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3 Adult Volleyball Training Tips
Photo By: Lee Fenner
Adult volleyball training is a great way to get or stay in shape and stay competitive while getting to spend time with friends.
Volleyball is great for this for a lot of reasons. Whether you have played before or not, it is a relatively easy game to learn and play. The actual technical skills needed for it can really be tricky to learn if you are new to the sport. For the purposes of this article, we are discussing the actual physical training your body needs to prepare for the sport, not the skill training.
If you are new to volleyball or haven’t played since your younger years, you’ll want to follow a few tips to get the most out of your experience. Here are 3 adult volleyball training tips you’ll want to follow.
- Warm up – This is so simple, but so important. I’ve seen too many adults who have barely touched a volleyball since high school jump into a pickup game cold and then try to start flying around the court, sprinting, jumping, and cutting, thinking they are in the prime of their career. Assuming you are medically cleared to play and have been training, this still isn’t a smart approach. You need a proper warm-up, such as a short jog followed by dynamic stretching before any training session or match. Lunges, bodyweight squats, and high knees are good examples of this. You’ll also want to slowly build up to playing multiple games or matches at a pace your body can handle. This can go against your competitive instincts when you are first playing, but it is a must if you want to stay healthy for the long-term.
- Prepare – Isn’t this the same as warming up? Not exactly, as warming up is what you do on the day of your training session or match. Proper preparation is all the training you do in the weeks and months before each training session or match. If you are an advanced athlete, you probably already have this covered and only need to focus on a specific goal you are looking to help your performance, such as improving your vertical jump ability. If you haven’t exercised in a while, you’ll want to start with general fitness training. Cardio training, strength training, and easy games of volleyball are all good ideas. You’ll want to have a good base of conditioning before doing more complex training, such as sprint and jump training. A good place to start is by doing full-body strength training, with exercises like the deadlift and squat, and doing some easy running. It will take a while, but this will get your body more prepare for volleyball matches and more intense training.
- Get help – You may think you don’t need any help, because you know what you are doing, prefer working alone, or something similar. Even if that is true, having an accountability partner or team can provide great benefits. Being held accountable by others can improve your performance, keep you committed and on track, and improve satisfaction. If you are joining a team or a league, you have accountability built-in, especially if you already know the people you will be playing with. If not, go out of your way to find a training partner or partners to hold each other accountable. This will help all in the group stick to a training schedule and get better at volleyball. If you are new to the sport, it definitely helps if at least one person in your group is more experienced and capable of teaching the skills of the sport to you.
The main thing is to remember why you are there and playing in the first place. Are you there for the social aspect? Then just have fun and be smart about it, by warming up properly and knowing what your limits are on the court.
Do you want to play to get or stay in shape? Great, then train hard and slowly build your fitness up. The type of training done for volleyball incorporates all kinds of good stuff, like strength, power, speed, and conditioning training. This all-around approach can make training more fun and let you try different things. Just remember to start slow by improving your general conditioning first and then slowly introducing the more advanced training concepts only when you are ready.
Are you a more advanced volleyball player who is in it for the competition and want to take your game to the next level? Then as long as you are healthy and fit enough, you can start incorporating some strength exercises, jumping drills, and skill drills to improve your game. These will help take your performance to the next level and give you an edge on the competition. By training smart and hard, you can quickly become the best player in your league.
Staying consistent is another important training point to remember. Let’s say you have a great winter of training and matches, but then don’t do any training until the next winter when your league starts back up. Essentially, you are starting from step 1 again and need to build your conditioning back to the level it needs to be. With muscle memory, you may be able to build it back quicker than the first time, but that doesn’t mean that you can take months or even a week or two off without repercussions. As a general rule, the more time that you have taken off, the more time it will take to get back to where you were. If you have taken even 2 weeks off, your conditioning and fitness have probably dropped a noticeable amount. You want be able to perform at the same level immediately.
Proper adult volleyball training takes a smart approach that includes a proper evaluation of fitness, health, and skills and uses smart training to prepare your body for the demands it will be placed under. Doing it this way can help you get fit, have fun, and dominate the competition.
