Increase Vertical Jump Training Program by Misty Walsh

Volleyball is a sport that puts a lot of influence on jumping and no athlete is in better jumping shape than a beach volleyball player. This is why they are the perfect athlete to learn from when it comes to jumping higher. If you can learn from them, you will get great results.

An increase vertical jump training program is the best way to improve you vertical leap.

The best vertical jump training programs will include all the jumping exercises that you need to get as high as possible. If you are wondering where to start, I will give you some workouts you can do at home to warm up the muscles and get them ready for when you buy a real program.

Squats with a jump at the top are a great way to start. You need to train yourself to bend a little more at the knees before jumping and you will notice a better jump height. This is very important for anyone that will be doing blocking. With blocking, you don't get to have an approach so you have to rely on your standing vert. Bending more at the knees will allow you to push against the ground for a longer period of time and that will make you jump higher.

When Receiving the Volleyball Serve, More is Not Merrier 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 communicationg 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.

A Simple Drill to Improve Volleyball Hitting Accuracy by Andrea Fryrear

If executed correctly a volleyball attack is one of the most amazing skills in professional sports. Unfortunately for many of us, the volleyball attack is also a skill that can seem very complicated to learn. But nothing is impossible! No matter what your height, with some perseverance and a mastery of the basic skills your kill percentage will go through the roof in no time.

For starters I recommend this drill. It doesn't require anything but a volleyball net and a tennis ball so it can be done nearly anywhere. If you have a partner who can catch the tennis ball it will save you some time and keep you from running all around the gym, but if not just think of it as your cardio for the day.

Players who have mastered their basic approach footwork and are ready to move on to achieving a quick arm swing and wrist snap will benefit the most from this drill. It helps you learn to really put the ball down into the court (instead of making spectators duck with fear).

To begin the drill put a tennis ball in your attacking hand, and move to the starting spot for whatever type of attack you need to practice. So if you're an outside (left-side) hitter, you'd start a step or two to the left of the court boundary and a step or two behind the 10-foot (3-meter).

Execute your approach using whatever type of footwork you're most comfortable with, plant your feet and jump as high as you can. When you're at the point of the attack when you would normally be hitting the volleyball, throw the tennis ball instead. Really focus on your arm swing and watch where the ball is landing in the court. And don't stop your arm swing once the tennis ball has been thrown; you want to simulate your attack motion, so keep the follow through in place. I like to think about "quarters in my hand": if there was somebody standing behind me while I did my approach my wrist should have snapped and my arm should have swung all the way back around by the time I land so that the person could put some quarters into my hand.

This technique helps you focus on a quick follow through with your swing and and snapping your wrist down through the ball.

Practice throwing the tennis ball across the court, down the line, on a sharp angle -- anywhere you want to hit with your attack. Once you're comfortable throwing the tennis ball on your own it's helpful to add a blocker or other obstacle so that you're forced to throw around someone's hand just like in a game.

Volleyball Terms Defined: Offense, Defense and Rotations by Andrea Fryrear

Some of the terms used in volleyball can be confusing to new players, so I like to offer a resource that provide an explanation of some of the most often used terms. In this article we'll cover offense, defense and rotations.

Offense: This term refers to the system being used to attack the ball, and is usually a 6-2 or a 5-1. Teams choose an offense that will help them ensure that they can make an effective pass, a capable set, and a strong attack, giving them the best chance to win the point. Some teams, especially those just learning the game, run a 4-2 offense.

In a 6-2 offense there are two setters, and each on sets while s/he is on the back row of the court. This allows the team to always have three hitters on the front row who can attack the ball at the net. It can sometimes be difficult for a team to transition between setters throughout the game, however.

A 5-1 offense uses only one setter. This setter is responsible for setting the second ball no matter where s/he is on the court. In this offense there will be three rotations where the team has only two front row hitters, but an athletic and skillful setter can make up for this potential pitfall.

