L-Drill: A Complete Guide
Also called 3-Cone Drill
Quick Intro
L-Drill is a three-cone running drill performed by setting up three cones in an L-shape, sprinting to the first cone, weaving around the second cone and back, then sprinting around the L to the third cone to finish, working both directions of the L as part of the same exercise. It’s dosed by attempts with rest between them and is one of the recognized combine-style agility tests, built around a tight direction change at the second cone rather than a repeated footwork pattern.
Equipment Needed
L-Drill needs three Training Cones, set out in an L-shape a consistent distance apart.
Why L-Drill Matters
The initial sprint to the first cone calls on the glutes (gluteus maximus) and front of the thigh (quadriceps, rectus femoris) to generate acceleration from a dead stop, while the hip flexors (iliopsoas) drive the leg through each stride. At the second cone, the outer hip (gluteus medius) and inner thigh (adductors) control a tight weave around a single point, and the side of the waist (obliques) braces the trunk through that direction change. The back of the thigh (hamstrings, biceps femoris) decelerates the body into the plant at every turn, the calf (gastrocnemius) manages the quick ground contacts throughout and the shin (tibialis anterior) keeps the feet responsive through both the sprint and the weave.
Agility is what this drill trains most, the product of two tight direction changes packed into a short course.
When to Do It
This drill fits well once straight-line acceleration and a basic weaving cut both feel individually solid, since it combines the two into one short, demanding sequence. It also works well as a standalone assessment, given its recognized use as a combine-style test of change-of-direction speed.
Anyone with a current ankle, knee or hip issue should approach this carefully, since the tight weave around the second cone places a concentrated rotational load on all three in a way a straight sprint doesn’t.
Getting Ready
A few minutes of easy jogging followed by a couple of build-up strides and a slow, controlled weave around a single cone rehearses both halves of this drill separately before combining them. A slow walkthrough of the full L-shape previews the sequence before pace is added.
Step-by-Step Instructions
1. The setup. Stand at the first cone, facing the second cone, ready to sprint.
2. The first sprint. Sprint hard to the second cone.
3. The weave. Plant and weave tightly around the second cone, keeping the center of gravity low through the turn, then return past the starting line of the second sprint.
4. The second sprint. Sprint around the L-shape’s corner to the third cone.
5. The finish. Sprint through the third cone to finish, then reset and run the same course leading with the opposite side.
How Many, How Often
L-Drill is dosed by attempts with full rest between them, run in both directions to train each side of the weave evenly.
| Level | Where you’re at | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Beginner | New to the L-shaped sprint-weave-sprint sequence | L-Drill — Left Lead or L-Drill — Right Lead, 3 to 4 attempts per direction, focused entirely on a clean, controlled weave. |
| Intermediate | The full L-shape holds together at a moderate pace in both directions | 4 to 5 attempts total, split evenly between directions, with full rest between each. |
| Advanced | Both directions hold together at speed | 5 to 6 attempts total, or move toward L-Drill — Timed once both directions feel fast and controlled. |
Attacking the first cone hard out of the start matters more here than anything that happens later in the course, since the initial acceleration, not the turns themselves, is where most of the time is won or lost.
Modifications and Variations
L-Drill has three variations: two single-direction splits and one harder, timed version.
For a more focused entry point, L-Drill — Left Lead and L-Drill — Right Lead each isolate a single direction of the weave, a reasonable way to build one side’s technique before training both together.
For more difficulty, L-Drill — Timed runs the full course for a recorded time against a stopwatch or timing gates, the standard combine assessment protocol for this pattern.
Progression path: each direction gets learned on its own first, since isolating one side of the weave makes the tight turn easier to feel and correct; running both directions together then proves the pattern out symmetrically, with the timed version as the final test of whether it holds up under a recorded attempt.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Taking the first sprint out at anything less than full effort. Since most of this drill’s time is won or lost in that initial acceleration, starting conservatively costs more than any turn later in the course can make back. Attacking the first cone hard from the very first step protects the time that matters most.
