Archive for April 2010
How to Spike a Volleyball and More!
April 30, 2010 by jameslucas.
By Andor Gyulai
Whether you are an indoor volleyball player or beach volleyball player, you got to perfect your Volleyball spiking technique. If you are a player you know how important it is to learn how to spike a volleyball correctly. Only if you have tried playing or hitting the volleyball, you will come to know the difficulty and the effort you need to put in. It is important to consistently perform a task till the end of a match. So you got to master the volleyball spiking technique first.
A volleyball should be between 9 and 10 ounces and the ball pressure should generally be between 4.3 to 4.6 pounds. The technique that should be used to play indoor and beach volleyball differs.
Beach Volleyball hitting technique:
While spiking a volleyball in a beach court, your jump plays an important role. You need to perfect the art of jumping and hitting the ball over the net. Jumping on a beach is lot more difficult than on a hard surface. On sand you don’t have the grip to pump yourself up which you easily get in a hard court. So the first thing you need to get used to is to your beach court; and one thing that you need to practice is planting your feet hard before you jump. By doing so you won’t sink much when you try to jump.
Since you are interested in volleyball, this theory knowledge would not help you to understand the game or the effort that you need to put for playing an actual volleyball game. Hence it is necessary to take a volleyball coaching. And apart from that you can also watch volleyball videos to understand more about this game. There are many videos uploaded on the internet by the volleyball professionals; you can watch them and try it when you are on the field. You can find videos about the different techniques like Indoor Volleyball Hitting Technique, and different volleyball tips.
Now you know spiking is an important feature in a volleyball game. Now let’s look at the other basic factors that you need to master. That is your hand positions - one is the wrapped fist hand position and the other is the cupped palm position. Both the hand positions have to be followed strictly to get the maximum effect while hitting a ball. While serving a volleyball, you can either try the overhand or the underhand method to hit the ball. When passing a ball to your partner you need to use your forearm to make the passing as smooth as possible. Another valuable volleyball tip is that you also need to make sure that when your opponent hits the ball or to finish a point, you either need to block it or try to pass it to your partner. It is better to block a ball while the intention of your opponent is to finish a point. To block, you need to stay close to the net and leap up when the ball crosses the net.
Now you got a fair idea about how to play and the different techniques used while playing volleyball. Perfect these techniques and be a volleyball professional.
Andor Gyulai is the author of this article on How to spike a volleyball. Find more information about Volleyball Spiking Technique here.
Article Source: Andor Gyulai
How to Spike a Volleyball and More!
Beach Volleyball: A How to Guide
April 28, 2010 by jameslucas.
Beach Volleyball - A How To Guide
By Geoff James
Beach Volleyball is a spin-off of the sport played on sand. It was invented in sunny Southern California, and has ridden a wave of popularity all the way to the Olympics. The rules of play are similar to on-court volleyball, but teams are much smaller, ranging from 2-6 players per side. Most commonly and in professional competition, teams are of 2 players.
Other than the obvious changes in terrain and team size, the other rules are generally the same. A team has three touches to get the ball over the net, and grounding the ball on the opponent’s side of the court scores points.
A Beach Volleyball court is 8 by 16 meters, compared to the standard 9 x 18 measurement of an indoor court. The regulation ball is softer and larger than an indoor court ball. The team to get the best out of 3 games wins the match. Indoor games are played to 25 points, but beach games are played to 21. The final major difference is the allowance of balls passing under the net, so long as it does not interfere with the opponent’s ability to keep the ball in play.
Block signals are heavily relied on in beach volleyball. These universal signals are made behind a player’s back so opponents cannot see. Due to the uniform (bikinis for women and a tank top and shorts for men), many more conservative communities are opposed to the sport. Many Muslim communities choose not to participate in the games.
Whether you are on a competitive or recreational team, giving the champions volleyball trophies is an affordable yet classy congratulations!
Article Source: Geoff James
Beach Volleyball: A How to Guide
Volleyball Screening Rule: Fine Line Between Legal and Illegal
April 26, 2010 by jameslucas.
By Andrea Fryrear
The legality of blockers being in the line of sight of a passer really comes down to whether or not they moved to get in your way. Most teams try very hard to make sure that there is at least one person between the opposing passer and their server to give themselves a better chance at throwing off their opponent’s offense, and that’s acceptable.
This situation becomes a problem when the serving team watches you and actively moves around to get in your way.
So a team can have their front row players (and back row, for that matter) set up in whatever way seems best to them as long as they’re in the right order/rotation. But if these players move around for the purpose of blocking the view of the passers then they’ve committed a fault ad you should get the ball.