Rotations/rotation: This basically refers to the order in which all six players are placed around the court. There are always three front row players and three back row players. Teams can arrange their players in whatever order seems best to them, but the players must stay in their positions until the ball has been served or they will be called "out of rotation" and the other team will be awarded a point. Teammates can be as close or as far away from one another as needed as long as they don't overlap the players next to them and move into the wrong spot on the court.

After the ball has been served players are free to move around wherever they want, but only the three players who are on the front row can attack the ball in front of the 10-foot line or block. (Note: this can vary in some co-ed leagues).

Defense: Defense refers to the arrangement of the team that's not hitting the ball. It's a combination of blockers and passers, all of which are setup to try and maximize the defending team's chances of digging the attack and getting a good pass to the setter.

Usually you have one player who is responsible for getting tips or soft hits, two or three players who arrange themselves deep in the court to try and dig hard hit attacks, and anywhere from one to three players blocking. The way that each team sets up their defense will depend on their unique strengths and weaknesses.

For more information about volleyball skills you can visit Volleyball-Life.com, or to jump start your own volleyball development today check out the Volleyball Life Ebook Series.

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Three Tips for Beautiful Volleyball Sets by Andrea Fryrear

In a previous article I discussed how important it is to have a solid footwork foundation (you can see that article here). Now it's time to expand your setting skills to include not only footwork but your hands as well.

There are three main principles that you should keep in mind when setting:

1. Your hands need to be both soft and strong.

As the ball approaches you your hands should already be above your head with wrists cocked back slightly. Cushion the ball as it contacts your hands by flexing your wrists just a little more and then straighten them quickly. Use both hands equally to direct the ball toward your chosen hitter.

Remember that there is a very small difference between soft hands that can cushion the ball and illegally holding the volleyball too long. If you break your wrists too much and appear to carry the ball, you'll be called for a lift and your opponents will get a point.

Conversely, your hands can't be too stiff either. Without some give in your wrists you'll never get the ball under control. When using a forearm pass you're just redirecting the ball's momentum toward the target by allowing it to ricochet off your arms. Setting, however, demands that you alter the ball's path as it leaves your hands.

As it approaches you (the setter) the volleyball is traveling toward the net. After the set you want it to travel parallel to the net. So without hands that are soft enough to cushion the ball and alter its path without holding on too long, you won't be able to achieve accurate sets.

2. Thumbs in the eyes

Please keep in mind that I'm not advocating that you really jab your thumbs into your eyes. What I am saying is that as you receive the ball your thumbs should be almost directly above your eyes.

To achieve this position your wrists need to be flexed slightly and your fingers rounded. This type of position should direct your thumbs back toward your face; if they're not pulled back they'll be in the way of the ball, and jammed thumbs will ruin anybody's day.

As mentioned in #1 we need hands that can cushion the ball without carrying it too long, which means we need nice ball-shaped hands. And of course the only way to get our hands to make a spherical shape is by pulling our thumbs back toward our eyes.

By making sure your thumbs are pointing toward your eyes and not your mouth or forehead you'll be well on your way toward achieving a more consistent set.

3. Take a cue from soccer

I know this might seem a little odd since soccer players use their feet and setting involves just your hands, but to have accurate ball position when setting the volleyball we can imitate soccer players a little. More specifically, I'm referring to heading the ball.

If your footwork has been accurate and you've positioned yourself underneath the ball in preparation for setting, it should be approaching your forehead. Moving your hands away at the last second should result in the volleyball hitting your forehead, not your mouth or the top of your head.

Again, I'm not advocating that you actually let the ball hit you on the head or in the face.

Keeping the ball above your forehead will allow you to take full advantage of the power generated by your arms, wrists and leg muscles. Maintaining this ball position every time you set will also decrease the amount of time the ball is in your hands, making it less likely for you to be called for a lift.

For more detailed instruction on setting footwork, hand position, and drills to get you on your way to setting perfection, check out the Volleyball-Life Setting Ebook.

