements. Getting the balance right is crucial in order to keep players engaged and practise a range of different skills. But in this article, we'll be focusing on the purely physical side of things, by running you through a drill that seriously put players through their paces: the shuttle run. We'll answer the question 'What is a shuttle run?' before offering some steps on how to set up this drill and exploring why it is such a common exercise in the football world.

What Is A Shuttle Run?

A shuttle run is a sports drill that is used in both amateur, semi-professional and professional football. If you've taken part in more than a few basic soccer training sessions for a team, it's likely that you would have completed this drill at one stage. Shuttle run tests are also used in various other sports such as tennis, rugby, hockey, and badminton.

Essentially, this is a basic exercise centred on running and designed to measure and improve speed, stamina, agility and cardiorespiratory fitness. Completing a shuttle run test involves running back and forth between cones placed on the ground as markers.

There are a few different ways this can be done. Sometimes, there will be only two cones set out a specified distance apart, and players will complete a set number of shuttle runs between the two cones.

Alternatively, coaches will sometimes use a shuttle run in which the distance between the cones gradually progresses. For this, there will typically be a starting cone, then 2-5 other cones placed at various intervals in a line in front of you. Players will take it in turns to run to the first cone and back to the start, then to the second cone and back to the start, then to the third, and so on, thereby gradually increasing the distances being completed. The idea is to run solidly at a consistent pace, pushing your body to maintain one speed in order to test your cardiovascular fitness to the max.

How To Set Up A Basic Shuttle Run Test

There are various ways of setting up a shuttle run test; a more complex anaerobic shuttle run may be completed over a 60-yard distance, with participants running 5, then 10, then 15 yards between each cone. However, we're just going to start by setting out a basic but intense shuttle run test designed to get players sprinting hard over a shorter distance. Just follow these steps in order to get this part of a session up and running:

#1. Place a total of five cones in a straight line, with each cone ten metres away from the one behind it.

#2. Start a timer. Sprint from the first cone to the second cone, touching the marker before turning and sprinting back to the start. 

#3. Sprint to the third cone, then back to the starting cone. Repeat for the fourth cone, and then for the fifth cone, so that you are gradually increasing the distance you are running each time.

#4. Make sure you maintain a sprint for the entire duration of the drill — players should be absolutely exhausted by the end of this exercise!

#5. Stop the timer when you return to the starting cone having run all the way to the final cone and back. This is your shuttle run test time. There's something to beat next time you get out on the training field.

Why You Should Do Shuttle Runs

The most important reason for incorporating shuttle runs into your training routine is to build up your cardiorespiratory fitness. Basically, this means the ability of your circulatory and respiratory systems to supply oxygen to your muscles during sustained physical activity. This kind of fitness is absolutely crucial to footballers playing at any level.

It's important to also consider the versatility of this training method. Shuttle runs can be set up in different ways to test out and improve different strengths and weaknesses; a short shuttle run, in which trainers are asked to demonstrate quick, intense bursts of pace, would be referred to as an anaerobic exercise, with players aiming to complete the activity in the fastest time they can. Meanwhile, a longer, more sustained version of this activity would be good for aerobic training, with more of a focus on keeping a consistent pace and ensuring that you finish the set of runs before flagging too much.

For coaches, shuttle runs are great for determining what level of fitness a player is at. This simple running test can help give you a better understanding of who is strong when it comes to aerobic and anaerobic capacity, and who needs to work on this aspect of their game a little more. In terms of individuals, shuttle runs can help track progress over an extended period of time, checking in on whether a player's fitness is improving over the course of a season or as they return to the team from injury.

Whether it's highlighting that a little more emphasis on sprints and short-distance running could pay off, or underlining that other players struggle over long distances, this routine can provide useful results. And there are plenty of other basic soccer fitness and conditioning exercises that can be incorporated into a training schedule to help boost performance.

Which Other Drills Work Well Alongside Shuttle Runs?

Soccer training sessions will always look slightly different depending on the context in which they're held. If it's the day before a big game, coaches are unlikely to place any unnecessary strain on players; they're more likely to do some light ball work and sit them down to impart some useful tactical information. On the other hand, during a pre-season training session, the focus will typically be on hard running and cardiorespiratory fitness, with less emphasis on ball work than you would expect to find during the middle of a campaign.

Shuttle runs can be utilised in all sorts of circumstances; however, in football you're most likely to see them in a fitness-centric training session either during the season or as part of the summer break. Alongside a shuttle run test, coaches will use other fitness tests and more technical drills to ensure their players are match-sharp and in peak physical condition. Below are a few exercises that can be used as part of a training session alongside a shuttle run test.

#1. Zigzag dribbling

This exercise has a fairly similar set up to the shuttle run; cones will be distributed in a line roughly 1.5 metres apart, but spaced out in a zigzag formation rather than being straight. Players will queue up to dribble around each cone, moving from left to right within the zigzag shape, which causes them to concentrate on ball control and dribbling ability.

#2. Alternate lay-offs

Players will split off into pairs and form two lines, with each player standing by a cone opposite their partner around 2-3 metres away. Practising cardiovascular fitness and ball control, one players will jog forward and receive the ball after it is passed to them either in the air or on the ground by their partner. They will return it first time before jogging back to their starting cone. Players should repeat the exercise 10 times before swapping roles.

#3. Two Line Combinations

This exercise splits the group into two lines opposite each other. The player at the front of the queue will pass to the player at the front of the opposite queue, before following the pass to join the back of the other line. The player who received the ball will repeat the exercise, and a fluid passing drill should soon develop. Once it's fully flowing, small alternations can be brought into this exercise, for instance adding short dribbles or one-twos between players.

#4. Rondo

Another exercise focused on ball control and passing, the rondo is one of the most well-known soccer training exercises around. For a soccer rondo, players will be arranged in a circle, with two players standing in the middle of the circle. Those on the outside will aim to pass the ball with speed and precision around the circle, using a maximum of two touches per player. Those on the inside will act as defenders, tasked with intercepting and blocking passes to win the ball back.

If you'd like to find out about an even more grueling method for testing player fitness and cardiorespiratory endurance, check out our guide to the beep test for more information about soccer's most infamous fitness test.