I was asked the other day if I could explain our thought process when it comes to conditioning volleyball.
✅ We run once per week. Volleyball athletes jump and land too much as it is, placing a ton of stress on their hip/knee/ankle/low back and adding a lot more via running is probably not a great idea. We typically start with tempo runs for 3-4 weeks then progress into shuttle runs and building up the distance (75 yard ➡️ 150 yard ➡️ 300 yard) over the course of the off-season.
✅ We Slideboard a lot. It’s gets them into the frontal plane which everyone could use more of. It keeps their feet on the ground and adds very little wear and tear to their bodies. It trains the adductors/abductors (groin) in a functional manner.
✅ Assault Bike Work. We do 20:10’s, 10:20’s, 2 Mile Ride for time and other protocols on the bike. Like the Slideboard, the bike adds very little wear and tear to the body — you can condition extremely hard on the bike with very little negatives (besides it being brutally hard).
✅ Sleds. We perform some continuous sled work (2-4 minutes) for a couple sets sometimes for some added aerobic work. Lot harder then it looks.
Long story short. We try to keep their feet on the ground as much as possible. We get in the frontal plane. We take advantage of the bikes — they may be our #1 conditioning tool for a jumping athlete like 🏐
By the way, if you are looking for more off-season volleyball strength and conditioning content, check out my Ultimate Off-Season Training Program for Volleyball.
You get everything we do. Plyos. Med Balls. Conditioning. Strength training. And a completely done off-season strength program for you. All in one book.
You can check that out HERE!