SAQ Fitness Ladder Workouts, A Powerful Physical and Mental Training Tool

What is an SAQ Workout?

Speed, Agility, and Quickness (SAQ) workout is generally undertaken by athletes whose choices of sports require mental and physical alertness, ability to move quickly, and body coordination. Considering these targets, SAQ is significantly a powerful type of training in the field of sports or wellness.

SAQ’s emphasis is on running techniques and explosive motor patterns. This highly recommended training for athletic individuals provides what physically active sports require, so it is very beneficial to undergo an SAQ workout. This, however, is not exclusive to athletes as anyone who wanted to improve themselves can take part.

It has been shown that undergoing this rigorous exercise can truly accelerate the level of performance. Pure dedication and providing a reasonable length of time in executing this kind of training is necessary before results truly show.

This is also great for multi-planar and directional movement training and is an interesting way to increase cardiovascular endurance and build up the calves. It is important to note that ladder drills can work out on often weak and ignored muscle groups such as the knee stabilization muscles, lower back muscle groups, and various abductors.

An agility ladder or a set of cones will be the equipment used for this workout. If you don’t have any, you can just simply draw a ladder on the ground as a replication. However, a real one provides real effects when you go through it and it can help you determine how accurate your footwork is. Planning the session is also a factor to consider in reaching objectives. Taking a Kinetic Chain Assessment (KCA) is what a participant must first undergo. This is to determine the appropriate exercise program for the willing participant.

4 Steps on How to Start an SAQ Workout?

The warm-up phase is as significant as the actual workout. This is when any tight muscles are loosened up to avoid any potential injury and a participant can start with a self-myofascial release (foam rolling). The emphasis on warm-ups is on the forms done in the upper and lower body. A few the great warm-up exercises are the following: A Skips, B Skips, Side Skips, Bounding, Butt Kicks, and High Knees.

Once the warm-up is through, the workout can immediately be started, but where should a participant start?

Fitness coaches and professionals follow the acronym SOAP as a four-step method to design a specific and suitable program. This stands for (1) Subjective, (2) Objective, (3) Assessment, and (4) Plan.

Subjective. This is a piece of information consisting of the following: lifestyle, occupation, past injuries or surgeries, medical and exercise history, and medications.

These crucial details can be taken through tools such as the Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire (Par-Q) and General Health History. Understanding what the diagnosis is will provide an idea about what activity is required.

Objective. Another key factor in identifying the assessment plan is the gathering of data such as weight/height, upper and lower body strength, static posture analysis, body composition, and range motion.

These focus more on the present body condition and its ability to perform. Once the Subjective and Objective phases are filled with the required and necessary details, as mentioned before, an Assessment will be carefully tailored. This will then be used to designing a Plan.

What are Physical Improvements?

Knowing that the needs of a participant in doing SAQ workouts are unique compared to that of others, which means that there are no uniform results. However, in general, terms, doing SAQ contributes to a lot of development or improvement on the pre-existing physical status of a participant.

It has been shown that the training proves significant effects on eye coordination and dynamic balance performances. It also successfully increases performance making the participant more energetic. Furthermore, the training generated an increase in muscle strength of both the upper and the lower body specifically the legs and the arms.

Other more physical improvements include back strength, agility, and movement speed. This workout also satisfies cardiorespiratory work since a drill of actions are done in the fastest way possible.

SAQ workout is almost a vital exercise for most professional athletes. Soccer players, basketball players, or badminton players can greatly benefit from this and it always shows.

At first, it would not be so easy remembering the drill and applying it to the body. Since every part of the body moves, coordination might be the first challenge to solve, next is the accuracy, the balance, the speed, and so on.

Exercising religiously for a long period is essential and many who have done this are mind-blown with significant and very clear results. The period when the results show will always vary. Some took six weeks or twelve weeks, others got more than that.

It may be frustrating at the start, but it will come off naturally once the body starts recognizing and familiarizing the drills.

How SAQ Boosts Mental Conditions

Exercise is an excellent way to increase serotonin levels. It is not just for improving physical health and physique, but it also provides an excellent sense of well-being. It is just like hitting two birds with one stone. Exercise can avoid the development of mental health problems.

Since SAQ is packed with drills and exercises that increase several physical aspects, most of its results in mental conditions include but are not limited to having more energy during the day and a night of relaxing sleep at night, having a more positive outlook in life, and having sharper memories.

If done regularly and correctly, SAQ workouts can have a positive influence on common mental health challenges such as anxiety, depression, and even ADHD. This is also a great way to relieve stress and produce more energy to last the day.

Studies also show that exercise can treat mild to moderate depression as effectively as an anti-depressant- the good news is that there are no side effects. It is through a certain chemical called endorphins that are released and are responsible for uplifting the spirit.

Exercise, especially SAQ workout, is a huge distraction from negative thoughts.

This does not mean, however, that once you exercise regularly, there will no longer be a feeling of loss, failure, or grief as these are a part of normal life. The huge boon for being physically active though is the great sense of being capable of leading oneself to a healthier mental state.

A participant who suffers a huge deal on common mental matters does not have to exercise for long hours each day. A quick ten-minute workout can already sufficiently increase energy and lighten up the mood.

Every day, a great number of people check on their phones every after waking up as part of the routine. Most of the population go through long periods of inactivity due to technology addiction and sometimes causes a negative mood. To increase positive moods, researchers suggest undergoing physical activities of different levels of intensity for a reasonable amount of time a week.

Powerful SAQ Fitness Ladder Workouts to Follow

Some various drills and patterns can be followed. Know that there is no pressure to learn the drills in a jiffy. SAQ workouts have to be executed well to avoid confusion and inaccuracy. The movements of the arms should match footwork to increase improvement and maintain the right balance.

There are three different types of drills incorporated:

The first type is the Steady State Drills. It is highly focused on quickness endurance and promotes constant rhythm. There should be focus on each drill to execute. Just use the normal arm action as the feet go through the ladder. Avoid the frozen arm syndrome as this will negatively impact body coordination and balance. Let those go with the drill freely!

The second one is Burst Drills. This activates the ability to turn on a rapid burst of foot movements.

Lastly, is the Elastic Response Drills. This is more into developing the components of the lower leg’s reactive speed.

Starting up slow can build up accuracy and a drill can just be sped up once you get the hang of it. Below are some of the drills for each type except that the Steady State and Burst Drills are merged. These range from simple to complex:

Once you start getting the hang of the SAQ workout, you can gradually increase the level of difficulty. Again, regular workouts, time, and dedication are very important factors to always consider.

Below are eight more powerful Agility Training Exercises that will get you more pumped up:

• Lateral Plyometric Jumps
• Forward Running, High-Knee Drills
• Lateral Running, Side-to-side Drills
• Dot Drills
• Jump Box Drills
• L Drills
• Plyometric Agility Drill
• Shuttle Runs