Serving volleyball conditioning educational needs for more than 14 years
Explore Our Tradition of Developing the Better Volleyball Player
Special Offer
Order Individual Issues
$4.25 Postpaid
$3.00 Electronic
Click to View the entire Library
The ULTIMATE Volleyball CONDITIONING LIBRARY
Get all the back issue for one money saving price.
Newsletters V.1 #1 to V.14 #4 complete
More than 500 Articles authored by hundreds of leading volleyball conditioning experts.
Ordered individually you would pay $412.
Web Price: $299.00 plus $12.00 Shipping.
Save more than $100.00
Purchase orders welcomed.
To order, click here
Volume 1 – sample highlights (1994)
Lori Endicott, Setter, U.S. National Team Reveals (V.1 #1):
“Like most young players I first learned volleyball skills. I then developed a strength base. In later years I developed that base specifically for volleyball, adding qualities such as power development. I found that it was so much easier to learn and execute volleyball skills because I was physically strong and well-conditioned. By maintaining this conditioning base I have been injury free throughout my career.”
Doug Beal’s Review of Volleyball Research Reveals in V.1 #9:
Weight trained subjects (training age of over one year), improved countermovement jumping and static jump height to a greater degree doing high speed, light load (30% of one repetition maximum) squat jump training rather than more traditional methods.
Traditional methods are:
- Heavy squat training at 80-90% of maximum doing 4 to 8 repetitions.
- Plyometric depth jump exercises that use only body weight for resistance. This method of squat jumps also yielded better results in other dynamic athletic performance tests.
1995-Volume 2- Sample Highlights
Sean Madden’s Summer Pool Training to Improve Your Jumping Reveals in V.2#1:
Volleyball-specific jumps recreate any jumping motion used during the game on dry land. These should be individualized to the demands of the player’s position and may include preceding movements such as blocking footwork or the final step(s) of an approach. Remember that lateral movement is hard to replicate in the pool because buoyancy limits push-off ability and reduces traction. It generally is best to include only the final step of movement in the jump takeoff.
Cathy Noth’s The University of Nebraska Pre-season Program Reveals in V.2#2:
The evaluation period is crucial for early identification of what a player can and can not do for your program. In addition to the evaluations, the athletes will set measurable goals, have individual workouts (especially setters), repetitive floor movement and contacts with ball and without the ball, create competitive situations and continue to maintain cardiovascular and strength conditioning.
1996-Volume 3- Sample Highlights
Steve Odgers’s Using Sand Training to Improve Jumping-What You Need to Know Reveals in V.3#3:
Sand provides a forgiving environment for raising the jumping volume in a plyometric training program or initiating a program with beginning level athletes. Raising jumping volume improves jumping endurance and compliments jumping quality when fatigue becomes a factor. The jumping endurance should increase gradually through the pre-competitive season and then be reduced during the competitive season. Coaches and athletes should guard against too much training in the sand when combined with extensive tournament play. This may result in reduced explosive power and effect jumping performance and overall play.
Peter F. Vint’s Vertical Jumping Performance: One-foot vs. Two-foot Takeoff Techniques Reveals in V.3#5:
In a maximum vertical jump, the goal is simply jumping and reaching as high as possible. In volleyball, the height to which an athlete can jump and reach is often critically important. In the absence of air resistance and other external forces, the upward projection of the whole body center of mass (CM) is completely determined by the vertical velocity at the instant of takeoff and the acceleration due to gravity. However, this quantity does not completely describe the overall jump and reach height which is observed.
1997-Volume 4- Sample Highlights
Sean Madden’s Specific On-Court Movement Training for Volleyball Reveals (V.4#7):
Volleyball is unique among sports in that it requires an athlete to execute a wide range of complex dynamic movements, most of which are short range (seldom more than three or four steps) while maintaining maximum body control which allows execution of a ball contact skill at the end of the movement. The outcome of matches between equally talented teams often hinges on which team’s athletes work best individually and together in terms of their on-court movement. The question of training these complex movements is faced by coaches every day in training.
Gene “Topper” Hagerman’s A Simple Shoulder Program for Volleyball Injury Prevention Reveals in V.4#2: Stretching exercises are necessary to allow the shoulder to achieve its full range of motion. All stretching exercises should be performed slowly to maximize muscle and soft connected tissue involvement. When stretching, the goal is reaching your individual maximum range of motion. There is a reason for using multiple repetitions. The shoulder should be “warmed up” so it can stretch farther during the last few repetitions.
