Volleyball drills with Natasha
Natasha is on break from both her school volleyball team and her club volleyball team. Following a tradition we started last year, we are going to work out during her two week Christmas break on areas of weakness for her. Last year, after two weeks of one on one drills, she went from being a reserve on her 7th grade team to starting the rest of the season.
This year we are going to focus on Natasha’s power. She is an outside hitter for both of her teams, and although she has good footwork and position technique, she isn’t generating as much power as she would like.
The source of her lack of power comes from a few factors:
- This is only her third season in volleyball (after 7 years competing in gymnastics), so she is still getting use to “ball” sports. Her timing is just a little bit off on her serves and hits.
- A related issue is that Natasha serves and hits with her arms. She isn’t fully integrating the torque generated from using her whole body rather than just her arms.
- Natasha throws the ball too high on her serves. As a result, she is usually hitting the ball when it is above or behind her head. Because she is use to letting the ball drift above her head on serves, this habit is also carrying forward to her hits. This causes her to lose power, and it strains her lower back. She needs to focus on keeping the ball in front of her on serves and hits.
- Natasha is very flexible. Great for some things, but a problem for others. Hitting with power works better if you are using a board instead of a rope. For Natasha, she is going to have to work harder than most at keeping her core and arms tight when she hits. Basically, she needs to “zip up” every-time she pulls her arms above her waist.
So here is what we will be working on during her winter break:
- Timing and precision of hits
- Integrating her arm and body on her hits
- Zip up every time she lifts her arms
- Tossing the ball just high enough, instead of too much
- Keeping the ball in front of her
In addition, we always, always work on passing to target. The outside hitter is mostly known for their powerful spikes, but in reality, the outside hitter has to be one of the best passers on the team, and usually has primary responsibility for returning serves.
For passing drills, we use the basketball court and the basketball hoop in particular. If you can forearm pass (ie bump) a ball into a basket, then you are getting it high enough and accurate enough to get it to the setter. We worked on straight passes, shuffling to the right, and deep left (hips to ball, angle to target). We mimicked passing from the center and left back row positions (if you can do those, you can easily pass from the back right position).
For hitting drills, we did all stuff Natasha hasn’t done before. Her club coaches are both members of the Edmonds Community College team, and I have been watching what they do to work on their hitting. Basically all you need is a wall and a ball.
The first drill is to hit the ball into the floor about two feet from the wall, so that the ball bounces up into the wall and back to you. You can judge power and accuracy from this drill. Natasha focuses on hitting it and registering how much pop the ball had and how good the hit felt (so she can start reproducing solid hits). I focus on her technique - is she zipped, is her elbow high, does she have torso rotation, etc. This drill is mostly about hitting with power.
The second drill is the same as the first, but instead of catching the ball when it returns, you hit it back into the floor. The object is to continue hitting the ball against the wall without stopping or catching the ball. This drill works on the timing and precision of your hits. One good thing about both of these drills is that since you are hitting the ball into the ground, you are also hitting it lower - which automatically works on not throwing it so high and keeping the ball in front of you.
The third drill is a bit different. Instead of hitting the ball into the floor, you hit the ball into the wall. Same technique that you would use on a serve or standing hit. When the ball returns, practice passing to the setter spot. This drill works both on your power, but also on returning serves. The better the hit, the harder the return will be. Did I mention that the outside hitter is the primary return server on the team. Great practice for returning hard serves.
We finished with some long hits. Natasha stood about three quarters of the way across the gym and hit balls to me. She wasn’t working on hitting really hard, or on serving per se. I just wanted her to connect with what it felt like to hit the ball really well and cause it to travel far - just from hitting it well.
Natasha had a great practice. She went the full hour, and didn’t want to stop.
Workout:
- Type: Other
- Date: 12/27/2007
- Time: 14:23:52
- Total Time: 1:00:00.00
Filed under: Girls Volleyball, Uncategorized, father daughter, volleyball
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Seasons Greetings
From all of us at Sweat365 to all of you - wishing you a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!!!
Filed under: Uncategorized
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Walked Greenlake with a friend
Caught up with an old co-worker I haven’t seen in about 5 years. Since I last saw her, she has become a marathoner, a triathlete, and a monster cyclist. Oh - and she can walk FAST!!! I was pushing it to keep up, and I sensed that she was taking it easy on me.
It was great seeing her, I am looking forward to her joining our community so I can stay in better touch.
Workout:
- Type: Walk
- Date: 12/19/2007
- Time: 11:00:00
- Total Time: 00:40:00.00
- Distance: 2.8 miles
- Average Pace: 14:17.14/mile
Filed under: Uncategorized, Walking, Workout, fitness, fitness over 40, fitness over forty, male over forty, over forty
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I’m over 400 miles walking for the year
Went on a neighborhood walk with Mark. The walk put me over 400 miles walking this year. This wasn’t a goal that I had, it just turned out that I really enjoyed walking this year.
