Illinois Agility Course Walk-Through

Before the Illinois agility test, students go through the course walking, jogging, and at medium speed to learn the layout and prep their changes of direction. It warms up legs and ankles specifically and cuts down on wrong turns and slips during the test.

How to play

1. Set up three Illinois courses (10 m long, 5 m wide, four center cones 3.3 m apart) and split the class into three groups of about 8.
2. Mobility (2 min): ankles, knees, hips, and 10 short side shuffles next to the course.
3. First pass at a walk (1 min): each student walks the course while the next in line follows about 10 feet behind, noting which way they turn at each cone.
4. Second pass at a jog (2 min): at 50%, practicing dropping the hips before each turn and planting with the outside foot.
5. Third pass (2 min): at 70-80%, weaving through the center cones with short steps; students in line count out loud if anyone touches a cone.
6. To finish (2 min): two starts from lying face down on a clap, running only the first 10 meters, where the most time is usually lost.

Rules

• Start once the student ahead has passed the second center cone.
• No one runs the course at full speed during the warm-up.
• Safety: dry floor, tied shoes, and low cones or flat discs, never poles.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: for a wheelchair user, adapt the course with wide turns around the cones and cut the distance in half.
• Visual impairment: use large, bright cones, and a partner calls out directions at each turn.
• Lower fitness: only two passes, with a full walking recovery on the way back.

Learning goals

• Learn the layout of an agility test before performing it.
• Practice change-of-direction technique with a low center of gravity.
• Warm up specifically to help prevent ankle sprains.

Equipment for a class of 25

• cones: 24

Teacher tip

The typical error is turning off the inside foot and slipping: stress the outside plant.

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