What the Test Measures
The 5-10-5 shuttle — widely known as the Pro Agility Test — is a timed test of lateral speed, deceleration, and change-of-direction ability. It is a staple of the NFL Scouting Combine and has been adopted across professional football, rugby, and athletics programmes as a reliable and reproducible field test.
Three cones are placed in a straight line, 5 yards apart. The athlete starts at the centre cone, sprints 5 yards right, plants and sprints 10 yards left, plants again and sprints 5 yards back through the centre. The entire sequence — 20 yards — is recorded to the nearest hundredth of a second.
The test captures not just raw speed, but the quality of deceleration mechanics and the efficiency of directional change — which are what separate athletes in field sports from those who are merely fast in a straight line.
Standard Protocol
- Place three cones in a straight line, 5 yards (4.57m) apart
- Warm up thoroughly — minimum 15 minutes including lateral movement preparation
- Start at the centre cone in a two-point athletic stance — feet shoulder-width, slight forward lean, weight balanced
- On signal, sprint to the right cone and touch the ground level with the cone with the right hand
- Sprint 10 yards to the far left cone and touch the ground with the left hand
- Sprint 5 yards back through the centre cone to finish
- Rest 3 minutes minimum. Perform 2–3 trials. Record the best time.
A note on normative data
Published norms for this test vary by population, age, sex, sport, and training status. The most widely referenced data comes from the NFL Scouting Combine, where elite athletes typically record times of 3.9–4.3 seconds. These figures are not representative of the general population. Use your score as a personal baseline and track your own improvement over 6–8 week retest cycles. For referenced normative data relevant to UK populations, consult the BASES (British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences) testing guidelines at bases.org.uk.
Coaching Points
The biggest single determinant of a good score in the 5-10-5 is not top speed — it is the quality of the plant and change of direction. Athletes who over-run their cone, or who brake with a wide, upright stance, will lose more time in the turns than they can make up in the sprints.
As you approach each cone, lower your centre of gravity slightly in the final step. The outside foot plants hard — foot angled to redirect force — and the first step of the new direction should be an explosive push, not a stumble. Practise the turn in isolation before adding speed.
The hand touch at each cone is part of the protocol — it ensures you have genuinely reached the cone and not rounded it short. In competition or testing conditions, a missed touch means the trial is void. Practise touching precisely at ground level with the outside hand.
