SKLZ announced a new training platform for athletes and coaches to engage both mind and body during training.
SKLZ Athletic Intelligence launched in partnership with the fully-integrated SwitchedOn training app, and offers products and programming to encompass what an athlete needs to train reaction time, hand-eye coordination, quick decision-making, and agility.
SKLZ first two Athletic Intelligence products are the Reactive Catch and Reactive Agility Ladder.
Cognitive training, or brain training, has become important in athletic training. Traditionally, cognitive training has been independent of physical, athletic training. Athletes train their mind and their body separately; however, in sport, your mind and body work in tandem with one another.
SKLZ Athletic Intelligence is designed to help athletes engage their mind and body during training to work together to perceive what’s happening around them, process the information and perform the task to be prepared for game-time situations.
SwitchedOn is a Perceptual-Cognitive-Motor (PCM) training app that provides randomized visual and/or audio cues to help athletes keep their minds SwitchedOn. Within the SwitchedOn app, the SKLZ-specific zone lets athletes choose the SKLZ Athletic Intelligence products they own and their preferred sport. SwitchedOn then provides the athlete with customizable reactive agility drills featuring SKLZ products. The app also has the capability for athletes to create their own random patterns by picking colors and cues that work with SKLZ Athletic Intelligence products for endless possibilities.
“The best athletes move through these motions faster and more accurately than their competition, leading them to excel both on and off the field. We have developed a way to help athletes tap into their highest potential by designing products and programs for the athlete to train these abilities,” explained Michael Cummings, director of education, Implus Fitness Brands. “The SKLZ Athletic Intelligence products paired with the SwitchedOn app create a training system that helps improve the brain function required in all sports.”
SKLZ Athletic Intelligence products have applications in any sport or physical activity and can be used in any sport or skill level as a pregame warmup or incorporated into everyday training to improve reaction time and rapid decision-making.
SKLZ Reactive Catch
The Reactive Catch helps improve reaction time and rapid decision-making by engaging the mind and body during training. By engaging them together, athletes can develop AI enhancing their ability to react to incoming stimuli, resulting in increased game-day performance. Exclusive online content designed by certified trainers is included so athletes can incorporate the drills into their training and challenge themselves in a new way. The Reactive Catch can be used to help athletes of any skill level increase their hand-eye coordination and better read and react in almost any sport. By combining color and audible cues during training, athletes are forced to think and react about the correct color to catch. Simply toss in the air and call out a color to catch to train quick thinking and reacting needed for in-game situations. Use this hand-eye coordination trainer for pregame warmups, game-like scenarios in solo or team training, practice drills or for fun in the backyard. The three-pointed design of the Reactive Catch features authentic rounded ends and center for easy catching and throwing. To see how to use the product, watch here.
SKLZ Reactive Agility Ladder
The Reactive Agility Ladder helps athletes improve acceleration, lateral speed, change of direction, and reaction time by engaging the brain and body during training. By simulating game day environments to better mimic sports and make agility training more complex, athletes are able to develop AI which helps improve their ability to react to incoming stimuli, resulting in increased game-day performance. Exclusive online content designed by certified trainers is included in the set so athletes can incorporate drills into their training and challenge themselves in a new way. The circular shape of the ladder helps train athletes’ footwork and agility patterns in all directions for almost any sport or skill level. The ladder includes eight cones in four colors to enhance random response time and memory sequencing patterns. By combining color and audible queues during training, athletes are forced to think and react quickly to the correct color rung and cone. Create speed gates or run through timing drills in endless training sequences with the ladder and cones combined. Use the agility trainer for pregame warmups, game-like scenarios in solo or team training and practice drills. Designed to work on any surface including grass, turf, court, track, and concrete, the ladder sets up and folds quickly with an included carry bag for portability. To see how to use the product, watch here.
SKLZ Reactive Agility Cones and Reactive Agility Markers will be added to the Athletic Intelligence collection this summer. All SKLZ Athletic Intelligence products include exclusive online programming and content designed by certified trainers.
The new training system launched February 17 at Dick’s Sporting Goods and online at sklz.implus.com. For more details on how the training system works, check out the SKLZ Athletic Intelligence YouTube playlist.
For more product information, go here.
