Advanced Training Variation Drills for the Beep Test

The Beep test is challenging enough on its own, however, for elite players and athletes there are plenty of advanced beep test training drills that can more than meet the demands of even the fittest players and athletes.

When the beep test is not being used as a fitness test it can make a great activity to challenge a whole team of athletes. One of my favourite ways of using the beep test as an advanced fitness drill is to integrate other activities into the beep test.

Integrating Other Activities

Integrating other drills into the beep test would work like this.

First you would split the players into two groups. Group A would commence the beep test from the beginning. Once the test starts, Group B would commence their activity in an area near one of the end lines.

For example Group B might be performing push ups, or lunges, or prone holds whilst Group A is performing level 1 of the beep test.

When the triple beep sounds, indicating the commencement of level 2, the groups would change places. So group B would now continue on with the beep test by doing level 2 and group A would now remain at one of the end lines and do the activity that has been designated.

In order to effect a smooth transition, players should be allowed to use the triple beep as the indication to change activities, then, commence the new activity on the next single beep. This allows players the opportunity to complete the last repetition of the designated activity and get ready to continue on with the beep test without interfering with the correct timing of the beep test.

How the activity ends

Players would be disqualified from the beep test if they fall behind the sound of the beeps just like if they were doing a normal beep test.

This is a different way of using the beep test for fitness training and encourages competition amongst players as well as team spirit and support.

Secondary Activity

The secondary activity chosen should fall into one of three categories depending on the nature of the training.

• Fitness based
• Skills based
• Plain fun

The fitness and skills activities chosen should be relevant to the players role within their sport or team. For example, soccer players may dribble balls around a short figure 8 course of cones or witches hats as activity two. Rugby players may throw passes to each other back and forth and basket ball players may throw as many free throws as possible in the 60 seconds whilst waiting to switch back to running the beep test.

These are just a couple of ways to introduce some advanced beep test training drills into what is already a challenging and demanding fitness test.