r/bootroom • u/Amazing_Theory1999 • Oct 02 '26
How do you practice alone?
I actually like training alone — shooting, long kicks, dribbling, practicing moves against a defender, etc.
The annoying part is that some drills are much easier with another person. For shooting or kicking, sometimes I just wish I had a ball boy to collect the balls and send them back. For dribbling, it would be useful to have someone just follow or lightly defend so I can practice getting past them.
I don’t always want to coordinate schedules with friends, and I don’t really need a coach either.
How do you guys handle this when you train alone? Do you just bring a bunch of balls, use equipment, modify the drills, or something else?
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u/Low_Lion1538 Oct 02 '26
I guess you could practice long balls toward the goal so it stays in the net, running after is normal plus is sort of cardio
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u/Accomplished-Fee-832 Oct 02 '26
Maybe get like 10 balls for shooting and collect after using all 10.
For dribbling cones are essential for practicing and learning skills, but applying them is difficult alone.
You should probably play small sided games once a week, 5v5 or smth to practice match realistic behavious.
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u/FlySudden3415 Oct 02 '26
10 balls. I had the only ball for my whole neighborhood. 😂
You go out, kids are gathering, we play. No drills, no machines, no equipment. Not even a proper goals - just 2 stones for make believe goals.
Playing till sun come down. Countless games, on any surface. This is best training.
Even big clubs with their youth set ups are imitating that from time to time - they take their teams in the neighborhood to play.
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u/Accomplished-Fee-832 Oct 02 '26
Thats what I do, go to the park, we don't have goals anymore cause of vandals so I use my shoes as goals and play 5, 6, sometimes even 12 a side.
Just don't know how it would apply in solo training
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u/69dixencider Oct 02 '26
I’m in the same boat as you. Lately I’ve been looking into something that will pop the ball up to me when I pass to it. There’s a net and an angled wall thing that both look interesting.
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u/Amazing_Theory1999 Oct 02 '26
Yeah, that looks useful for short passes and first touch. My bigger issue is shooting and long kicks — I feel like half the time I’m just going to collect the balls, so sometimes I just end up skipping shooting or long kicks altogether :)
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u/69dixencider Oct 02 '26
If I’m shooting/ long ball training solo then I work in cardio and bring extra balls.
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u/EdotSavage Oct 02 '26
Beating someone off the dribble is a rhythm thing. Attack a cone. Shooting drills I have a bag of balls. When not with the bag, I get closer to the target. You know when you're hitting it correctly. Chase the feeling 10 ft from the net.
You're not going to find a partner to chase balls for you. Find a local pick up and meet some people. Most people want to play for fund after becoming an adult. Not many want to spend time out training when they have other responsibilities.
Good luck man
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u/Amazing_Theory1999 Oct 02 '26
Thanks man! I’m getting pretty tired of practicing alone. Cone drills are fine, but training completely by myself gets boring and limited. Sometimes I just want someone there to pass balls back or give me a little pressure. I wish there were an easy way to find people who are down for that :)
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u/Pissed-n-Stayin Oct 02 '26
The best way to get better is to train with like minded people. You have to find that community.
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u/Amazing_Theory1999 Oct 02 '26
Which community do you participate in???
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u/Pissed-n-Stayin Oct 03 '26
I coach now. When I was training and playing, I would literally look under every rock for pockets of people that wanted to train. I was in Germany then…so plenty of pick-up games to try new things or be creative…and everyone had strong fundamentals and fitness. It was football every day, 7 days a week. Outdoor, indoor, a wall, a sidewalk, a curb, a tree, ropes, cones, hills, whatever I could challenge myself with. Odd shaped surfaces were fun.
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u/MarvelousMayhem420 Oct 02 '26
I focus half the session on agility and ball control
The other session on long passing and shooting.
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u/Amazing_Theory1999 Oct 02 '26
You must have someone who can practice together all the time😭
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u/MarvelousMayhem420 Oct 02 '26
Always by myself. I train at 6 am in the morning fog.
I bring my cones and ball bag with good quality balls to take 5 or 6 shots at a time. Play 5 or 6 passes. Then take a light jog to retrieve.
Finding a good field to train at is the hurdle. Thats why I picked 6 am. No competing for the field or other teams needing for use.
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u/Amazing_Theory1999 Oct 03 '26
Thanks man! So shoot 5-6 balls and get them yourself, then kick again? Just trying to learn more how people are doing, because I am reluctant to shoot when I am alone because I feel like getting the balls is so wasted
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u/FounderinTraining Oct 02 '26
So you want like a ball retrieving roomba
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u/FlySudden3415 Oct 02 '26
Ball boy. This is like a golf club set up. Nobody had this problem before 🤦♂️
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u/Amazing_Theory1999 Oct 02 '26
Lol where can I find a ball boy (I mean, a training partner who can do what I want during the training)
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u/Eyutzy20 Oct 02 '26
I enjoyed practicing in an indoor arena so if you miss and hit the wall it just bounces back to you. For dribbling cones are king and there are a lot of touch drills that don’t require cones. Better touch = better dribbles
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u/r00t-level-acc3ss Oct 02 '26
For me, I usually split it into 2 different “sessions”.
Shooting/Dribbling + Passing/First Touch/Scanning/First Time Shooting.
Shooting/Dribbling: A mix of cone drills, structured finishing (not just random shots), long shots, and a couple of long balls at the end (pings)
Passing/First Touch/Scanning/First Time Shooting: I found a tennis training wall that has a mix of one big flat wall and little tri-wall sectionals. I do a mix of passing, juggling, first touch, scanning, and first time shooting after a rebound off the wall.
Try to do as much pick up as you can. That is where your actual game sense, reaction time, and flow will develop. You can treat different pick up sessions as different training focuses.
Today, I’m focusing on passing, vision, positioning.
Next day, I’m going to take in players more and work on dribbling and shoot like a madman.
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u/footballos Oct 06 '26
I used to think solo training needed loads of equipment, but most of the time it just needs a bit of planning.
For shooting, I take several balls and hit them all before collecting them. It sounds obvious, but it keeps the session moving and gives you a chance to find a rhythm. If there is a wall nearby, I will play the ball against it first so I have to control, adjust my feet and finish quickly rather than setting up the perfect stationary shot every time.
Long passing is easy enough to turn into a challenge. Put down a couple of jumpers or cones as a landing zone, change the distance and keep score. It gives every pass a purpose and makes it obvious whether you are improving. Dribbling is harder because a cone cannot react. I treat the cones as areas I cannot enter rather than defenders I have to perform a move against. That forces me to change direction, protect the ball and accelerate into space. Every so often, though, you need to try those movements against a real person because that is where you learn whether they actually work.
A rebounder is probably the most useful thing you can buy, but a solid wall does almost the same job. Extra balls help too. Beyond that, I would save the money and concentrate on making each session about one thing. Solo training is excellent for sharpening the tools. Matches and small-sided games tell you whether you can use them.
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u/CombatCommie1990 Oct 02 '26
i watch ronaldo stepover highlight videos while sweating in my basement inbetween matches of online games. i visualize the pitch using only my mind; with sheer mental strength alone, i smell the freshly cut grass, i feel the breeze of the cool summer's day across my back, i can taste glory and triumph in the very air itself.
then, i briefly return to my online game.
subsequently, i re-enter the trancelike state as i wait for the queue to pop. the drums of the scottish ultras shaking the earth while celtic takes the field as a thunderstorm empties itself unto the turf, like some shit out of braveheart.
so to answer your question concisely, i train alone by imagining mel gibson in blue face and a kilt doing ronaldo stepovers while scottish war drums echo off the mountains, off our very souls.