Aerobic Base drill
Eurofit 15:15 Intervals
Build aerobic power with short, fast repeats that feel manageable and accumulate brutally.
- Time
- 20 minutes
- Players
- 1 to 30 players
- Intensity
- High
- Equipment
- Cones
- Space
- Distance calculated from your MAS, roughly 60-80m
- Positions
- All positions
Setup
Two cones. Your distance is your MAS in m/s x 1.2 x 15. At 4.0 m/s that is 72m, which is close to touchline to touchline on most pitches.
How to run it
- Set a repeating 15-second timer.
- Run from the first cone to the second, arriving exactly as the 15 seconds is up rather than beating the clock.
- Rest where you land for 15 seconds, then run back to the first cone in 15 seconds, and keep alternating.
- Do 5 minutes per set for 1 to 2 sets, building towards 8-minute sets before you raise the speed.
- This feels deceptively easy for the first minute and brutal by minute four, so hold the pace early.
Coaching cues
- Arrive at 15 seconds, don't beat the clock
- Rest where you land - never walk back
- Build the set length before the speed
Common mistakes
- Running the first minute too fast because 120% of MAS feels easy at the start
- Rounding your distance to a neat number - a 5m error at 72m is a 7% intensity error
Related drills
- Tabata ShuttlePush aerobic power with a dense 2:1 work-to-rest format once you can handle the gentler MAS methods.
- Extensive Tempo RunsBuild work capacity and aid recovery between hard days without adding meaningful fatigue.
- Pitch-Length Long IntervalsDevelop aerobic power with longer efforts held at your maximal aerobic speed.
- Four by Four Aerobic IntervalsRaise VO2 max with four long, hard intervals and a steady jog between them.
- Pitch FartlekBuild an aerobic base with varied-pace running that needs no equipment and no measuring at all.
- Bronco TestTest rugby-specific fitness with the shuttle test widely used in rugby.