THE HORSEPOWER FACTOR

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What's the biggest and most important muscle group for playing volleyball?

That's right. You're sitting on it.

The "glutes" are a group of muscles including the large gluteus maximus along with a network of smaller muscles that work together to help stabilize the legs and torso.

This muscle group is known as the powerhouse of all athletic movement.

Glute muscles are mainly responsible for hip extension.

That means it provides the initial push needed to get up from the bottom of a squat, along with the final stretch of the thigh that gives athletes the explosive power needed for jumping and cutting movements.

How well these muscles work together is known as the
"Horsepower Factor".

Want to improve your volleyball vertical jump and court explosiveness?

Simple. Strengthen the glutes.

But hold on a second, there's even more reason to focus on strengthening your posterior.

The glutes aren't just for jumping higher and moving faster.

The glutes are also responsible for spiking power.

Hitting the ball hard in volleyball is all about "turning your body".

A powerful spike is the byproduct of the rotational torque created by the uncoiling of the hips, core and torso.

To the strength and conditioning coach, this is known as rotational power.

A hitter in volleyball is a rotational athlete.

When you hit, the power comes from the pelvis. The pelvis turns the shoulders. The arm comes through last.

Spiking power begins and ends with the glutes.

A common question I get asked is, "How can I spike the ball harder?"

You might think the answer is to focus on shoulder strength.

Or you may even consider strengthening the core.

I agree that improving strength is part of the answer.

However, I'm more concerned about teaching your body to use the strength you've got.

Want to jump higher? Want to hit harder?

Your explosiveness begins and ends with the glutes.

Follow the link for more info on how to train the glute muscles for volleyball.