If you’re having a problem with the other team screening but the referee doesn’t seem to be noticing, try to exaggerate the problem by moving your head dramatically from side to side as you attempt to see around the other team’s blockers. Hopefully the ref will notice this and take note of whether the other team is actively blocking your site of the server. If s/he doesn’t notice and you’re in real difficulty ask your caption to speak to the ref.
This can’t be called on a server, however, and they can move around wherever they want to make your passing life more difficult. Many servers like to position themselves behind as many of their teammates as possible for this precise reason, and that’s legal.
Good luck with your serve receive efforts. For an illustration of referee calls for screening, visit volleyball-life.com.
Andrea Fryrear is the Managing Editor of Volleyball-Life.com and a 17-year volleyball veteran. She’s played high school, Junior Olympic, NCAA and international volleyball and loves to share her knowledge and experience with other players.
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Article Source: Andrea Fryrear
Volleyball Screening Rule: Fine Line Between Legal and Illegal
During Drills, Step Outside and Observe
April 23, 2010 by jameslucas.
By James P Frey
Too often at practice, a coach falls into a trap of actively participating in drills and scrimmages. When you are coaching a team, whatever the sport is, there is often an almost uncontrollable urge to step onto the playing field or court and actively participate in the drills and scrimmages. As a former player, the coach wants to demonstrate his or her skills or perhaps show the “young guns” just how to play the game properly. This can be fun and entertaining once in awhile and the players will get a kick out of seeing their coach in action. In terms of being able to assess the success of the drill or evaluate how the players are executing their offensive and defensive strategies, being in the middle of the action may prevent you, the coach, from observing the players. Engaging in the drill or scrimmage makes you focus on what you should be doing, and you are probably trying to concentrate on your own execution, not that of your players. You are in the middle of the action, and it’s almost impossible to play and watch everyone on the team simultaneously.
The purpose of running the drill or scrimmage is to allow the players to experience and learn. This work is to prepare them for competition. It is also a method for you to coach. By being outside the scrimmage, you can observe the entire team. You can watch for the critical movements or player positioning. You can really focus in and concentrate on observing what is happening, instead of worrying about how you look on the court. Observing, allows you to hone in on one specific player or step back to watch the entire team move as a unit. You can walk around the field or court and get several different perspectives of what the team is doing. A secondary benefit, especially for those of us that are “youthfully challenged”, is that getting out of bed the next morning is so much easier!
If you are short handed and need someone to fill in, then have an assistant coach or a parent participate. Try not to be the one that fills in. Your job is preparing the players to execute to the best of their abilities, and observing how they play helps you accomplish that.
Jim has been actively coaching youth sports, both boys and girls, for over 15 years. He has coached baseball, basketball, soccer, and volleyball. His current passion is volleyball. He coaches a middle school team as well as a club team. Jim has a wonderful wife, Debbie, and four teenage children.
Article Source: James P. Frey
During Drills, Step Outside and Observe
When Receiving the Volleyball Serve, More is Not Merrier
April 16, 2010 by jameslucas.
By Andrea Fryrear
Having more hockey players on the ice, more soccer players on the field or more basketball players on the court would give your team a distinct advantage. But in volleyball the court is small enough that more players trying to pass the ball can often be a disadvantage. In this case, more is not merrier. More passers means more seams, more opportunities for miscommunication and more serve receive errors.
Rather than smoosh everyone on your team into a serve receive formation, try to keep the number of passing down to three. If that seems like way too few give four passers a try, but your goal should be using only three passers.
In a four-person serve receive there are at least three seams, and there may be more if any of the front row players start creeping back and trying to pass. “Seams” are the lines between passers where either person could possibly be responsible for playing the ball. When a serve is heading for a seam both players have to communicate about which one of them will pass the ball. More seams create more demands on team communication.
One of the worst parts of this type of serve receive is the huge hole in the very middle of the court. Any of the four players in serve receive could potentially pass a serve heading for that spot. It’s an obvious target for a good server, and many players enjoy serving into that type of communication hot spot. With four passers in play there will also be at least one front row player passing, which creates another good target for your opponent’s serve. A smart server can aim for the front row hitter in the hopes of taking him or her out of the offense with a difficult serve.
In three-person serve receive we have only two major seams, which may cut down on potential communication problems. Keep in mind that this type of passing makes more demands on the abilities of all three receivers, because each person is responsible for any serve within their 1/3 of the court. This means if the ball is served short the passer must move forward to pass it; or if the serve lands near the end line the passer needs to move backwards into position (or receive it with an overhand pass).
