How to Get Up Faster After a Save
Two ways up off the floor, and when to use each. The kick push for dives with no momentum, the spin for the full-stretch ones.
You make the save. You do not hold it. The ball is still live, and you are on the floor.
That second on the ground is where a lot of goals come from. Not because the first save was bad, but because you were still getting up when the follow-up arrived.
There are three ways up, and using the wrong one costs you time.
Goalkeepers get up three ways. The roll is for a ball that spills the same way you dived: push up off your hand and step onto your top foot. The kick push is for dives with little momentum: heel to your backside, then kick back onto one knee. The spin is for full-stretch dives, where you go with the momentum instead of fighting it.
What if the ball spills the same way you dived?
Use the roll. It is the quickest way up when the ball stays on your side.
- Push up off your hand, like a mini push-up
- Step onto your top foot
- Dive again, or get set if there is time
Dive to your left and your top foot is your right. That step is what gives you the lift. If the ball is still there, dive again from it. If you have a second, get set.
Drills for the roll
1. Ball to one side. Dive and push an imaginary ball away in the same direction, then come straight back up: hand, top foot, set.
2. Start sitting on your hip. Dive to one side, come only halfway up with your hand and top foot, and dive again from there. Four or five in a row, or until you are done.
What is the kick push?
This is the one you will use most. Simple, quick, and it works when the ball has gone the other way and you have no momentum to borrow.
Picture it. You have made a save, spilled it, and now you need to be back up immediately. You are flat on the ground with nothing carrying you.
The common mistake is throwing both legs up into the air. It feels like you are generating something. You are not. It slows you down.
- Pull your heel in towards your backside
- Kick that leg back to drive yourself up
- Land on one knee, other foot flat on the ground behind you
From there you are already halfway up.
Now you have a choice. If the ball is close and there is no time, dive from that knee. You can make saves from there and plenty of goalkeepers never realise it.
If you have a moment, push off the flat foot, stand, and get set.
Done properly it is dive, kick, up. It is quicker than it sounds.
Drills for the kick push
All of these work alone.
1. Lie on your side and practise kicking yourself into the kneeling position. One side until it is smooth, then the other.
2. Both sides fluently, diving side to side.
3. Full dive, then kick push all the way back to your set position. If the dive itself is the weak part, the kneeling push-out drills build it in the same order.
For the explosive part: sit back on both knees, use your arms for momentum, and spring up into your set position.
Want more? Go straight into a low dive as soon as you are standing.
If springing off both knees is too much right now, come up one foot at a time and build to it. Progress, not perfection.
When should I use the spin instead?
When you are fully stretched and your dive has already generated real momentum.
At full extension your legs naturally want to carry over your body. Most goalkeepers fight that and land flat. Do not fight it. Go with it and let it turn you back onto your feet.
Dive, roll, set. It is very quick, and it leaves you facing the right way for whatever comes next.
The important part is knowing when not to use it. If you have not generated momentum, spinning will actually slow you down. It is like trying to pull away in third gear.
| Situation | Technique |
|---|---|
| Ball spills the same way you dived | Roll |
| Short dive, little momentum | Kick push |
| Full-stretch dive, legs carrying over | Spin |
| Need to go back the other way | Spin |
The kick push is your default. The spin is the specialist.
Drills for the spin
Start on your knees. Knee diving drills are the best way to feel the transition from the dive to the spin without much impact. How you land decides how easily the spin follows.
Add a ball. Toss one up, spin, then dive for it and take it at its highest point.
Two balls, one either side. Save the first, spin, deal with the second. That is the actual game situation: save, rebound, react.
My first video on this, How to Get Up Faster Than 95% of Goalkeepers, goes deeper on the kick push and the spin. More diving drills, sorted by skill, are in the drills library.
Why does this come down to core strength?
Because the spin is a core movement. So is getting off the floor quickly with anything on you.
Do not skip your core work. It is the leg day of goalkeeping, and it is just as tempting to avoid.
The useful version for goalkeepers needs a ball and a wall. Throw, catch at the top of a sit-up, throw again. You are building the core and working your handling in the same ten minutes, which is a far better use of your time than sit-ups on their own. It is also the third stage of my match warm up.
What to work on this week
Learn the kick push properly before you touch the spin
- Lie on your side. Heel in, kick back, onto one knee. Twenty each side, no ball, no diving.
- Once it is automatic, add a dive in front of it.
- Then add the ball.
It looks like nothing and it is the difference between being up for the rebound and watching it go in from the floor.
Is the first save good enough to need a second?
Getting up fast only matters if the first save is good, and that comes from the work you put in on the days nobody is watching.
The Ultimate Self-Training Course gives you that work in order: 120+ drills with a weekly plan. $27 a month.
Have a look at the program 30-day money-back guarantee if it is not helping.
I have played more than 500 competitive games, represented my national team, and played in Champions League and Europa League qualifiers. I have coached more than 1,000 goalkeepers. The second save is the one that separates them.
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