Beach volleyball is one of the few sports where shape makes more difference than skills. Indeed, since the game takes place in sand, the movements take a lot more efforts to be well executed …
That’s why; beach volley players should learn how to stay in proper shape during the season and off-season.
In this article I breakdown some highly effective tips to help you reach those high levels of shape and how you can effectively maintain them.
Most important attributes to be in great shape
Below are the most important physical attributes you should have to be in full shape …
Endurance: is what will help you to process for a longer period of time without getting really exhausted. Endurance can be enhanced by continuing a given exercise for a longer period. For instance, a person can involve himself in activities like semi-marathons.
Strength: is the attributes that mean you can overcome resistance. Lifting and pushing weights is a great way to get that. You can do some kinds of bodyweight training by executing exercises involving dumbbell and rods.
Diet Discipline: Good shape is always associated with discipline including the one related to Diet. Indeed, Diet discipline is one of the major factors behind being in great shape. A physically fit person will always follow a healthy and balanced diet and always try to avoid any junk.
Consistency: This is by far the most crucial attribute of any individual who is in great shape. No matter what you do, if you are not consistent in it, then you won’t see the results you’ve hoped for.
Tips to get in shape for beach volleyball during the season
The on-season is indeed a tough time for every beach volleyball player where he has to stay in his best physical abilities. Below are some effective tips to be able to do so …
Workout 5 times a week: getting fit during the season is not an easy task. You actually need to work at your upmost capacity. Working out 5 times a week is important if you plan to get fit during the season. This will also help maintain your overall shape. However, keep in mind that if you are not used to such a pace, then you should take it slowly at the beginning.
Focus on compound exercises: compound exercises are those exercises that focus on multiple body parts at a time. Squats, bench press, deadlifts are some examples of such exercises. These would train multiple body parts and help you get results faster. These can be paired with exercises like burpees to further enhance the process.
Quick Tip: When it comes to getting in shape, some people prefer some exercises more than others. That’s why it is important to have options to choose from until you come across the type of exercises that you actually like and need. For example, this Helpful Resource has a full library of exercise variations that you can choose from. Each of them will help you get in full shape for any sport including sand volleyball.
Practice HIIT workout: these workouts are the best for an individual who aspires to get in shape. HIIT stands for high-intensity interval training. Here the body is put under a lot of pressure and the rest intervals are less. This stimulates the metabolism and helps to get rid of that stubborn fat quicker. The best part of HIIT is that it also helps to stimulate post-workout oxygen intake. That means the body continues to burn fat even after the workout.
Watch out your diet: nutrition plays a crucial role. When the body undergoes so much pressure, it must receive appropriate nutrition as well. Increasing protein intake and reducing fats is important. This fastens the muscle-building process. You should avoid cheat meals as much as you possible could. This will destroy your body!
Tips to get in shape for beach volleyball during off-season
Off-season is usually when athletes get to rest. This time isn’t that challenging yet you should focus on maintaining the shape levels you’ve gained during the season.
Below some helpful tips …
Practice 2 times a week: Now, the athlete doesn’t need to practice or work out 5 or 6 times a week. The body can take a rest. The person needs to focus on maintaining his shape during this period. This can be done by practising just 2 times a week or even a little bit more if you want to.
Make a routine of healthy habits: When the times are so easy, the person may get off track. Maintaining a routine is the key to avoiding this. You wouldn’t want to lose all what you’ve built up just because of some minor mistakes that you do daily. An example of a bad habit is smoking cigarettes. An example of a good is sleeping early.
Stay mentally ready for the next season: This rest period will not obviously go on forever. The on-season will surely come and challenge you once again. So you need to have that in the back of your mind so you can stay at least mentally ready for what’s coming.
Most important muscles you should focus on …
Below are the most important muscles that you should focus on while building your shape for sand volleyball …
Arms and shoulders: the basic requirement of volleyball is to be able to hit the ball with great power. This is where the role of arms and shoulder kicks in. a person with well-developed arms and shoulder muscles will be able to perform well in the game. Hence training them is a necessity.
Core: beach volleyball requires to move swiftly from one place to another. The good core can help an individual do all such movements without any problem. Hence you must focus on your core muscles during your workout sessions.
Glutes: glute muscles are responsible for providing stability to the individual. They also provide the person with explosive strength.
Calves: This is another important muscle in the lower body that provides the athlete with maximum explosive strength. Having developed calves will help enhancing your speed for beach volleyball. Being fast in a game is a big advantage that you should have.
How Nutrition can help?
Again, having a great diet is not a luxury element, it is rather a must! No matter how hard you train, if you don’t fuel your body with good nutritious food this will hold you back.
An ideal diet of an athlete must be full of protein and fibres and have less fat. The athlete must also avoid any junk and fried food.
Is lifting weight a good idea?
Many people tend to just focus on cardio and CrossFit training. This will indeed enhance your stamina and speed …
But strength is equally important. A person should lift weights to gain the required strength.
It’s also true that muscles get sore due to weight lifting. This may reduce the flexibility, which is very much needed in a beach volleyball game. Hence to maintain that flexibility, the athlete must focus on stretching as well.
Can you play beach volleyball being overweight?
This depends on the level you want to play at. If you just want to play this sport as a recreational activity, then the weight is not much of a hindrance…
But on the other hand, at higher levels, this game requires swift movements. Having excess weight may come in between these and create a problem.
So if you aspire to play this sport professionally, you really should be fit.
Keep in mind that with an overweight body, it would be very hard for your to increase your vertical jump for beach volleyball …
Final Thoughts …
If you are a beginner, then I am really glad that you’ve stumbled on this article because most newbies tend to miss how important being in shape is when it comes to performing in sand volleyball.
That’s why most of them tend to easily give up since they notice they can’t keep up the necessary pace to play a full game. They can’t even keep up the pace for 15 minutes straight!
Hopefully, you won’t fall into this category …