If your passers are having trouble handling a full third of the court you can try using the two outside passers to take short serves while the middle passer takes anything deep. This increases the need for communicating because it can be unclear what constitutes a “short” serve and passers need to call the ball early. Go with whatever your team is comfortable with, and don’t be afraid to experiment.
It can be difficult to transition to having fewer players involved in serve receive, but you’ll reap rewards when it comes to your passing accuracy and communication. And remember, no matter what formation you use you need to call the ball early and often!
For more details about passing, including drills, diagrams and photographs of proper form, check out the Volleyball-Life Passing Ebook.
For more details about volleyball skills, along with news and product reviews, visit Volleyball-Life.com.
Andrea Fryrear
Managing Editor, Volleyball-Life.com
Article Source: Andrea Fryrear
When Receiving the Volleyball Serve, More is Not Merrier
Top Performing Exercises for Volleyball!
April 14, 2010 by jameslucas.
By Brandon Richey
So what is the most effective exercise for volleyball? Well the truth is that there are many highly effective exercises for volleyball, but if I had to talk about one in a 300 to 400 word article then I would tell you about the kettlebell swing! That’s right, I said kettlebell swing.
Kettlebell Swings: A Superior Volleyball Exercise!
You see the kettlebell swing is the base strength endurance lift that you can perform with the kettlebell. This single lift is so effective because it is not only great for building muscular strength, but it is tremendous for endurance and cardiovascular fitness as well. You see effective strength training for volleyball must focus in on training your body through various forms of resistance by the act of movement! Kettlebell swings provide you with this movement oriented form of resistance training.
The swing lift is performed by you swinging the bell from between your legs up to at least chest level back and forth like a pendulum to start. This back and forth movement is accomplished by you having to engage your hips and knees in an act of constant flexion and extension in order to generate the necessary momentum to swing the bell. The great thing about this single lift is that it can be modified in several different ways to provide you with a different kind of workout. For instance, you can perform the swing lift as discussed with a single kettlebell and 2 arms, or with a kettlebell in each hand, or with just a single bell in one arm. All of these variations will provide you with a superior volleyball strength and conditioning workout.
If you were looking for effective kettlebell exercises to improve your volleyball game then you just found it. The kettlebell swing is a lift that must be mastered by you if you expect to develop a strong powerful core, explosive hips, and springy legs to get you around on the court to make the big plays. This is a tremendous strength training exercise for ALL volleyball players to engage in. Take the time to learn more about kettlebell swings and other great kettlebell lifts by accessing more of my articles on the subject for free. Remember that most any athlete can train hard, but only the champions train smart my friend!
To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com
To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at: http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_blanksletter.html
I’m Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!
Article Source: Brandon Richey
Top Performing Exercises for Volleyball!
Building Strong Legs For Volleyball With 1 Exercise!
April 12, 2010 by jameslucas.
By Brandon Richey
As a volleyball player you have got to have a significant amount of leg strength and power to perform on the court. From the spiking, digging, and diving that you do throughout a single game your legs better have some “springy” action to them in order be competitive. To learn how you can achieve this keep on reading!
Building Strong Legs For Volleyball!
As a strength and conditioning professional I can tell you that the most elite volleyball players have some serious leg power. If you want to be one of these elite level players then you have got to have the same trait. If you want to develop your leg power then you have got to learn how to execute the pistol squat.
So what is the pistol squat? The pistol squat is a single legged squat that you ideally perform by standing up, lifting one leg off of the ground, and descending down into a squat almost to the floor and coming back up. This is one serious measure of leg strength if you are looking to drastically improve your volleyball explosiveness. So how do you even begin to do this?
First of all, if you are going to start out you may not be capable of performing this drill just as I explained right out of the gate. If so then you are a freak of nature and you can stop reading this article. If not then you can start by investing in a simple chair or bench. Start out practicing by sitting in the chair or bench and lifting one leg up off of the ground and stand up with the other leg. As you get better at this then start from a standing position to descend down to the chair or bench and then coming back up. The key is to progress from here by gradually lowering the level of the bench or chair or by using a lower barrier. Over time you will eventually be able to do away with the barrier altogether and perform the pistol as I explained in the beginning.
This is one serious leg strengthening drill for the serious volleyball player. Your game just got an upgrade with this particular drill my friend. If you want to learn more then feel free to access the rest of my articles on the subject for free. Remember that most any athlete can train hard, but only the champions train smart!
To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com
To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at: http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_blanksletter.html
I’m Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!
