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> How does someone achieve this?

Practice. There are many different drills you can do. I'm in the process of learning how to set on the beach, which is much much more strict about no spin, but less so on lifts (allowing a bit longer contact time). I've practicing for 2 years, and I'm finally close to getting it. I've found that for cushioning, you want to focus on using the muscles in the meaty pads of your hands during the catch in and push out. These muscles are connected to the very bottom of your thumbs on the inside of your hands. And for cleaning it up with less spin, I've found its more about having both left/right sides being equal in contribution. Some drills I do:

• I sit on the couch and rotate between a volleyball and basketball, setting continuously but only a few inches out of my hands. Its this but I do it on the couch during commercials. Using the basketball helps me get stronger in these muscles. This can train my thumbs and forearms/wrists (i also notice some bicep and chest/shoulder involvement). When doing this, I personally can instinctively tell that I have very little control and input with my left hand/arm, probably from years of playing basketball and shooting right handed. So I focus consciously, EVERY REP, about building up my left side so that they are equal.
  
  
• I stand against a wall and set against the wall, again just a few inches, and again continuously without stopping. I find this helps practice the cushioning when the ball comes in. Like this video. I will also rotate do sets of this with one arm. I again feel this in my fingers, but I also feel it in my shoulders, especially when I'm using the heavier basketball.
  
  
• Another thing I do is just stand up outside, or in a gym with high ceilings, and i just toss a ball up maybe 2 feet above my head, set it, and then catch it. So this is just one set, not continuous. This is a little more realistic, this helps me focus on having both hands up and both sides ready to equally contract and contribute. And I practice being stronger and pushing a real set higher. I like to use an overweight heavy setting ball for this, but again I rotate. I feel this more in my chest/shoulders. With this, I can then toss the ball higher, to replicate a higher pass, and therefore more gravity bringing the ball down faster, which requires more strength to absorb. I can also toss the ball to myself with spin, to practice absorbing an incoming pass that has backspin (such as when a teammate had to pass a bomb jumps serve).
  
  
• Visualization. Find some videos on youtube of good setters, and visualize the sets, and what the feeling is that they are experiencing during ball contact. Try to remember this feeling, and replicate it on every single rep you practice. Practice is meant to be challenging, and extremely focused, and mentally tiring, because you are pushing yourself beyond your comfort zone.
  
  What's also helped me more recently was to RELAX during the practice rep. Before, I had these hand/forearms/shoulder muslces tense prior to contact, because I wanted to make it perfect. Now I relax everything and let the ball fall in. This exposes strength deficiencies, and now I'm training the eccentric/absorption strength needed as the ball falls in. And then I'm still somewhat relaxed as I push the ball out (concentric), but now by being more relaxed I can more easily discern what other small muscles may be needed, but arent contributing properly because the other stronger ones were overpowering them.
  
  Also, practice daily. Even 5 minutes a day is better than 2 hours once a week. Your brain will build the connections faster. Practice should be extremely focused on working on the muscles you need to execute the perfect set. Do not just rep out 100 sets mindlessly going through the motions.

Not sure if you're still investigating or not, but I've been a loyal Mizuno fan for over 15 years now. I've actually made a transition from vball shoes to running shoes, and just bought the Wave Rider 18 and wore them for a tournament yesterday (with Active Ankle T2 braces) and I have to say that they were amazingly comfortable. Tons of cushioning, great support, breathable, and off of Amazon, the style I wanted was only $65. Hope this can be helpful!

So many choices. Shoes are nice especially if she's still growing. Ankle braces are nice and not a lot of people have a pair. She likely has knee pads so won't need those any time soon. A ball is nice even if she has one. I'd go for the super touch, /u/Kace10 provided a link. They're cheaper on Amazon. If she ever plays beach, an outdoor ball is a good gift here or here. Lines are also a nice gift, a little pricier here. If she has more than say, 2 balls, a mesh bag is nice here. Or even a regular bag for shoes, ball, towel, etc., you can get those anywhere.

I use the Mizuno Men's Wave Lightning RX2 Volleyball Shoe and I really like them. Light, good grip. I got them in Nov 2014, I play indoor from fall to spring about 3 days a week and they've held up pretty well. They are beat up for sure at this point, but outside of the laces fraying a bit, they seem fine. I did replace the insole, but I do that on all my shoes since stock insoles are shit. Personally I really really like the mesh on the shoe, helps it breath really well, which is a big thing for me personally.



That being said, I haven't used any true volleyball or basket ball shoe. I wish I had enough money to just by like 5 pairs and test them all, but yeah, money. I may try some Asics next.

