Power Surge Volleyball - Respect All, Fear None

No Practice Sat July 20th.

Thank you players and parents for attending and supporting our summer programs. Hopefully you all have gained a wealth of knowledge and understanding about the most beautiful game in the world, Volleyball, the game we all love and enjoy. Volleyball is a lot more complicated than most people think. Hopefully some of that complexity is a little clearer and therefore not so confusing. Tryouts for most high schools will begin in late August. There’s still at least another month players have to prepare for their high school volleyball tryouts. Use that time wisely. Here are some common sense things you should continue to do everyday.

1. Ball Control Skills (BCS). Continue to do your homework assignments everyday from now until tryouts. (6 standing ball control drills, Your stretch goal is 40 reps (work your way up to 40) per drill i.e. forearm passing, setting, pass/set combo, right arm pass, left arm pass, right & left arm alternating passing). At least 2 times a day, allowing each session to be goal driven rather than time driven. 2. Extra Credit. Continue the 2 extra credit drills at least twice a day. This adds some fun to your stretch drill practices. Allow no more than 30 minutes per session, 2 times per day. 3. Touch Passes. Toss the ball high into the air (10 to 15 feet in the air), position your forearm platform under the ball and time the contact so that on contact, you are absorbing the ball (not inching forward) so that the ball bounces off your platform and no higher than the top of your head. A lot of players don’t realize that their platform is moving forward, however slight, on contact, and not backward to absorb the contact in order to take the pace off the ball. Stretch goal is to complete 10 good touch passes consecutively. Time should be performance driven, not time driven, working your way up to 10 in a row. 4. Hitting. Focusing on the contact only. Stand 2-3 steps from a wall, toss the ball in the air with both hands to simulate a set, without jumping, position yourself properly under the ball to strike the ball upwards on the back side of the ball, where the contact occurs above the head and slightly behind the head. There should be lots of top spin on the ball when the ball is struck correctly. And the ball should be struck gently and with finesse, so that upon contact, it travels upward and forward from the hand, not forward, and not downward, bouncing off the wall gently, and returning to your head or above your head to be caught easily. Good contact should make a smacking sound. After the toss, which should be at least 5-8 feet in the air, position is paramount, head must be directly under the ball. 10 to 15 minutes per session, 2 to 3 times a day. 5. Setting. Everyone needs to be able to set a ball without being called for a double. Go to the 2:2 position, ball above your head, begin sets against the wall one step from the wall, 300 reps. Fingers and wrist action only, no arm movement. Next, take another step back from the wall and continue setting against the wall, same thing, fingers and wrist only, very little arm movement. Contact must always be above the head not in front of the face. 200 reps. Finally, take one more step back from the wall, continue setting against the wall, use finges and wrist action, and some arm movement. 100 reps. This is called “The 600.” Do this drill at least twice a day, should not take more than 10 minutes each session. 6. Push Ups Are Your Friend. Very simple exercise but very effective and very beneficial. When done consistently on a daily basis, it will go a long way toward improving your core strength,arm and upper body strength, quicker and more efficiently than any other exercise. 3 sets of 10 reps each, 3 times a day, everyday for the rest of your lives.

Good luck and have a great rest of your summer. Even on vacation, you can be doing these exercises. You must put in the time, there’s no getting around it. You don’t need money, you don’t need privilege, and you don’t need any fancy gear, equipment, or facilities to do these things. All you need is the will, the vision, and determination. See yourself exactly where you want to be at tryouts in August. Be very specific. Your clear vision will sustain you during your personal training sessions. Always Ready!