Article Source: Brandon Richey
Building Strong Legs For Volleyball With 1 Exercise!
Beach Volleyball Rules
April 9, 2010 by jameslucas.
By Ethan D Orman
Beach volleyball rules can be quite intricate. It seems like just a fun game on the beach, but there is much more to it than that. Here are some of the most common beach volleyball rules:
You can actually go all the way under the net to your opponent’s side as long as you do not have any contact from the other team.
Even if a ball has gone over or under the net or outside the antenna, you can play it back to your side as long as your team has a contact left and the ball is played back under the net or outside the antenna.
If the ball is a hard driven spike, you can double hit the ball to dig it out. An open hand is allowed in this case.
Except in the case of a hard driven spike, you can never double hit a ball on the first contact.
You can use all parts of your body to play the ball.
If you are serving you have to toss the ball before contacting it to serve it. If you toss it, consider it served.
You cannot move the court boundaries during the serve. This is even true if the sand shifts during serving.
Each team in college volleyball is allowed three contacts. If you touch the block it is considered to be one of your contacts.
If you are using a setting motion to hit the ball over the net, you have to hit the ball in the direction that your shoulders are facing. This can be to the front or the back. The exception would be if you were side setting to your partner.
You should switch court sides. If you are playing to 15, switch every five points. If you are playing to 11, switch every four points.
It is always best to know the rules of your game. Whether you are playing college volleyball, women’s beach volleyball, or high school volleyball, knowing your boundaries is very important. Keep these common beach volleyball rules in mind the next time you hit the beach.
Visit our website to learn more about about the history of volleyball: http://historyofvolleyball.net
Article Source: Ethan D. Orman
Beach Volleyball Rules
Beach Volleyball Spike
April 8, 2010 by jameslucas.
By Casey Patterson
A beach volleyball spike is something that you have to perfect if you ever want to play volleyball in the AVP. Before you learn to hit the ball you need to be able to jump high enough to hit over the net.
When you are trying to jump high in sand you will notice that it is a lot more difficult than jumping on a hard surface. You can take off at least 1 foot of height when you jump out of sand.
There are some tricks that you can use so that the sand doesn’t completely eat your jump. One thing that you need to practice is planting your feet hard before you jump. This will pack the sand down under your feet so that you don’t sink as much when you try to jump.
But whether you are jumping off of sand or a hard court, you need to train your muscles to be explosive so that you can get up as high as possible.
You might be wondering how to jump higher and I will tell you that there are 2 factors that affect jump height. First is the strength in your legs. Second is the speed of your legs. When you combine these 2 things you have power.
Doing too much leg strengthening will develop big muscles that are full of slow twitch fibers and will actually hinder your performance.
Doing only speed training will make your legs lack strength to have proper form and you will lose power.
A beach volleyball spike is essential to being a good volleyball player.
Click Here to see a jump higher workout program.
Article Source: Casey Patterson
Beach Volleyball Spike
Volleyball Team Formations and Rotation
April 7, 2010 by jameslucas.
By Geoff James
Most sports train players to have one position for which they hone their skills. People become famous for being quarterback, not for playing football. In volleyball, everyone is an all-around player. Though there are specialized players that are naturally better in one position than another, they play every spot on the court.
There are 6 people on a volleyball court at any given time; three in front and three in the back. The six play the game from those starting positions until a point is scored. The ball changes hands, and when it returns again to the first team they rotate, each player becoming the man (or woman) to his side (the back line moves to the left, the front line moves to the right).
The positions are rotated, but specialized jobs are not. They are as follows:
Setters. The job of the setter is not to get the ball over the net but to touch it into place for another player to drive the ball over. (Using the lingo of other spots, the setters make the assists.)
Left Side Hitters, Middle Hitters, and Right Side Hitters work as offense and defense. They are strong hitters that get the ball from the setter, but also play and important role in protecting their own court.
Liberos are THE defensive players. They can trade with anyone in the back row at any time the ball is not in play.
The formations in volleyball do change, but not in the way you’d expect. Players always stand in their 2 lines of 3; the variation is how many setters and hitters you have on the court. The 3 traditional variations are 4-2, 5-1, and 6-2.
4-2 variations have four hitters and 2 setters. The 5-1 formation has only one setter, which means that you will have 3 attackers in your front or back line at any time. A 6-2 formation is actually close to a 4-2, but the back row setter comes forward for each set. 6-2 is an offense-heavy set-up.
Not only do we have dozens of styles of volleyball medals, but hundreds of medal styles for all sports and seasons!
Article Source: Geoff_James
Volleyball Team Formations and Rotation