Hey,

The fact that you know where you need improvement on is a great start. Severing for any volleyball player is always a truggle in the beginning. Practice practice and more practice. I seen a great serving volleyball ball aid call Ace Pal. (Link Here) No need to chase the ball around. At times when you serve the ball, it how you throw the ball in the air before the hit. Make sure your arms are straight and your hand is in the position you will like it be.

-Good Luck

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> -I want to commit to play collegiate volleyball.

What year are you? I highly recommend getting started on this ASAP, especially if you are a guy because opportunities are more limited for men's volleyball. I wrote a book on how to get recruited for college volleyball. It's $5 on Amazon but it will help you tremendously with the recruiting process. If you have any additional questions, please shoot me a PM and I'm happy to help :)

Aircast A60

https://www.amazon.com/Aircast-Ankle-Support-Brace-Medium/dp/B00NOW6RM6/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1502857497&sr=8-1&keywords=aircast%2Ba60&th=1

For the record, I don't play vball. I'm a tennis player and I'm a little aggressive on the court, so I need ankle support, at the very least, for confidence. I've tried a bunch out, and these are by far the best. Definitely on the pricey side, but I love these because they are the strongest and quickest/easiest to put on out of anything I've tried. Highly recommend. Also used by Andy Murray (tennis player, among a few others)

As a novice (read: getting back into) in the weightroom, basically anything you do will improve your fitness level.

You're likely going to want to invest time in learning mobility and maintenance drills. That book will also help you correct form faults in the Olympic and other bigger lifts. If you get any book in this post, get the one mentioned in this paragraph.

Clean and Snatch variations for explosive power. Squat and Deadlift are full-body workouts. You can't clean more than you deadlift, so think of squat and deadlift as your strength leaders while clean and snatch are your explosive exercises. Since you're just starting 3setsx5reps is a good place to start.

Get into yoga or Pilates on the ball to work your core muscles.

You're going to want to work your shoulders, so side/front raises, etc. Triceps/biceps (If you work one side, work the other at least for balance) are important so dips or tricep extensions are useful as are pullups/chinups. Pushups and/or bench press variations.

Don't do jump training (which are Plyometrics)[1][2][3] until you have a strength base in your squat of 1.5x-2x your bodyweight. This is partially because plyos don't build strength, they train the CNS for the stretch-shortening cycle and your "explosiveness", so to speak, is a percentage of your strength (a loose guide of maximum strength is how much weight you can safely squat). Learn how to use plyos before actually doing them. They are fairly low rep, full-recovery type exercises. Maybe 100 jumps in a training session (remember, this are meant to be trained more explosively than the 300+ jumps in a match and your CNS gets tired).

Essentially look at the movements you're performing and do the exercises that fit. The big lifts (cleans/snatches/squats/deadlifts) will teach you how to set your body when jumping. You need to twist your core to start your swing to hit a ball, you'll need to have a stable shoulder so that you can finish your swing up through your pec/tricep/forearm.

If you're interested in learning more about squatting, etc this book is as good a place to any to start, but the book mentioned in the first paragraph can get you started as well.

[1] Basic Plyos

[2] More Plyos

[3] Higher Level Plyos

Very concise. I was also going to suggest something like Starting Strength. However, I definitely would not recommend that someone jump right into the more complex lifts like Cleans or Snatch without having someone with experience around to watch your form.

Another great resource for the big lifts is Becoming a Supple Leopard by Kelly Starrett. It has excellent information on the proper form for the big lifts like squat, deadlift, clean and jerk, and snatch. It also has tons of information on mobility exercises to help with your weak areas.

Hey! I also live in Chicago and have an entire beach set up for this summer. I got my net from Amazon, but mines a little heavy duty and honestly is kind of a pain to set up (it has steel cables and I use ratchet straps), but once it’s set up it’s beautiful.

If you want a simple tie down net, I’d recommend the HD2 from here:

https://www.volleyballusa.com/volleyball-nets/beach-volleyball-nets/

Here’s the net that I bought. I love it because the top and bottom of the net get super tight with the ratchet straps, so the ball rolls off the net beautifully. But like I said it’s kind of a pain to set up because it’s heavy and the steel cables are longer than the width of the poles, so you have to wrap one end around a couple times.


Park & Sun Sports Regulation Size Indoor/Outdoor Professional Volleyball Net with Steel Cable Top and Bottom, Blue https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0009PVUR8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_-iQmDb5YRQHK6

You can’t go wrong with either of those though.

I just bought [This one] (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0063NDCGW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) and its legit. Pretty good so far and definitely worth the money.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004Y6AKYW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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You can have an easier time differentiating if the ball is in or out with 2 inch lines, especially at the beach, it's great. The only thing you would have to get is a pack of stakes from WalMart/Target or your local hardware station for $5 because the stakes these come with are plastic and break easily.

