Chea Sports

There are a few factors to consider when training/learning how to hit a volleyball, also known as an attack or spike. One of those factors is the approach, the “run” towards the ball after it is released from the setter’s hands. First, make sure you are standing behind the ten-foot line with your right foot slightly in front of your left foot and arms down beside you. Next, take a step with your left foot and then another with your right foot. You will then want to plant or hop quickly with your left foot. You can think of it as well as left- right, left. You will want to practice this by starting out slowly and as you get the hang of it, speed it up to a quick “run”. Bend your knees and jump bringing your arms up in the air.

The next factor to consider when hitting … Read the rest

The Magnificent Warrior

In the bleak, murderous North St. Louis neighborhood where Chris Carrawell grew up, he recalls three drive-by shootings in one summer-a setting he said he wouldn’t dare wish on many people. “Learning to stand up for mine” was his 11th Commandment. “My basketball was my thing; I had to fight older guys not to have it taken,” Carrawell says. Carrawell had no one else to stand up for him as a kid. His dad was non-existent, he was the man of the house, and most of the time it seemed as if no one cared whether he would ever enjoy a shred of success doing anything anywhere.

He claims that the only reason he and his siblings were able to make it was his Mom’s toughness. “She kept us in church, she was really religious,” he says. “Seeing her be there for us each day and keeping … Read the rest

The average rating for National Basketball Association players is 15.0. NBA superstars frequently have a rating in the upper 20’s. Collegiate and high school ratings will be significantly lower than the NBA, but I’ll get in to that in a moment.

The formula that Hollinger uses is complex, but I believe it’s a highly accurate view of how a player is performing while on the floor. Because of this, during my days as an assistant coach at the collegiate level, I wanted to determine if I could come up with a way to assess a player’s performance a little quicker than using the formula that Hollinger uses.

Fortunately, I was able to find a much simpler way to rate players. While this method was easier to compute, I found it to be highly effective and accurate when it came to determining player’s playing time and predicting who would receive end … Read the rest

Serving and Scoring

The ball can be served either over or underhand, but it has to be served from behind the end line until it is touched. The ball has to be easily seen by the opponents when served, and it has to be returned with a bump (no setting or attacking allowed). The ball is allowed to touch the net, provided it falls on the opposite side of the court. The first serve of the game is given to the loser of the last game, or a volley is used to determine who will serve.

A point is scored every time the ball touches the floor (rally scoring), and the game is played until one team reaches 25 points (with a 2 point lead). The defense is awarded a point every time the ball touches the ground on the offensive side, the ball is sent out of bounds by … Read the rest

First day

• (sets by reps)
• Pistol squats (3x 10)
• Depth jumps (3 x 15)
• Rim Jumps (4 x 10)

Second day

• Bulgarian split squats (3 x 10)
• Chair rockets (4 x 15)
• Lunge jumps (3 x 15)

(You should alternate day 1 and day 2 every two to three days, depending on what your body is telling you i.e. soreness)

This would a good place to start. Just make sure you’re eating the proper diet afterwards! If you don’t know what to eat, you should look into muscle building nutrition, it’s very basic stuff, but I’ll explain the surface.

Muscle building involves tearing down micro fibres in order to rebuild them stronger than before. So to rebuild them, you need protein. Not only that, there are many other foods you should be eating to speed the process up, and many other foods you should be avoiding that could be hindering … Read the rest

The Volleyball Court

Sand volleyball courts and indoor courts are fairly different in size. Beach courts are actually smaller than indoor courts. Indoor courts have a rule where players in the back row cannot advance behind a certain point in the court to hit the ball, whereas sand volleyball players can hit the ball from anywhere on their side of the net. The reasoning behind the smaller sand court size may be that getting any traction and running in sand is much more difficult than on a hard surface. A smaller court keeps the ball in play longer, keeping rallies more entertaining and face-paced.

Players Per Team

With the larger court size for indoor volleyball, it reasons that a larger amount of people would be needed to cover the area. Indoor volleyball requires six players per team, or side. Each player has a specialized position that rotates and switches throughout … Read the rest

Is The Monthly/Yearly Commitment Worth It?

If you really want to throw down your first dunk you have to analyze your situation. If you can’t grab or at least touch the rim of a 10 ft basketball hoop, then you probably have months if not years of training to go through in order to start dunking on a consistent basis.

If you can grab the rim or at least touch the rim right now, you could throw down your first dunk in three months or less, with the right training and work ethic.

At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how long it takes. It took me 10 years to reach my goal and it was worth the wait.

I’ll admit that there were times when I wish I was naturally gifted with amazing vertical jump ability and there were times when I wished that I didn’t have … Read the rest

Some players think that by trying to hide where they are aiming with their serve will increase their surprise “attack” on the opponent team. This could not be farther from the truth. You need to face your target in order for your serve to be fully effective. If you align your body to the direction you are aiming at and balance your body, you will generate a powerful consistent serve.

The ball toss is another very important factor in achieving great serving accuracy. If your ball toss is low, you will end up making contact with the ball when you are off balance and your serve will end up at the net. To improve your ball toss, create a habitual routine for yourself, a system. Toss the ball in the same manner every single time. Remember that the toss must be high enough to allow yourself to extend your arm.… Read the rest

No Weaknesses

You have two choices; either you get rid of your weaknesses, or you don’t show them.

Don’t allow the coach to notice any flaws in your game, and if you can’t help it, make sure you do whatever you can to make up for it.

For example, if you’re a good at finishing with your right hand, but you have a hard time finishing with your left, you should be practicing for hours every day until you can finish with both hands.

If you don’t have enough time to get rid of your weakness, make sure you show off your strengths in order to prevent the coach from noticing your weakness.

Make sure you can do all the basics (layups with both hands, dribble with both hands under pressure, play defense, and play team basketball.)

Master A Skill (Your Strengths)

If you want to guarantee a spot on … Read the rest

The Platform Jump

This exercise is simple, and will allow you to test your own abilities before making any large advances, which will be the key to your own safety. For this exercise, you will need some type of platform that is completely stable and will not tip, such as a platform at your local gym, a park bench, a rock ledge, or some other platform that you can find in your local area. Stand with your feet about four inches from the ledge or platform that you will be working with, with your feet slightly apart. Squat down to prepare for your jump, making sure that you maintain good back posture, and do not begin slouching. Note, if you do begin slouching during these exercises, you will be building the wrong muscles, putting emphasis on muscles that you need to support your body, rather than jump. From here, spring … Read the rest