When recovering from an injury or surgery, it is important that a careful post-op or post-injury program be drawn out, mapping the return to activity. All the caution and careful rehab in the world cannot account for what will actually take place out on the field, slopes, water, or garden. But being as conditioned and responsive as able helps in a safe return to--life. The following exercises aid in the development of improved quickness and speed.

* Always precede exercises with some form of warm-up and flexibility program. All exercises should be performed with intensity and perfect body mechanics (i.e. head high, back straight, tight abdominals, and fast feet). Always allow for adequate recovery time.

* Rope skipping / jumping rope: as much and often as possible and with varying speeds, two-legged and one-legged, and with 1 or 2 jumps per rotation.

* High stepping: good base exercise that will get the back, hips, knees, and ankles ready for fast work. Standing up straight, high step with alternating arm pumping focusing on speed and not distance. You should be able to perform this for 3-5 / 30 sec. intervals and take up no more than 20 yds.
Advanced: Perform with a side step, lateral cut component.

* Shuffle drill: practice running forward, backward, sideways and diagonally as quickly as possible with the change of direction (NEVER cross feet). 30 sec. - 1 min. intervals / 5-10 reps.
Advanced: Place cones at 20-, 40-, 60-yards away, then sprint forward from the start to the 60-yard cone back to the start, to the 40-yard cone, etc. Also perform with backwards, and sideways.

* Four corner shuffle drill: 4 cones 10 yds. apart and forming a square. Sprint forward to cone #1, then reverse pivot to the right so you side-shuffle to cone #2 facing into the square; then reverse pivot to the right so you sprint backwards to cone #3, then reverse pivot to the right so you side shuffle to cone #4 facing out of the square. Repeat 3-7 times.