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Test protocol · 180° change of direction

5-0-5 Change of Directionsprint 5 m · turn 180° · sprint back 5 m

1Record2Upload3See the results
Why it matters: the 5-0-5 is one of the most widely used 180° turning tests (Draper & Lancaster, 1985). The shorter, modified version is well suited to court and racquet athletes who reverse direction in small spaces.VueMotion shows how the athlete braked, planted and re-accelerated on each side.

The athlete starts still, sprints 5 m, plants at the turn line, turns 180° and sprints back through the start line. One iPhone filmed side-on records a left-plant and a right-plant turn.

5 m
lane, 2.5 m + 2.5 m
2
turns: left and right plant
1
iPhone, side-on
PhaseSet
Time–
Speed–
Why it matters

Stop and turn in a small space. VueMotion shows how.

Every turn gives you three layers.

TME
Times

Total 5-0-5, 2.5-0-2.5 and splits, entry and exit speed.

BRK
Braking

Peak approach velocity, time and distance to stop, early and late deceleration, penultimate-foot braking.

TRN
Turn

Plant contact time, braking steps, trunk angle, hip-height change and the turn kinograms.

01

Performance monitoring

Is turning getting faster?

  • Times Total and splits per side.
  • Braking Time to stop and deceleration.
  • Both sides Left vs right plant.
02

Performance improvement

Is time lost braking, turning or exiting?

  • Splits 2.5-0 vs 0-2.5.
  • Penultimate step Braking before the plant (Dos'Santos et al., 2019).
  • Plant Contact time and trunk angle.
03

Injury risk management

Who turns in a way that loads the knee?

  • Plant mechanics Braking on the plant step only concentrates load.
  • Asymmetry Left vs right differences (Dos'Santos et al., 2019).
  • Deceleration Weak braking from speed.
04

Return to play / rehab

Can the athlete turn on both legs again?

  • Progression After straight-line speed and deceleration return.
  • Baseline Compare with pre-injury turns.
  • Quality Check braking strategy as well as time.
05

Benchmarking

How does the athlete compare?

  • Norms 5-0-5 times by sport.
  • COD deficit Compare with straight sprint time (Nimphius et al., 2016).
  • Squad Both sides.
06

Scouting / screening

Who changes direction well?

  • Objective Video timing.
  • Short space Court and racquet sports.
  • Both sides Spot one-sided turners.

These metrics describe movement patterns linked to performance and injury risk in research. They support coaching and clinical judgement; they do not diagnose or predict an individual injury.

01 · Setup

5 m lane and camera

Use VueMotion's 5-cone setup over a 5 m lane, 1.22 m wide, with the middle cone at 2.5 m. The athlete starts behind the start line, turns at the far line and returns through the start line.

PhaseSet
Time–
Speed–
ConesCamera view
C1

Sagittal camera

On a tripod, perpendicular to the lane at the middle cone, about 10 m back, landscape, 1× lens, lens 1.5 m high. A side view is needed to see penultimate-foot braking.

C2

Second camera (optional)

A 45° oblique view can be added for the turn; it doesn't replace the side view for braking.

↺

Left and right plant

Left plant: run left to right and turn back towards the camera on the left foot. Right plant: run right to left on the right foot. Record both.

4K at 60 fps (120 fps preferred), Auto-FPS off; indoors use S = 1/500. iPhone 11 or newer. The clock starts when the back foot leaves the ground.

02 · Capture

Record both turns in about five minutes

1

Equipment

1 iPhone, tripod, five 9-inch cones and a measuring tape.

2

Lane

5-cone setup over 5 m, 1.22 m wide, middle cone at 2.5 m.

3

Camera

Side-on at the middle cone, about 10 m back, 1.5 m high.

4

Tag + record

Choose VM-COD-5-0-5-m-LeftPlant or -RightPlant and the athlete, then record both.

5

Upload

Upload the original files and submit the AI request.

Athlete

  • Warm up with build-up runs and practice turns
  • Front foot just behind the start line, back foot in view
  • Brake from the middle cone and turn on the turn line, back towards the camera
  • Sprint back through the start line

Camera settings

  • 4K at 60 fps (120 fps preferred)
  • Auto-FPS off; S = 1/500 indoors
  • Landscape, 1× lens, 1.5 m high
  • Do Not Disturb on, Auto-Lock never

Scene & upload tips

  • Bright, even light
  • Only the athlete in the capture zone
  • Clothing that contrasts with the background
  • Upload original files from the app
03 · Outputs

What you get after upload

Times

Total 5-0-5, 2.5-0-2.5, 5-2.5, 2.5-0 and 0-2.5.

Deceleration

Peak approach velocity, time and distance to stop, average, early and late deceleration.

Turn

Plant contact time, braking steps, trunk angle and hip-height change.

Kinograms

Anti-penultimate to step-1 positions for each plant leg.

Graphs & AR video

Hip displacement, contact time, step frequency, speed and acceleration.

CSV / API

CSV/Excel for Enterprise and Academy; API for Enterprise.

Linking the turn to performance and injury

MetricLink to performance or injuryEvidence

Performance linked to performance   Prospective linked to future injury in a cohort study   Mechanistic linked to tissue loading in lab studies   Practice coaching rationale

Metric definitions

Times
Total 5-0-5 (s)
Start → turn → back through the start line.
Time 2.5-0-2.5 (s)
Middle cone → turn → middle cone.
Splits 5-2.5, 2.5-0, 0-2.5 (s)
Approach halves and exit.
Braking & turn
Peak approach velocity (m/s)
Highest speed before braking.
Time / distance to stop
Peak speed → stop.
Early / late deceleration (m/s²)
Braking in the early and late parts of the stop.
Plant contact time (s)
Ground contact of the turning step.
04 · Practitioner value

Turning in tight spaces

Court-ready

Mirrors reversals in court and racquet sports.

Both sides

Left and right plant in one session.

Braking detail

Penultimate-foot braking from the side view.

Fits the battery

Shorter version of the 10-0-5.

05 · Support

FAQs

Why not film at 45°?

A 45° view can help see the turn, but penultimate-foot braking needs a side (sagittal) view. Use the side camera as the main view.

How is it different from the 10-0-5?

The approach is 5 m instead of 10 m, so entry speed is lower.

Are CSV exports and APIs available?

CSV/Excel export for Enterprise and Academy users, and API access for Enterprise users.

  1. Draper JA, Lancaster MG. The 505 test: a test for agility in the horizontal plane. Australian Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport. 1985;17(1):15–18.
  2. Nimphius S, Callaghan SJ, Spiteri T, Lockie RG. Change of direction deficit: a more isolated measure of change of direction performance than total 505 time. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 2016;30(11):3024–3032.
  3. Dos'Santos T, Thomas C, Comfort P, Jones PA. Role of the penultimate foot contact during change of direction: implications on performance and risk of injury. Strength and Conditioning Journal. 2019;41(1):87–104.
  4. Dos'Santos T, Thomas C, Jones PA, Comfort P. Assessing asymmetries in change of direction speed performance: application of change of direction deficit. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 2019;33(11):2953–2961.