Marie Zidek
Asst. Volleyball Coach
University of San Diego
After my introductory video where I conveyed how important the coach is in the health and development of student athletes across a lifespan, it occurred to me that you may need to know WHAT you need before even starting your training plan.
First, let’s be honest. Most of you have very limited budgets. If you’re lucky, you have a club or high school facility where you can find a weight room and/or some conditioning equipment. If you have access to these items, great! You will be able to get going right away. If not, take a look at the resources listed below in order to piece meal your “sport performance training on the go” resources relative to your own coaching situation.
Second, for most of us, we are lucky to get in two sessions of 30-45 minutes per week. For those that have more time, plan to get in three sessions per week for 45-60min each session.
Keep in mind your workouts will consist of a selection of exercises from the following components: dynamic warm-up (one that also touches on athlete stuck-points at the hips and shoulders as well as has a Knee Injury prevention component), speed/ conditioning, agility, weights, and power endurance (med-ball). Also exercises will have a CORE component in them, so no need to have a separate section for crunches or other CORE exercise that are so commonly practiced but have little to no functional benefit. A great workout program should hit all components in a multi-faceted and functional way.
In an ideal world, here are the pieces you need for the most comprehensive training plan:
- Weight room with dumbbells/ kettle bells, barbells, Olympic sized weights, and some pull up bars
- Thera-balls
- Med-ball set
- Hurdle set
- Resistance bands
- Shoulder injury prevention resistance tubing
- Speed ladder
- Cones
- Rope
- Jump boxes
- Over-running/resistance band kit
In the world without access to a facility, here are the best items to acquire on a low budget (you can also keep this equipment with you in your car if you’re on the go):
- 2 med-balls (one at a heavier weight and one at a lighter weight relative to your team’s age)
- Couple of shoulder injury prevention resistance tubing
- 1 Thera-ball
- 2 kettle bells (one at a heavier weight and one at a lighter weight)
- Speed ladder or rolls of tape
- Two-three hurdles
Worst case scenario…for those with literally peanuts of a budget:
- Theraball
- Medball
- Set of dumbbell weights (weight is dependent upon your team’s age)
- A couple of resistance bands
- Rolls of tape (any kind that won’t mark the floor)
Article written by Marie Zidek - Assistant Volleyball Coach at University of San Diego & Chris Dresher - Assistant Director of Sports Performance at Depaul Unversity