I played on this net yesterday and it was actually really great. I have the Spectrum Classic by Park and Sun. Then net at Costco is Not as good as the Spectrum classic. (but it's also $190 cheaper).

If you want a quality net, and aren't going to be shelling out over $230 any time soon, I highly recommend this net. I can't believe it's only $70 after the discount. (It comes with a shitty ball, and you might want to go to Home Depot and buy a few flat head nails so you can hammer the net into the ground. Other than that I was very impressed by everything in the bag. Note: the poles are steel instead of aluminum, thus it is heavier the the Spectrum Classic

I play beach spring-fall every year and usually wear through at least one pair of vincere sandsocks. This year I switched to these neoprene socks and they work much better. I just played last week in 45deg weather with a pair on these + wool ankle socks and my feet were totally fine.

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https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07B7CP4ZL/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1

My area uses the Spalding KOB for the majority of the time, but definitely check with your area. If your community prefers the Wilson AVP ball, nobody will want to use the KOB even if you buy it.

Also, make sure you're getting the real balls, not replicas. The price point usually tells you which is which

You know what bro, I am not 100% sure. The last tournament I played in I was told that that they will switch to the AVP one because things changed. I play BB or A so I don't care much. I will double check and let you know in the future.

For amazon, if you are talking about this, then yeah there is a different between the two balls (gold vs the yellow printing). I bought that same one and got the yellow printing. I think they both are just listed together because they have the same UPC?

We have this one by Park & Sun and live near the beach. It is very nice. In sand you need really good stakes, the little tent stakes don't hold in sand.

Within your price range, Park & Sun SPORT nets are the best IMO for quick, easy, and sturdy setup in grass (I think they have sand kits too). The nets are high quality and you can make them very tight so the ball plays well out of the net.

Slightly more expensive than your 100 dollar mark, but they've got other nets to chose from that are more entry level

https://www.amazon.com/Park-Sun-Sports-Regulation-Professional/dp/B0009PVUR8/ref=sr_1_1?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1512756979&sr=1-1&keywords=park+and+sun+bc-400

If you have more to spend though the Park & Sun SPECTRUM nets can't be beat. I've got 2 of them

If he doesn’t already have one, a new ball would be great

Outdoor balls are normally a little bigger and lighter than indoor balls, as well as being a different texture and more rugged.

As for indoor recommendations, assuming you're in the US, either the NCAA molten balls, or the FIVB international ball

Make sure you get an authentic one. If you want to go a little cheaper, Molten has some regular leather ones, and so does Tachikara.

As for outdoor, you're going to be looking mostly at Wilson's AVP and Spalding's King of the Beach balls

You can play with whatever you want, but outdoor balls are made for the purpose and will both survive and play better in the sand and grass.

Get the Spalding King of the Beach or Wilson AVP ball.

http://www.amazon.com/Spalding-King-Beach-Official-Volleyball/dp/B00ANSGLUC

http://www.amazon.com/Wilson-Official-AVP-Game-Volleyball/dp/B00CHX35PU

Do not get a replica ball. They are terrible.

http://www.amazon.com/Park-Sun-Tournament-Flex-Volleyball/dp/B00C87VSFO/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1427665210&sr=8-2&keywords=Park+and+Sun

Is that any good?

outdoor, i highly recommend a spalding king of the beach

Souther Cali beach players use the wilson AVP ball

Old school players use heavier Spalding kings of the beach

The Spalding KoB is better when it's windy because it's heavier but the Wilson is the current AVP ball.

There is a new version of the [Wilson AVP II] (https://www.amazon.com/Wilson-AVP-Official-Beach-Volleyball/dp/B01C5VR8SI/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1473780846&sr=8-3&keywords=wilson+sand+volleyball) ball but more expensive.

*edit: added the AVP II ball link

Make sure you get the Official KoB.. approximately 45USD, not the Replica KoB.. approximately 15USD.

I've found the official KoB for as low as 30USD if you bargain hunt long enough.

Out of the price range but you can't go wrong with this

It’s currently $45 on amazon for Black Friday sales

Interesting. So are 2016 rio olympic balls for example the same size as the slightly larger international balls?

edit: I believe it's this ball, but I'm not sure what "size 5" means or if all "size 5" balls are exactly the same size: https://www.amazon.com/Mikasa-MVA200-2016-Olympic-Yellow/dp/B001F51TYK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1485032149&sr=8-1&keywords=mikasa+rio+2016

Mizuno Wave Rider 18's

Don't think so. Looks too shiny on the black portions and doesn't have the correct logo on the bottom portion.

For comparison.