Side Hustle: How Megan Douty Trains for Lateral Movement

Megan Douty’s muscles have muscles. She’s jacked.

But all the brawn in the world would be useless without muscle memory.

A former Tewaaraton Award finalist and IWLCA Division I Defender of the Year at Maryland, Douty trains relentlessly. She’s an STX athlete, competes professionally for Athletes Unlimited (see page 24) and earned All-World honors while competing for the U.S. national team at the 2017 World Lacrosse Women’s World Championship.

Back in the mix for the 2022 U.S. team, Douty has been with the program since 2014. She’s also a USA Lacrosse Level 1-certified coach and co-founder of All Lax, a New Jersey-based company that offers a variety of lacrosse programming — including private training opportunities and select teams.

“I play defense a little bit different than some,” Douty said. “I really hone in on the fundamentals of positioning.”

In a virtual clinic presented to USA Lacrosse youth members, Douty demonstrated a couple of simple but highly effective drills that emphasize foot positioning and lateral movement.

“Creating that muscle memory is how you are going to be elite with your feet,” she said.

FOOT POSITIONING

Coaching youth players, Douty has noticed that many defenders tend to point their toes in the direction they’re running rather than at the attacker. This limits their ability to alter course quickly and leaves them susceptible to change-of-direction dodges.

“One thing I like to take hold of is pointing my toes always forward either at my attacker or on a line,” Douty said.

Feet always underneath hips
Low defensive stance
Weight on balls of feet
Toes pointed at attacker

BODY POSITIONING

Another tendency Douty noted: When defenders change directions, they slow their momentum by leaning in the first direction. “I call this a sway stop,” she said.

Instead, Douty explained, you should practice aligning your upper body in the opposite direction as you transfer your weight.

“I want to lean where I’m going,” she said. “Now I’m getting that momentum. I get all this power and all my weight is shifting to where I want to go simultaneously.”

As soon as you stop moving in one direction, your body should already be in position to go the other way. Form a 45-degree angle from your shoulder to your plant foot.

SHUFFLES

Set up two cones 6-8 yards apart.
Start in the middle.
Break down into a defensive stance, toes pointed forward.
Shuffle left and pause at the cone, holding briefly as you lean in the opposite direction.
Shuffle back to the middle, hold and reset.
Do three reps to the left cone and back, then three reps to the right cone and back.

DROP STEPS

Side running is another learned habit. It starts with an efficient drop step. Practice with this approach drill.

Set up two cones 6-8 yards apart on a 45-degree angle.
Approach the high cone.
Break down feet.
Drop-step with your inside foot on a 45-degree angle toward the low cone.
Drive your outside leg across your body at the same angle.
Run sideways to the low cone.
Break down and reset.
Do three reps in one direction, then change move the low cone to the other side and do three reps that way.

“I’m super controlled in my breakdown,” Douty said. “I drop-step on an angle, then I drive across. We want to be quick with our breaks and drop-steps to imitate a change of direction.”

STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING

While there’s plenty of conditioning built into shuffle and drop-step drills, Douty also recommends the following exercises for defenders.

Explosive Movements

Hang cleans
Squats
Box jumps
Lateral Movements
Lateral jumps
Change-of-direction sprints
Lateral burpees