It makes up in part for the fact that I only cycled 2,100 miles this year. This year I never really got my cycling mojo for whatever reason. I think I have been too focused on cycling the last few years, and evidently my body was ready for something different.
Workout:
- Type: Walk
- Date: 12/18/2007
- Time: 17:00:00
- Total Time: 1:28:00.00
- Distance: 5.6 miles
- Average Pace: 15:42.41/mile
- Ascent: 500 ft
Filed under: Uncategorized, Walking, Workout, fitness, fitness over 40, fitness over forty, male over forty, over forty
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Lifted with Mark
Lifted weights for total body. Did 26 sets of 12 reps. Used about 75% of my normal weight.
This is only my second time lifting since starting up again. Still haven’t found the zone, but it was better today. When I’m in the lifting zone, I only think about the set I’m on (vs letting my mind wander and think about how much I have left to do).
Workout:
- Type: Strength Training
- Date: 12/18/2007
- Time: 16:00:00
- Total Time: 1:00:00.00
Filed under: Uncategorized, Weight Training, Weight lifting, Workout, fitness, fitness over 40, fitness over forty, male over forty
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Walk Edmonds Waterfront
I had Lisa drop me off at the Edmonds waterfront (on the Puget Sound), and I walked home. It’s 4.5 miles, but it has 600 feet of elevation gain, most of it coming in one hill.
It was a cold, windy day. Once I hit the hill, I warmed up. It is a fun walk; because it’s a walk I don’t do all the time, because downtown Edmonds is fun to walk through, and because I love seeing the water.
Workout:
- Type: Walk
- Date: 12/15/2007
- Time: 11:00:00
- Total Time: 1:10:34.00
- Distance: 4.5 miles
- Average Pace: 15:39.95/mile
- Ascent: 600 ft
Filed under: Uncategorized, Walking, Workout, fitness, fitness over 40, fitness over forty, male over forty, over forty
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Introducing Murphy
One thing Lisa and I have been avoiding posting about is that our dog Bo passed away in early November. He was diagnosed with Addison’s disease in the summer, and was put on steroids. The steroids stabilized him to a certain extent, but he continued to lose weight and energy. On November 5th, he passed.
At first, we thought we wouldn’t get another dog. Around the Seattle area, there are fewer and fewer areas that a dog can run free. Our kids are getting older, and it’s always a hassle to get the dog taken care of when you go on vacation. So we thought Bo would be it for us as far as pets.
We had no idea we would miss Bo this much. Coming home just isn’t the same without him there to greet us. It’s just not the same in the morning, without his enthusiasm. Having a dog is a great reminder that life is supposed to be a joyful thing. Dogs always wake up happy to be alive! It’s infectious.
Although there was never a meeting where we all said we were changing our minds about getting another dog, after about a week each person in the family could be found perusing petfinder.com - just to see. A couple weeks later, it was inevitable.
We found Murphy right after Thanksgiving. He came home with us when we got back from the Las Vegas event. He was born October 21st, and is very much still an infant. He can make it about three hours in his kennel at night before he needs to go outside. He’s good for about two hours during the day.
Here is our puppy being “The Murphinator” (with our son Chris). This dog is a little terror when he gets a spike in energy. He likes to put everything in his mouth, preferably your foot, hand, or any other body part he can reach. The cuteness is just a ploy!!!
Filed under: Family, Uncategorized
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Neighborhood Walk
Walked the 4.6 mile loop.
My upper body is already starting to feel sore from lifting yesterday. I am going to be hurting by tonight!!!
Workout:
- Type: Walk
- Date: 12/12/2007
- Time: 09:00:00
- Total Time: 1:11:00.00
- Distance: 4.6 miles
- Average Pace: 15:25.45/mile
Filed under: Uncategorized, Walking, Workout, fitness, fitness over 40, fitness over forty, male over forty, over forty
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Lifted Weights
This was my first time lifting since spring. I went ultra light on the weights because I know I am going to be sore tomorrow no matter what weight I use for the exercises.
I did upper body. 4 sets of 12 for each body part.
Workout:
- Type: Strength Training
- Date: 12/11/2007
- Time: 16:00:00
- Total Time: 00:45:00.00
Filed under: Uncategorized, Weight Training, Weight lifting, Workout, fitness, fitness over 40, fitness over forty, male over forty, over forty
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Walked Neighborhood
Walked the neighborhood with Mark.
Workout:
- Type: Walk
- Date: 12/11/2007
- Time: 15:00:00
- Total Time: 1:00:00.00
- Distance: 4 miles
- Average Pace: 15:00/mile
Filed under: Uncategorized, Walking, Workout, fitness, fitness over 40, fitness over forty, male over forty, over forty
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