Back to Catch – Stix Drill

Hand-Eye Coordination and Cognitive Vision Training (CVT)

Hand-Eye Coordination and Cognitive Vision Training (CVT) is for all athletes and fitness minded humans.

Hand-Eye Coordination training with HECOstix improves athletic performance for practically every sport including Basketball, Hockey, Baseball, Football, Pickleball, Softball, Volleyball, Lacrosse, Tennis, Soccer, Cricket, Boxing, Mixed Martial Arts, Motor Sports, and more.

Hand-Eye Coordination training with HECOstix is scalable. It improves athletic performance regardless of your skill level or age (youth to professional).

• True agility is decision-based movement.
• True quickness isn’t just physical – It’s mental.
• Don’t panic, train your brain. #BrainSweat

1. Back to Catch Drill Instructions

All you need is a HECOstix® and a little space.

Athlete stands with their back turned, about 10 feet from the coach. The coach calls out a color (e.g., “green”) as he or she is tossing HECOstix. Upon hearing the color (audible cue), the athlete turns, picks up the trajectory of the approaching HECOstix, then identifies, focuses, and catches HECOstix by the green leg.

Drill Multipliers

To increase difficulty and cognitive load to this drill:

• A) Callout a color and a hand while tossing HECOstix (e.g., “red / right!”), and the athlete must then catch the red leg with their right-hand.
• B) Toss HECOstix with more spin, like a frisbee. This requires greater concentration, focus, and coordination to snag the correct colored leg, with the correct hand, while HECOstix is turning.
• C) Athlete stands on one leg, adding the brain task of maintaining steady balance while focusing on catching HECOstix with the correct hand and correct colored leg.

And As Always – Go As Fast As Your Brain Can!

2. Benefits

This HECOstix drill improves your eyes to brain to muscle coordination and incorporates footwork, agility, and actions relating to multiple sports.

In sports like Downhill Skiing, Basketball, Baseball, Volleyball, Softball, Pickleball and others, you are constantly reacting to a multi-level and dynamic environment. The “game” is blasting visual information at you like a firehose, and your ability to see and process that information is the difference between amateur and elite.

Hand-Eye Coordination Training with HECOstix helps you obtain elite.

• Elite Visual Tracking
• Elite Focus and Concentration
• Elite Multisensory Integration
• Elite eyes to brain to muscle coordination

Don’t panic, train your brain. #BrainSweat

This drill will sharpen your focus, movement preparation, agility, and speed on the field. True agility is decision-based movement, which is what this is all about.

Hear the audible cues:

Hear the signals, adjustments, play calls.

See the visual cues:

See the ball, opponent, boundaries, teammate.

Process what they mean:

Process, calculate, assess, and choose action.

Execute decisive action:

Execute precise actions that provide a vector to victory.

Train the executive functions of your brain to coordinate with your body.

3. Let’s Go

We recommend about 5-10 minutes per session, and 2-3 times a week to achieve full benefits of Hand-Eye Coordaining Training with HECOstix.

This drill can be done in almost any open space. And you can easily work it in during your normal workout routines.

We also recommend Hand-Eye Coordaining Training with HECOstix during pregame warm-ups. This helps get your mind and body ready and gives you the Cognitive Vision Training edge.

Perfect for athletes, physical therapy, fitness/health enthusiasts, or anyone training to think faster under pressure.