1. Drills
  2. Field Hockey
  3. Speed & Fitness

Knee-Drive Skip Rhythm

The A-skip trains the knee drive and foot strike of fast running in a slower, controlled rhythm.

By Coach Evan Waechtler Youth coach (U11, Cache Valley, Utah) and founder of SSTracker Updated October 30, 2026

Set up

Skip forward, driving one knee up as the other foot strikes under your hip.

Core: Steady. Keep your own rhythm smooth.

Ages
9 to 14
Time
8 min
Players
Just you
Space
Yard or field
Bring
Cones
Level · skill
Developing · Speed & Fitness

The steps

How it works

  1. Skip forward, driving one knee up as the other foot strikes under your hip.
  2. Pull the toes up and strike the ground with the ball of the foot.
  3. Keep elbows bent and arms swinging cheek to hip.
  4. Do 4 lengths of 15 yards, walking back.

Coaching point

Up, down, under the hip.

Safety: Run on flat, clear, non-slip ground with plenty of room to slow down. Stop if anything hurts.

Make it fun

Play it, don't drill it

Game version

Rhythm skips: a partner claps a beat and you skip in time with it. Change the beat each round and swap.

Challenge

Pick a level: Less (slow beat), Core (steady), More (steady with big arms). Keep your own rhythm smooth.

Story

You are a drummer whose feet keep the beat.

My best

Beat your own count

Keep your own rhythm smooth. Only your own number counts: today against last time.

Practice makes progress

Print it now, or save it free

Free for families and teams

Save this drill to your child or team, free

Sign up and the free field hockey week for this age opens in your child's planner, kept to healthy limits. A coach can send this drill to the whole team as homework, and parents see every session logged.

14 days free for a family, no card · Running a team is always free

Does your child's coach know about this?

An email from you to the coach, with the words ready. Nothing is tracked and nobody is rewarded.