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PAN AM Volleyball Beach Footwork

pan am volleyball beach          The switch isn’t automatic. Even an experienced indoor player needs practice finding her ‘sand legs’ in beach volleyball.  Sinking and stumbling as she learns to jump and run barefoot on (possibly hot) sand is a humbling new beginning. Eventually, her muscles stabilize and she gets used to landing on both feet. Movement forwards, backwards and sideways on the sandy court becomes second nature.  By the time her focus is on entirely on strategy, her light footwork barely disrupts the level sand. The court surface isn’t the only difference. Indoor volleyball has six players per side; beach volleyball has two. The pair must pass, set up, spike, block and serve to their opponents.

“Peeling” – Fast Footwork on Defence

Mid-rally decisions are frequent. If a beach volleyball player can track an incoming attacking ball, she steps forward and blocks it back. If she decides a block isn’t possible, she quickly ‘peels’ into a back court position.

In a ‘Cross, Step, Hop’ combination movement,  the player starts from a ‘loaded position’ with knees bent, one foot in front of the other.  On the right side of the court, her right foot is in front and on the left side her left foot is in front. She

  • Pushes off front foot with open body to the court,
  • Crosses outer leg with inner leg,
  • Takes an aggressive step away from the net, and
  • Swings into a large hop to face attacker. (1)

Go to – http://www.toronto2015.org/schedule

Resources: 

http://www.toronto2015.org/beach-volleyball

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3772587/

http://www.volleyball.ca/sites/www.volleyball.ca/files/Coaching_Entraineurs/Resources/COACH-BasicBeachTechniques.pdf

http://www.volleyball.ca/sites/www.volleyball.ca/files/Coaching_Entraineurs/Resources/COACH-TheBasicsofPeeling.pdf

www.avca.org/…/Fundamentals-of-Sand-Volleyball-Part-3-Blocking.pdf  (1)

Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.   1 Corinthians 9:25 (NIV)

     TRAINING – COMPETITION – PODIUM

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PAN AM Tennis Footwork

pan am tennis         The slow-dance choreography of a tennis warm-up is a wordless, polite exercise of ground strokes, lobs, volleys, and serves.  It gets the players’ blood flowing and they get to check out the competition. In slow motion, players purposely move their feet in familiar patterns, exaggerate their hips opening to absorb power shots, hold their balance in the follow-through a bit longer, and reduce their speed in any foot take-offs and landings.  Muscle memories are re-kindled and sparks start to fire for the explosive shots to come.  But, don’t be fooled by the pace of the warm-up. It changes on the very first point.  “Love – Love” doesn’t last long.

Game on… the tennis player’s feet are constantly in motion – before, during, and after each stroke. He sets up shots to control the game and will never be caught flatfooted. He has his footwork cut out for him; it will be 5K of chasing down balls in a match. Whether sprinting for a cross court shot, sideways galloping to recover position or hopping for an overhead, a tennis player’s moves are foundational to his strokes.

One of the most aggressive tactics in tennis has a very demure name – ‘The Approach Shot’.  It is exciting to watch and to play because it is a potential game-changer.

Footwork of the Approach Shot

The player takes a powerful step forward to get off the baseline and then small, balanced steps bring her to the service line. With shoulders and torso rotated, she is sideways or perpendicular to the net. This helps her transfer weight forward as she hits the approach shot.  She takes the short ball high on the bounce or out of the air.

  • If she hits it with top spin, she stays low in a semi-open stance and rises up into and through the ball as it slams down the line.
  • If she comes into net with a slice, a ‘Carioca Step’ – her back foot goes behind her front leg – propels her forward. As she slices the ball with a smooth cutting motion, her stance is closed with knees bent.  The ball plops over the net out of the opponent’s reach.

She split steps to center her gravity, and gets ready to explode at whatever height and direction the next ball dictates.  Will she do a put-away volley on a low ball?  Or, will she pedal backwards and hit an overhead on a mid-court high ball?  Then again, maybe she already got the point with her approach shot.

Go to – http://www.toronto2015.org/schedule

Resources: 

http://www.toronto2015.org/tennis

http://www.optimumtennis.net/tennis-footwork.htm

http://www.runnersworld.com/fun/distance-run-per-game-in-various-sports

http://www.tennisserver.com/tennis-warrior/warrior_03_11.html

http://elitetennistraining.com/free-online-tennis-lessons/the-approach-shot/

Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.   1 Corinthians 9:25 (NIV)

TRAINING – COMPETITION – PODIUM

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PAN AM Squash Footwork

pan am squash          Squash players maintain a continuous physical, mental and emotional connection with the ball.  This parlays into skillfully executed footwork and winning shots in a graceful game of active deception. At the highest skill level, players try to outwit each other – anticipating not just the bounce of the ball but ‘reading’ their opponents’ moves, adjusting their counter-moves, and trying to make their own next move even more ‘unreadable’.  Good judgment lies behind good predictions which can then lead to good reactions. A player must get to the ball before his opponent even hits it.

Anticipating the Moves

What are the keys to early anticipation?  A squash player uses the ball’s travel time to read his opponent’s body language in his set up and stroke. He checks all the visual cues, weighing them against his familiarity with the player. He assesses footwork relative to the ball’s position, weight transfer, length and height of back swing, racquet grip, and angle of wrist.  He knows what to do…unless, the opponent ‘pulls a fast one’ and strategically pauses, leaving his shot option to the last microsecond.

Making the Moves

Anticipation doesn’t take place in isolation.  The squash player uses the ball’s travel time to position himself to retrieve all possible shots. In between shots, he generally moves back to the ‘T’ at centre court and gets ready. He does a fast hop and quarter squat, a ‘split step’, landing on feet shoulder width apart to regain balance.  The split step stretches all the muscles that will propel the player instantly and powerfully to the ball.

Squash players do not ‘run’ through the ball in the way that tennis players are trained to.  By the time they get within striking distance of the ball, squash players have already stopped their centre of gravity, transferring weight into the shot and then moving back to the ‘T’.  Lunges are the move of choice with the many directional demands on the body, especially if the ball is low.  A reaching lunge can be elegant; the non-racquet arm counterbalances the outstretched racquet arm. The ball gets a good whack, hopefully as the opponent was blinking.

Go to – http://www.toronto2015.org/schedule

Resources: 

http://www.toronto2015.org/squash

http://www.bettermovement.org/2011/movement-of-week-squash/

http://www.squashgame.info/squashlibrary/9/19

http://squashmagazine.ussquash.com/2014/05/movement-and-shot-mechanics-full-court-press/

http://www.colorado.edu/StudentGroups/squash/movement.html/

Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.   1 Corinthians 9:25 (NIV)

TRAINING – COMPETITION – PODIUM