1998-Volume 5- Sample Highlights
Jonathan C. Reeser, M.D.’s Understanding Volleyball Injuries: Patterns Reveals in V.5#2:
According to data compiled on women’s intercollegiate volleyball by the NCAA Injury Surveillance System (ISS) between 1984-96, volleyball players demonstrate an injury rate of 4.8 injuries per 1000 athlete exposures (AE) - ranking it below football, wrestling, gymnastics, soccer and basketball. Volleyball practice and game injury rates were similar at 4.6 and 5.2 per 1000 AEs, respectively. The pre-season injury rate was greater than the regular or post season injury rate (6.9, 4.1 and 1.8/1000AEs, respectively). Finally, injury rates were greatest during the second half of practice and games 2 and 3 of matches.
Tom Justice’s 15 Factors to Individualized Jump Training Success Reveals (V.5#2):
Jump biomechanics. Different athletes employ different approaches on an attack jump, both in stride length and stride rate, and on both approach and block jumps utilize different postures at take off. It is the author’s belief that take-off posture is influenced by the relative strength of the knee and hip extensors, and that the relative strength of these extensors is in turn influenced by the take-off posture. If this is so, athletes with powerful thighs will bend the legs deeper while those with stronger hips will bend the legs less. By extension, those with weak thighs may bend over more at the waist, and those with strong thighs would be more erect at take-off.
1999-Volume 6- Sample Highlights
Darlene A. Kluka’s Improving Volleyball Decision Making Through Visual/Perceptual Skills Training Reveals in V.6#2:
There are also at least nine factors which contribute to the lack of performance success: (1) lack of understanding of the game; (2) lack of recognition (reading); (3) late reading; (4) poor performance attitude; (5) lack of inner focus for accuracy; (6) poor selection of inner options; (7) inappropriate technique; (8) conditionally inefficient movement; and (9) inadequate repetition for consistency of accuracy. When perusing the skill acquisition and performance factors listed above, it should be no surprise that visual/perceptual skills play a primary role in the quest for performance excellence.
John Hajewski’s Position Specific Training Outside Hitters-Improving Footwork Using the Speed Ladder Reveals in V.6#5:
The speed ladder will enhance the coordination, timing and quickness of a volleyball player’s footwork. The players work anywhere from seven to ten minutes on ladder training before each practice.
Carioca, heel over knee: Start with one foot in a separate hole. Moving to the right the athlete then will crossover the left foot in front of the right foot and into the next box, then bring the right foot into the next box. Now move the left foot behind the right foot and into the next box, then bring the right over to the next box, continue laterally down the ladder. Move as quickly as possible while keeping both feet in the ladder and staying under control. This is a slower more deliberate movement than the quick carioca. Work on increasing rotation and flexion in the hips.
2000-Volume 7- Sample Highlights
(Jenny) Lang Ping’s Conditioning Interview Reveals in V.7#1
“What the back squat does is really help you jump well. Also, for a volleyball player you have to spend a lot time working on defense. To do this you have to have strong legs. It really helps. You just have to know how much weight they can handle. This comes through experience; you have to listen to the athletes because everybody is different. Like with small players, tall, and big strong players, you have to make different plans.”
Penny Lucas White’s Favorite Exercise Reveals in V.7#2:
Rotator Cuff External Rotation
The Start: √ Sit on a bench with body straight. Grasp a dumbbell palms down.
√ Elevate the arm so it is parallel with the floor, elbow bent at 90°.
Movement: √ Exhale, rotating the hand upward in a controlled motion until hand is in line with the head.
√ Keep elbow and upper arm stationary.
√ Inhale, returning to starting position under control. Repeat with other hand.
Tips: √ Keep body straight, elbow bent at 90°.
2001-Volume 8- Sample Highlights
Christy Cochran’s Conditioning Interview Reveals in V.8#3:
“I have been through every imaginable type of training. I think it is important for volleyball players to continue strength training in-season. It has made a big difference for me when I do it. Training in-season should be about twice a week in the gym, working on a major muscle group to stay at their peak. Studies show that with time off, even 10-14 days of not touching weights, athletes can lose significant strength. I learned that the hard way, and I speak from experience. In the off-season, it’s important to train at high intensity. You have to shock and stimulate the muscle with heavier weights. A lot of women are afraid to lift heavy weights because they are scared of looking too buff, but that is a misconception.”
