Inspired Journey Fitness

6 TRX exercises to improve your volleyball game

A strong core is required in every action you perform during the game. A player with a weak core won’t be able to block a strong opponent’s hit, dig up a killer serve, or serve a wicked ball.

Hitting, blocking, and jump serving require powerful legs and the ability to move unilaterally. Strengthening the legs independently through single leg exercises will push your performance through the roof.

Getting the most power from your serves and hits requires strong shoulder, back, and chest muscles. Even more important is the ability to rely on the rotational ability of your core. Imagine a baseball player swinging a bat without rotating the body. It’s the same thing with volleyball. Your power comes from the rest of the body and your arms are just the means to contact the ball. If all the action comes from the arms alone, you’ll destroy your arm while making a disappointing strike.

In this video, we’ll show you a series of 6 exercises to help your game.

The workout consists of 6 different exercises designed to target various muscle groups. The exercises and the muscle groups targeted are:

• TRX Power Pull – Back, shoulders, biceps, transversus abdominis
• TRX Chest Press – Chest, shoulders, triceps
• TRX High Rotation – Abdominals, shoulders, latissimus dorsi
• TRX Balance Lunge – Quadriceps
• TRX Suspended Pike – Abdominals, hip flexors
• TRX Suspended Hip Press – Hamstrings, glutes, back extensors

If you don’t have a TRX yet, get your own TRX Suspension Trainer!

I’d like to let you in on a little known secret to make a huge impact on your flexibility and range of motion. It’s one of my favorites and it’s incredibly effective.

This technique is called self-myofascial release and it uses a foam roller. You can find these rollers at almost any place that sells fitness equipment.

The principle activated through this technique is called autogenic inhibition and in it’s simplest terms, it involves applying pressure to a tight muscle to signal to that muscle that it’s OK to relax.

Watch this video and then run out to get your own foam roller.

The worst push ups ever!

Before the middle schools in the meet took the track, the high school team was still completing their practice. There was a group of 20 or so male athletes on the infield grass. They were going through a series of conditioning drills which included lunges, squats, reverse crunches, planks, and more. Their form was terrible and they really looked like they were just going through the motions, thinking about how fast they could get through the exercises and not focusing on quality and getting the benefit from the time they spent. Especially when the coach turned his back.

One exercise really caught my attention though. The worst push ups EVER! Bodies were flopping around, middles sagging, butts up in the air. One participant was pretty tall and from a distance looked like he had a bit of muscle on his frame and he probably had the poorest form of all. His arms were moving and his chest was coming up, but the rest of his body was staying on the ground. His waist and legs never left the ground the whole time. Imagine Gumby doing a push up, how’s that for a visual?

These are high school athletes?

A couple of lessons here:

1. Focus on quality. Don’t just blast through the workout to say you’re done. Think about your goal and how the workout is getting you a step closer. If your goal is to get it over with, blowing through the workout as quick as possible so you can get back to your cell phone and catch that all-important text message, then follow the high schoolers routine. If you really want to get stronger, do it right. It doesn’t take much longer. Everything else is just a waste of time.

2. Learn do exercise properly. Maybe they didn’t know they were doing it all wrong. Maybe nobody ever worked with them to show them how to get the most from the exercise. Maybe you’ve never had that help either. If you’re not sure if you’re getting the most from your workout program, ask for help.

If you want to know the right way to do a push up, here are a couple of examples that anyone can do!

I hope you’re having a great Easter. I’m enjoying the day with family, but I’ll be sure to get a quick workout in too.

If you’re looking for a fun challenge, my daughters and I had fun putting this one together. Try the Cottontail Crusher, my new Easter themed workout.

There’s a video of the workout below. If you’d like to have the list of exercises and times delivered right to your e-mail, along with more free workouts in the future, just sign up below.

Happy Easter!

 

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Try this full body exercise

This dynamic exercise gets the whole body involved and gets your heart pumping, while also challenging your balance system. In this video, I’m using a 3kg medicine ball.

Watch the video right here!

This week’s video is an advanced exercise that will challenge your core and balance.

Stability Ball Drop and Cross Video

Click here to learn how to do the stability ball drop and cross.

Mountain Climber Exercise Video

My latest video highlights a great exercise that you probably remember from your high school days.  At the time, you probably thought it was torture.  But it was really a great cardio and functional strength building exercise. 

Click here to see a video of the Mountain Climber!

Strengthen your core with the Stability Ball Pass

You’re either going to love or hate this exercise, but there’s no doubt that it will help you develop a strong core.

Click here to build the core you’ve wanted with the Stability Ball Pass

Try the Stability Ball Jacknife for a Powerful Core and Abs

This is one of my favorite exercises! 

If you’re ready for an advanced exercise to improve your core strength and challeng your balance, try the Stability Ball Jacknife. 

Click here to learn the Stability Ball Jacknife.

Spice up your routine with the Stability Ball Tuck and Extend

A lot of exercisers think the only exercise they can do to build their core is to do endless crunches.

Boring. 

Too much spinal flexion. 

Boring. 

Isolates the Rectus Abdominus while not recruiting other muscles. 

Boring.

Spice up your routine with the stability ball tuck and extend

Too easy for you? Add a push up as you extend your legs.