2 Quick Tips for Better Volleyball Blocking Today by Andrea Fryrear

A volleyball block may not seem like a very difficult skill -- after all it's just jumping up in the air with your hands up, right? But in fact it's one of the more difficult parts of playing volleyball, even if you're tall. Timing, explosive jumps and effective arm movement all have to come together. In this article I'll give you two quick tips that will improve your blocking right away!

Tip #1: Keep your hands at shoulder height.

Our instinct is to try and propel ourselves upward using our arms, which will involve lowering our hands well below our waist. There are two big problems with this technique, however. Firstly it makes it much more likely that you'll contact the net illegally (awarding the other team a point). Secondly it slows down your jump by several seconds, making it much more difficult to time the block. Instead keep your hands just in front of your shoulders, so you can extend your arms up and your hands over the net at a moment's notice. You should be able to see your hands through your peripheral vision at all times.

Tip #2: Hands should penetrate over the net - no swinging!

Imagine that the net is electrified and that you don't want to touch it at any cost. You need to extend your arms directly up from the shoulders. Then as your hands make it up over the top of the net you can break your wrists slightly. This forms a "roof" that can push an attacked volleyball directly back onto your opponent's court.

If you're a little on the short side or lack jumping skills you can still be an effective blocker. Instead of "roofing" concentrate on what's called "soft blocking." Simply bend your wrists backward so that if the ball contacts your hands it will ricochet upwards, making it easier for your teammates to pass.

Tip #3: Up and down, not side to side.

Always remember to plant your feet before you take off. This helps you jump straight up and down when blocking so that you don't collide with other members of your team who are also blocking. The same rule applies to your hands: they should extend up and down in a single plane.

Keep an eye on your elbows too; they should stay close to your body and not flail around like chicken wings. This will keep your fellow blockers safe (nobody wants an elbow in the eye). It also helps you by keeping your hands closer together so the ball doesn't fly through them.

Also check out our tips on improving your vertical leap to help your blocking skills.

For more information on volleyball skills, visit Volleyball-Life.com's Skills Section

How To Play Volleyball: Volleyball Rules by Jordan English

Learning how to play volleyball is something most people learn in school. Volleyball is an active and explosive sport that can be played with as few as four people although competitive volleyball is played with up to 12 total players on each team. It is a sport that can be played by all ages and offers excellent health benefits too.

Volleyball rules get very specific covering topics from the size and position of numbers on the jersey to the width of the lines. I will cover the basic rules for indoor competitive volleyball so that can get you started.

Each team has six players on the court at one time separated by a net. One team member serves the volleyball from behind the back boundary to the opposing teams court starting the volley. The opposing team must not allow the ball to land inside their court. They are allowed to hit the ball up to three times before sending it back over the net to the other team.

The three primary types of hits used in volleyball are the bump, set, and spike. A bump is usually the first contact with the ball. The hands are clasped together with elbows straight and arms pointing downward. The set is performed with the fingertips of both hands making contact with the ball around the players head and used to "set" the ball up near the net for a spike. A spike is when a player hits the ball downward over the net to the other teams court.

Points are scored by either a fault of the opposing team or a kill. A fault occurs when the ball lands outside the opponents court, the ball hits the net or does not go over the net on a serve, two consecutive hits by the same player, four hits without the ball going over the net, and catching or throwing the ball.

A kill occurs when the ball hits the ground inside the opposing teams court. Only the serving team can gain a point. If the serving team faults or loses the rally, the opposing team gains the serve.

There are some exceptions to the three hit rule. Blocking does not count as a hit. This means a player is allowed to block and then immediately hit the ball without penalty. If a spike is blocked the hit count is reset to zero and the team may hit the ball three more times without being penalized.

Each time a team wins the rally back they rotate clockwise one position. The player in sixth position rotates to the first position.

A set is won when a team reaches 25 points with a minimum lead of two points. This means if the score is tied 24-24 the winning team will need to reach 26 while holding the other team to 24.

A match is won when a team wins three sets.

If you have not played volleyball before there are city leagues that play in most municipalities and you will often be able to find church groups and recreational centers that also have teams available for you to join.