Jim Coleman’s Secret to Reaching New Heights in Blocking- The Shoulder Elevation Strengthening/Stretching Routine Reveals in V.8#4:
The typical player who is in a blocking position does not have his/her scapula (shoulder blades) in an elevated position. If a player raises his/her arms and shrugs his/her shoulders, the player may achieve an increase in reach height of one to four inches. Since Dr. Robert Gajda pointed this fact out to me, all of the strength programs which I have designed have included “elevation training”.
2002-Volume 9- Sample Highlights
Lisa Herb’s Use of Sports-specific Exercises Using Weighted Gloves and Other Tools to Improve Hitting Velocity in an Injury-Free Environment Reveals in V.9#1:
“We went from mock swings to doing swings while hitting a tossed volleyball from a standing position on a box. They would swing through with the gloves on both hands. We did this for the first four weeks. The second four weeks we added some swings from a regular approach first with out a ball and then they actually hit. Finally we had them hit 10 swings with the glove on, immediately remove them and then do 10 swings without the gloves on. This is a contrast type of training where you stimulate the muscle by loading it (with the gloves) and then immediately follow up with a non-loaded
activity.”
Carl McGown’s Conditioning Secrets to Success: BYU’s Unique Approach to National Championship Status Reveals in V.9#3:
These are the categories that we believe were important in grading our players on overall performance. Each variable is weighted differently, some more important than others. We decided what weight to give each variable and assigned it a number. The number is then multiplied by the score they received for the variable giving them a total score for each variable.
• Scholastic Grade Average- We took their semester grade from the year before. Weighted value x 1.
• Conditioning Tests- We measured the result of their test prior to the start of the fall season. Weighted value x 2.
• Small Group Activities- We do a lot of doubles, triples and four on four play and measure these exercises and drills. Weighted value x 4.
• 6 v 6- We measures scrimmages and other full court play. Weighted value x 6.
• Game Play- We measured how well they played in games. Weighted value x 6.
2003-Volume 10- Sample Highlights
Jenny Manz’s Physical and Mental Challenges of Going Pro Reveals in V.10#1:
“When I first started playing with the USPV, I was under Coach Ari Sellinger. Almost every volleyball player knows of him. At first I was in shock and then it came into the mental and physical exhaustion. My body had no idea how to handle the kind of training we did. We would go from 8:00 or 8:30 in the morning until 1:00 p.m. (He actually had a different schedule, and this is a perfect example of the different principles and techniques of training that each coach that I had uses). Then we’d go lift some weights, and we’d be done around 3:00 p.m. So in reality we’d be working straight from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. We’d not only be practicing volleyball skills, but also things such as footwork and speed. That for me was a shock to the body and the mind. I was used to eating every two and a half to three hours with having a small meal, so I had to change everything, my mental perspective, the way I ate, the times I’d eat, and what I was eating.”
Benishe Roberts’s Getting to the Next Level- What Top Volleyball Players Say Reveals in V.10#2:
“To get to the next level (from high school to college) it is essential that a volleyball player participate in club ball. When it comes to weight training before you start to do anything you must seek out someone who knows the correct weight training techniques. The idea is to prevent injury, not to become a weight room injury cause by bad technique. If you want to do weights, barbells and dumbbells forget going out on your own. It’s important that the person who teaches is qualified to teach. Ask questions and talk to others who you trust that they have trained. Also remember that just because they know how to teach weight training doesn’t necessarily qualify them to be a volleyball strength coach. If you do have to go it on your own, try and avoid heavy weights. You can do a lot with body weight and simple conditioning tools. Also when you train be sure to follow all the safety rules and take the necessary breaks.”
2004-Volume 11- Sample Highlights
Jeff Nygaard’s A Case Study Combining Olympic Style Lifts and Jump Training to Improve Volleyball Performance Reveals in V.11#1:
This method of training offered some unique challenges. Competitive Olympic lifters generally tend to have short lever arms. As we know, the opposite is true in volleyball where lever arms are long. This difference required greater emphasis on learning proper technique. It took us awhile to get used to the movements. We had access to video cameras that filmed our techniques. The staff broke down our technique into stick figures that showed the trajectory of the bar in relation to joint angles of the body. This helped us to gain insight into technical flaws and ways of correcting them. The immediate feedback was a great way to assist us into getting to the point where we could “feel” proper technique of the lifts.
