Exercise & Fitness Articles

Volleyball drills can be used towards your general fitness goals. Volleyball drills are intensive and heavy on skills. Volleyball drills are a way you can obtain a high level of overall fitness. If you choose the right volleyball drills to practice, and if you have an intense dedication, you will succeed!

Warm Up

Drills for this sport may cause strain on certain muscles of the body, so before attempting the skills, make sure you stretch and warm up. One of the most traditional volleyball warm ups is to jump rope. Jumping rope develops ankle strength and foot speed that is crucial to playing the game. Jump rope for at least five minutes to warm up your heart and body. The next step in the warm up volleyball drills should be spent on leg swings, hamstring stretches, arm circles, and any miscellaneous problem stretching areas.

Static And Dynamic Stretches:

These two stretches are important to your volleyball drills. Find a static stretch for every conceivable plane of movement, and hold for several seconds before moving to the next plane level. Continue on to dynamic stretches, which have no stopping or ending points. In this stretch for volleyball drills, move fluidly from one stretch to the next without any stops or breaking points.

Strength Volleyball Drills:

These exercises will prepare your body for the next volleyball drills: lunges, step-ups, V-sits, push ups, and wall sits.

Agility Drills:

Agility drills are good for the body as they offer the body opportunity to improve its physical ability and endurance. The first drill is the lateral shuffle, in which you stay low holding your thighs as parallel to the floor as you possibly can. Shuffle approximately six meters to the left, and then back to the right. Another drill is called a sprint with change, where you sprint for six meters, stop, and then sprint immediately back into the other direction. When you stop, make sure you absorb the motion with your outside hip and leg as you gently bend the knee. Repeat these volleyball drills for two changes in both legs.

Cone Volleyball Drills:

There is a three cone lateral shuffle drill that requires you to participate in quick direction changes at the outside of each cone as you spring through. You will be making a zip-zag through the insides of the three lined up cones. Make sure you keep your hips as low to the ground as possible, and keep your body stable during the rigorous movements. Your hips and shoulders should remain square, so you are not turning into the direction you are moving in. You can also do a ten cone lateral shuffle, which is more challenging. You will run up the line of ten cones, making sure your foot falls directly in front of each cone. As you reach the end of the ten cones, pivot around and zig zag back like you did in the three cone lateral shuffle drill. As you are zig zagging, if you have a partner, he/she will then be running the ten cone length.

These intense drills will improve your physical fitness, endurance, and strength. If you think you may be interested in learning about these drills further, check out online resources, your local gymnasium, and/or the library for reference.