style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">I was up at the Monument City Classic Volleyball tournament in play. One of the most obvious things I see missing in volleyball players is first step quickness to get to a ball. It is especially lacking in young female players so seeing it often and at excruciating slow speeds multiple times this weekend I was able to analyze the problems more in depth and hopefully give you some pointers and drills that will help no matter what your ability level.
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style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">Before we even get in to drills, we need to talk about your ready position. A good athletic position just like in most sports works well. You don't want your big toes any wider than your shoulders. Yes, a wider base will bring your center of gravity lower so you can get to the ground faster but a wide base significantly decreases your options of moving in other directions. Photo 1 is a shot of me trying to move to my right with a stance wider than my shoulders. You can see that my center of gravity has shifted but it is still inside my right foot meaning I still have a boundary(right leg angle) to overcome.
Photo 1 - Stance Too Wide
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style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"> Photo 2 is a shot of me making the same movement but with a shoulder width stance. Here, my momentum is moving to my right, my shin angle is aimed to the right and I have overcome that boundary much easier. It is better to get your legs strong so you can be comfortable in that athletic position with the hips, knees, and ankles cocked, loaded, and ready to explode in any direction, not just down.
Photo 2 - Better Leg Angle
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style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">Check your setup before each play with these cues:
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">1-Feet shoulder width apart.
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">2-Weight in the balls of your feet but not on the toes as in Photo 3.
Photo 3 - Too Much Weight on the Toes
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style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"> Think "as much weight in as much of your feet as possible but still being able to slide a credit card under your heels."
Photo 4 - Heels Low to the Ground
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">3-Slight tension in the muscles of the lower body but only tight enough that you still feel springy or bouncy.
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">4-Chest up, relaxed upper body.
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">Finally, when setting up to move, remember, you are faster going forward than you are going backwards so as your first step quickness improves, err on the side of setting up so that you can move forward to a ball in play versus having to back up.
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style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">Now for drills. There are 2 types of drills that are needed to improve your quickness. Power and reaction time. Being powerful so that you can contract the correct muscles in the correct order as fast as possible is key, but if the software doesn't tell the hardware what to do, nothing happens so you need to train your reaction time too.
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style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">Power Drills include plyometric movements such as different types of jumps and sprinting. Here is one drill that really helps with getting the foot off the ground and making contact as soon as possible again:
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">Lean, Fall, Run drill
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">Video 1 Level 1-First start with your leg up, arms in the correct sprinting position. When ready, relax the ankle, and lean forward. Your body will begin to fall. Keep your heel down as long as possible. As soon as it comes up, contract your butt cheek and drive the foot that is in the air into the ground as hard and fast as your can behind you so that you are propelled forward. Building on this momentum, sprint forward for a few steps to get a few explosive steps out of each leg. Alternate starting legs.
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">Video 2 Level 2-Start with both feet together. Lean forward as in Level 1 but this time when your heels start to come up, drive one knee up forcefully and then drive it back to the ground as hard and fast as possible. As soon as it comes up, contract your butt cheek and drive the foot that is in the air into the ground as hard and fast as your can behind you so that you are propelled forward. Building on this momentum, sprint forward for a few steps to get a few explosive steps out of each leg. Alternate starting legs.
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style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">Reaction time can be trained using audible, visual, and kinesthetic cues. For the sport of Volleyball, visual cues are going to be of the most benefit. Here is one drill that we like that goes well with the Lean, Fall, Run drill and the Ready Position explained above.
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style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">Ball Drop Drill
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"> Pick a starting line. Have a partner hold a ball that will bounce a few yards away. Get in your ready position. Your partner will drop the ball at their leisure. Your goal is to get the ball after the first bounce before it bounces a second time.
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">As your reaction time improves, you can vary the intensity in a couple of ways:
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">1-have your partner move farther away form the starting line.
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">2-have your partner hold a ball in each hand. They choose to drop one or the other and you have to not only react forward but also to one side or the other.
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style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">Just like any other plyometric drill, volume is not priority; high intensity with proper technique is, so add these into your training but only do a handful of each drill per session. Let us know if you have any questions.
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">Todd