Set Your Volleyball Goals High And Don’t Stop Till You Get There.
By:Jennifer McCallister
It’s pretty self explanatory.
This has to be my favorite quote, “Set Your Volleyball Goals High And Don’t Stop Till You Get There.” It’s so true on many levels. Everytime I read it, I think of all the goals I set and the ones I’m still striving to achieve. It makes me think more in depth too, about team goals, what it takes to achieve different goals, support you have when you’re trying to reach your goal, etc.
When I look at where I’m now, playing at the collegiate level, I think back to all the goals I achieved that brought me to this point. Was it easy? No. Was it worth it? Absolutely. The best part of this quote is the ending, “it changes everything”, it really does. It makes you want to set another goal and work after it, it changes your mindset about volleyball in terms of how much love you have for it, and it changes the way coaches see you as a player. So many positive things come from achieving a goal related to your sport.
You could choose one goal out of the millions there are to choose from. No matter what the goal may be for you, it will make a difference. You learn from these goals when you achieve them, or when you fall short from achieving it. You can always retry the same goal, make it a little easier. That’s the joy of goals: they have no limits.
That being said, you have to work for it. Want it. Be motivated everyday to achieve that goal you set for yourself. It may takes days, weeks, or even months but the outcome will make it worth the wait. Depending on your goal, there will be tears, sweat and long hours of commitment to the sport you love.
Let’s talk about some goals.
- Get 20 kills in one match
- Gaining a faster arm swing
- Improve vertical by 3 inches
Now you have to think about ways to achieve this goal and be motivated to actually do so.
Goal 1: Get 20 kills in one match
It’s a no brainer that training will need to be involved in this goal if you want to achieve it. Whether that be at home with volleyball training equipment or taking extra time after practice to work on different shots. It’s important to hit the ball hard, but more important to know shot placement. Twenty kills may seem like a lot, but in reality, if you give 100% of your effort in practice it is completely doable.
When I said use training equipment at home, I wasn’t lying. It’s important to have the products available to you at places other than the gym. You spend a lot of time in the gym, so maybe taking that hard work home will also motivate you to keep striving toward your goal. You can get just as many, if not more, kills tipping in the right spot than hitting the ball as hard as you can. You have to be aware of the court, and where each player is. Finding open spots that will be hard for someone to get to.
Goal 2: Gain a faster arm swing
This can be obtained by hitting the ball more but also videoing yourself swinging to see what can be improved to make your arm swing faster. Obviously coaches love to stay after and help you work on things, but at times they can’t. This is why you need your own machine at home. One with a net, that you can practice hitting on. Then your parents can watch you and take videos to see how to improve.
The nice thing about this is you can practice for as long as you want, it never closes, and you don’t have to worry about other people wanting to go home. Repetition is necessary for improvement, but swinging too many times could put a damper on your shoulder and can result in an injury. While thinking of this goal, another way to achieve it would be getting stronger.
Lifting weights twice a week will make a difference. Gaining that muscle will allow your shoulder to swing many times without getting tired and sore. I’ve always been told, “volleyball is about skill, you don’t need to lift weights to be a good volleyball player”, I agree, but it’s nice to have that muscle to keep the shoulders strong.
Goal 3: Increase vertical by 3 inches
Well jump! Easy as that. Just kidding, there are many things you can do to increase your vertical, it just takes motivation and time. When I was in high school we did wall jumps. Let me tell ya, those really increased my vertical. You set them up by having someone watch you do your approach at the wall, and wherever your hand reaches to while jumping, that’s where they put the tape. (The Edge can help you increase your vertical by putting the ball just out of reach and increasing the height weekly)
My coach made us touch our piece of tape 10 times before we could move on to volleyball. Not only 10 times but after those 10 times, we had to try and get five in a row and if we did we got to move our tape up half an inch. I remember one day specifically, going to practice, I had moved my tape up the day before, it’s always harder the next time if you move your tape up. I started jumping, touched it five times, then I missed it a few times but kept jumping, missed more, got one occasionally, then after 15 minutes I had two left. By this time I was exhausted from jumping, I tried to get out of the rest but my coach wouldn’t allow.
My coaches and whole team started watching now, so my adrenaline kicked in, I missed the first one then made my last two. I still had my five in a row, and I actually made them! Now that was a lot of jumping! That’s one way to achieve an increased vertical. Box jumps are another way to work on your vertical. Even doing 3 sets of 10 will help a little if you continue doing them once a day or every other day.
Readers, do you see a pattern in how each of these goals can be achieved?
I see two: Dedication and training equipment.
I encourage you as a player, or a parent to take a look at volleyball training equipment, like The Edge Pro Volleyball Trainer. Having these products could make a huge difference in how fast yours, or your child’s, goals are achieved. As I’ve said in previous blogs, it makes practicing at home so much easier. As the quote said above, “…sticking to it changes everything” and that, to me, is something very important.