that’s being pulled. Keep rolling your head until it’s tilted back and you’re looking straight up. You should feel the stretch in your neck. Do this on both sides for about 30 seconds. • Lat stretch — For this one, grab the inside of a pole or part of a weight rack with your thumb down and lean or turn slightly toward the arm that you’re stretching. You should feel the stretch just below the armpit and down the side of your body. • Pec stretch — The pec stretch is done by using a pole, wall, weight rack bar or a door frame. Prop your arm against the pole/wall/door frame and lean into it at various angles to stretch out the front of your shoulder or pectoral muscle. You should feel the stretch in the front of the shoulder and through the chest. Be gentle when performing any of these stretches and similar to the foam rolling (#5 below) your goal should be to feel some of the tension release.
5. FOAM ROLLING Purpose: Two areas of the leg that should be foam rolled – both demonstrated here by Will – are the lateral and front sides of the thigh. The lateral thigh consists of the IT-Band (iliotibial band) and lateral quad, which run down the outside of the leg from the hip area to below the knee. The front thigh consists of the quad muscle on the upper front part of your leg. Foam rolling is particularly beneficial if you’re transitioning from indoor to beach because sand is less stable than a gym floor and places different demands on your body. Soft tissue maintenance with a foam roller is a great complement to your regular stretching routine. How they’re done: With these exercises and any other type of rolling, you should start with the roller at the top of the muscle and work it down searching for any tender spots. Once you locate these spots, spend a little time moving the roller up and down over each specific area. Typically, you’ll spend about 30 seconds at each sensitive area, but what’s most important is that you work it until you feel some of the tenderness go away.
6. STRENGTH BAND PULL-THROUGH Purpose: Pull-throughs, demonstrated by Stafford, help keep the muscles in the back of your upper legs as strong as the muscles in the front. Volleyball players often become dependent on their quads (front muscles) but are usually not as strong in the opposing muscles, or the glutes and hamstrings. Keep in mind, these muscles help your athleticism just as much if not more than the quads. How it’s done: Pull a strength band through your legs as you raise your upper body from a bent-forward position to straight up and down. When doing this exercise, it’s very important that you keep your shins vertical and keep your back flat. Drive your hips forward as you raise your upper body. Your hamstring and glutes should be doing all the work, and your lower back should be straight during the entire movement. Keep your shoulder blades back.
Stronger athletes can step out farther or use a thicker band. Always be careful not to step out too far or use a band that is too weak as it might snap and break while performing the exercise. Half an inch to one inch is generally a good thickness. Reps: 5-15.
Anthony Darmiento is a performance coach with his master’s in
strength and conditioning. He currently works with the USOC, USA Vol- leyball, and USA Water Polo programs. Aimee Miyazawa is currently the head athletic trainer for the USA Volleyball Beach National Teams and previously worked with the University of Kansas women’s indoor vol- leyball team.
USAVOLLEYBALL.ORG | 45
by Will Montgomery 5
FOAM
ROLLING: Demonstrated
by Stafford Slick 6
STRENGTH BAND PULL-THROUGH: Demonstrated
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