Rounding the weave around the second cone instead of planting hard and low. A wide, rounded turn wastes distance and time compared with a tight, controlled plant. Keeping the center of gravity down and the turn tight around the second cone, even at some cost to raw speed at first, builds the skill this drill depends on.
Only practicing one direction of the weave. Training just the more comfortable side leaves the other direction undertrained, a gap that matters given how many sports demand cutting both ways. Splitting attempts evenly between L-Drill — Left Lead and L-Drill — Right Lead, or alternating within full L-Drill attempts, closes that gap directly.
After Your Set
The hips and legs take on a concentrated load through the weave’s tight direction change, so a few minutes of easy movement is worth taking before stretching. A standing side-on hip stretch, crossing one leg behind the other and leaning the hips toward the wall, releases the outer hip (gluteus medius) that controlled the weave. A seated groin stretch, soles of the feet together and the knees eased down toward the floor, opens the inner thigh (adductors) that stabilized the leg through the tight turn.
Going Deeper
This drill isolates a specific combination most straight-line sprint work never tests: a hard acceleration immediately followed by a tight, decelerating turn. That combination, not raw top-end speed, is what separates a fast L-Drill time from a slow one.
Progress here tends to stall on the weave itself, not the sprinting: an athlete can accelerate well on both sprints and still lose time rounding the second cone instead of planting into it. Slowing the weave down deliberately in practice, treating the plant and turn as their own skill separate from the sprints around it, tends to close that gap faster than simply running more full attempts.
Someone new to this drill generally needs several sessions before both directions of the weave feel controlled at speed, and continues sharpening the initial acceleration over the following weeks once the turn itself feels reliable.
How to Know You’re Improving
- The first sprint out of the start feels maximal, not held back
- The weave around the second cone stays tight and controlled, without rounding wide
- Both directions feel comparably clean, without one side lagging noticeably behind
- The full course holds together at speed as fatigue builds across multiple attempts
A hard first acceleration into a tight, controlled weave, not the second sprint alone, is what marks progress here.
Muscles Worked
- Gluteus Maximus (the largest glute muscle, re-accelerating out of the weave and around the corner of the L)
- Rectus Femoris (a front thigh muscle that crosses both the hip and knee, absorbing a five-yard stop into the first cone)
- Biceps Femoris (a muscle at the back of the thigh, reversing the body back toward the start)
- Gastrocnemius (a calf muscle, giving the short choppy steps the weave section needs)
- Gluteus Medius (a smaller glute muscle at the side of the hip, holding the hip as the body rounds the middle cone)
- Iliopsoas (the deep hip flexor, bringing the knee through tight to the cone)
- Obliques (the muscles along the sides of the waist, turning the shoulders into each change of heading)
- Tibialis Anterior (a muscle along the front of the shin, keeping the forefoot loaded on every plant)
- Adductors (the inner thigh muscles, closing the legs up as the body threads the gap)
FAQ
Should this drill be run in one direction or both? Both. The drill is meant to be run in each direction as part of one complete session, with no fixed direction as the default (see Quick Intro above).
What’s the difference between running both directions of the base L-Drill and using the Left Lead or Right Lead versions? The base drill covers both directions across a session, while L-Drill — Left Lead and L-Drill — Right Lead each isolate a single direction for focused, repeated practice on just one side (see Modifications and Variations above).
Why does the first sprint matter so much? Because that initial acceleration accounts for most of the time difference between a fast and a slow attempt, coaching focus there pays off more directly than technique work on the turns themselves (see Common Mistakes to Avoid above).
Is the timed version meant to be run every session? No. L-Drill — Timed is best used occasionally as a test once both directions already feel fast and controlled, not as the default way to train this drill every time.
Part of the cone drill family, alongside 4-Corner Agility Drill, Cone Slalom Sprint, Star Drill and T-Drill.