Beginner training plan
Your first trainingI focus on building a foundation. The first session is all about evaluating the athlete’s current movement patterns, stance, explosiveness, and confidence. I start with a simple warm‑up, then walk them through the basics of defensive line posture and body positioning. I teach them how to set a proper stance, how to align their feet, and how to distribute their weight so they can explode forward.
The goal of the first lesson is to help them feel comfortable, learn the fundamentals, and understand how Get Off Lab trains athletes. I keep things simple, positive, and clear so they leave feeling confident and excited for the next session.
If needed, I introduce very light versions of get off mechanics or hand placement basics, but only after they understand their stance.
Training 2-3Lessons 2–3 build on the foundation. Now that they understand their stance, we begin working on their first step and reaction. I introduce basic get‑off drills, focusing on shin angle, pad level, and timing. These sessions are still slow and controlled — the goal is to help them develop consistency.
I also begin teaching simple hand mechanics: how to strike, how to keep hands active, and how to avoid engaging too long. These are the sessions where athletes start to feel the difference between “moving” and “moving with purpose.”
Performance work becomes more structured here — basic explosiveness drills, hip mobility, and core activation. Everything is tailored to their level.
By the end of Lesson 3, they should feel more confident in their stance, first step, and basic hand usage.
If appropriate, I introduce film examples to help them visually understand proper get off timing.
Training 4-10This is where real development happens. Lessons 4–10 focus on building skill, speed, and confidence. We increase intensity and introduce more advanced variations of stance, get off, and hands.
Athletes learn:
• how to explode out of their stance
• how to react faster to movement or cadence
• how to use their hands to control blockers
• how to avoid engaging too long
• how to finish plays
Performance work becomes more challenging explosive starts, resisted get offs, hip projection drills, and mobility patterns specific to defensive linemen.
We also begin teaching football IQ: how to read blocks, how to diagnose plays, and how to avoid getting washed out of gaps.
By Lesson 10, beginners should have a strong foundation in stance fundamentals, get off mechanics, and basic hand usage.