Kathy DeBoer’s Approaches To Training and Conditioning Considerations Based on Gender Differences Reveals in V.11#3:
“Girls need to feel as though they have been accepted before they will agree to struggle. A female group into a weight room or gym must have some time to reconnect with why they are there, that they are all in this together, glad to be there as part of a group, and then they will go forward and struggle. If it is just people coming in, doing your stuff, getting out, and seeing the chart later, a lot of times, the girls will not be as motivated to do it.”
2005-Volume 12- Sample Highlights
Elaine Roque’s Quick Test to Determine Abdominal Strength in Relation to Leg Strength and Length in Volleyball Players Reveals in V.12#3:
When people are skeptical about core training, I recommend this procedure to test how strong their athletes’ abs are relative to the length of their legs. I have volleyball athletes lie on the floor, legs straight up in the air, in an “L” position. I have them contract their abdominal muscles; push their belly button to their spine and their spine to the floor, which eliminates the lumbar curve. (I do NOT let them put their hands under their buttocks unless they can’t push their lower backs to the floor). I have them hold that down until an ant can’t even walk under their backs. The athletes then lower their legs slightly, to the point where they begin to feel their low back might come off the floor.
Julie Kaiser’s Making Athlete Conditioning Volleyball Specific, VCAP Volleyball Conditioning Scenario #6 Reveals in V.12#5:
Athletes transitioning from middle (or junior high) school to high school are perfect candidates for preseason conditioning. With minimal conditioning training under their belt, these athletes are usually eager to learn and motivated by the challenge to participate in high school athletics. However, without a history of sports conditioning experience, athletes must learn from the ground up. For example the foot patterns used in the ladder exercises will come easy to some, and far more challenging to others. Jumping rope is becoming a lost art in the field of physical education. Therefore, many beginners will spend much of their time working on consecutive jumps without stopping. For any conditioning program the learning curve will be different for each athlete before effective conditioning progress can take place.
2006-Volume 13- Sample Highlights
Daryl Kapis’s Age Level Considerations When Adding Variety to a Conditioning Program to Avoid Overtraining Reveals in V.13#2:
An important relationship of strength training and jump training needs to be noted at this time. We carefully monitor how much leg strength training we do and how much jump training we do. With the younger athletes, we limit the amount of plyometrics we do. If I do more strength training in a day, then we do much less jump training that day, maybe only spend 5 minutes on it. Other days we do less strength training and increase the volume of jump training. Whenever we do jump training, we don’t want the athletes to be fatigued and end up getting hurt.
John Cook and Laura Pilakowski’s Core/Stability Training for the Collegiate Volleyball Reveals in V.13#4:
Volleyball is a sport that requires strength and stability to generate a strong platform (core) that creates power to perform at a high level. Posture is important to avoid injury by developing a healthy lifestyle of good body position not only in performing volleyball skills, but also in day-to-day activities. Start with body weight exercises in order to strengthen the muscles and tendons before you add any weights.
2007/08-Volume 14- Sample Highlights
Lisa Bartels’s Rib Cage Influences on Volleyball Blocking Mechanics Reveals in V.14#1:
Footwork, quickness, vertical jump and the ability to read the opponents offense are all important aspects that contribute to an effective block in volleyball. Just as important, is the ability to position the arms and hands in a way that effectively seals the net and channels the opponents attack. How the arms and hands are positioned is directly dependent on rib cage mechanics. Mechanically speaking, the optimal volleyball blocking strategy would simultaneously incorporate flexion of the thoracic spine, internal rotation of the ribs, and protraction of the shoulder blades. Many competitive athletes cannot coordinate these mechanical components because their rib cage is simply not in a position that allows them to.
Gary C. Hamill’s Practical Applications of Heart Rate Studies and the Re-Orienting Response to Improve Volleyball Serving Performance Reveals in V.14#2:
You’ve probably heard the expression “in the zone”. I believe this refers to a psychophysiological state where there is a balance among our ability to pay attention to the things that count, integrate that information, and be appropriately pumped-up to perform well. Furthermore, you’ve likely heard the phrase “They need to settle down”. I think what that really means is there is a need to get oriented to the task and become more fluid, i.e. to use some skills to develop a positive adaptive spiral to find the “zone”, be it serving or returning serves. If they don’t find the zone, things can go from bad to worse – they become less fluid and more tentative causing frustration and self doubt to build. Consequently, this can become the focus of their attention culminating in a negative adaptive spiral and additional performance decrement. More importantly, this can carry over to their next game and unless successfully resolved, can contribute to the “slump” phenomenon.
Performance Conditioning Volleyball Back Issue Library by Topics