Volleyball Strength Training
the Hamstrings
Develop stronger, more functional hamstring strength for volleyball
Your volleyball strength training should include a balance of functional strength exercises.
Often exercises that work to strengthen the hamstrings are left out of training.
Hamstrings have two major functions…
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Knee flexion
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Hip Extension
Your volleyball strength training should involve exercises for both hip extensor function and
knee flexor function.
Hamstrings are connected as part of a chain to the gluteal and back extensor
muscles.
A few good hamstring functional strength training exercises are…
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Deadlift
Deadlifts are a great total body exercise that work hip extension power, the guteal and hamstring muscles.
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Romanian Deadlift
With the Romanian Deadlift, you are performing a deadlift variation
involving less knee flexion to work the
hamstrings more effectively.
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Single Leg Deadlift (SLDL)
The Single Leg Deadlift trains coordination and balance
while working the hamstings. This is a great
functional exercise because it trains the hamstrings while also training the core in an unstable environment.
Conventional deadlifts, Romanian deadlifts, and single leg deadlifts, are all great
volleyball strength training exercises that work the hamstrings in conjunction with the hips.
However, another great exercise for training the hamstrings involves lying on the ground using a physioball.
Physioball Leg Curl
Even though this lying-down position is not specific to sprinting or jumping, this is a perfect example of how a
nonfunctional position can be made extremely functional.
The arrows in the photo above
represent the horizontal forces acting on the legs and hips at the start of the physioball leg curl. The legs are push against the ball, lifting the hips
upward.
This photo shows the top position of the two leg physioball curl.
This movement is done by first starting in glute bridge position by lifting
your hips up off the ground. Then, while keeping your hips and core activated,
roll the ball towards you by using your hamstrings and keeping your glute
muscles activated. Each repetition is performed by rolling the ball to 90 degree
knee flexion and then back to glute bridge start position.
During the volleyball approach, the foot is in contact with the ground and
the bodys center mass is being moved over the foot.
The foot acts as the origin of movement, not the hips.
The arrows in this photo represent the horizontal forces during the plant
phase of foot steps during the volleyball approach.
Do you see how the movement of the physioball leg curl and volleyball
approach
are similar?
The arrows represent the horizontal forces of the middle hitter during the
approach. The hips are powered forward (the top arrow), the planted foot is
pulling back (bottom right arrow), and the ground reaction forces are pulling
forward (bottom left arrow).
The physioball leg curl exercise lacks the vertical forces of running and jumping
but closely simulates the horizontal forces experienced on the hips and hamstrings during the plant phase of forward movement.
The photo on the right is top position of a single leg curl. The single leg curl involves the same movement as the two leg curl except
the exercise is much more difficult because you must balance using just one leg. This exercise trains a high level of core stability,
which is crucial to developing strength and explosive power.
All volleyball players should have volleyball strength training exercises that focus on functional biomechanics as part of their strength training.
Be cautious of exercises that resist a muscle’s nonfunctional motion for the sake of strengthening that muscle in an isolated action
(for example, a machine leg curl).
Doing so could possibly create muscular imbalances and add to dysfunctional movement.
Physioball Leg Curl Vs. Machine Leg Curl
With machine leg curls, the hips aren't being activated. The hamstrings are
being used in isolation. Also, the machine stabilizes the body during
movement. Not only is this exercise non-functional, but you may actually be
training yourself to be less athletic. To be effective at making athletic plays
in volleyball, a significant part of your volleyball strength training should
involve developing core stability strength.
The physioball leg curls are good for volleyball strength training because the hips are activated much like they are when
making athletic forward movements such as sprinting or jumping.
Core stability is trained by keeping constant tension in the hips and hamstrings during the exercise
movement.
Also, the glutes are fired first which is important when considering the
importance of firing the right muscles at the right time.
Shoulder Warm Up Next Page-->
Functional Volleyball Strength Training Related Pages
Volleyball Player Functional Training
Assessing Functional Strength
Shoulder Stabilization Strength
Volleyball Strength Training Hamstrings to Smarter Volleyball Training
From Hamstrings to Strength and Power for Volleyball
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