How do i get enough power for my volleyball serve?

Question

It is an overhand serve and I can never hit the ball hard enough

Answer 1

Volleyball Socretes is right. You need to use your whole body power. If you don't you are going to hurt your arm in time.

And be patient, remember you are part of a team therefore perfection is not necessary. Dedication and hard work will get you those awesome kills!!

Answer 2

try closing your hand and hitting it with the very top of your wrist.

:)

Answer 3

you just need to practice, it may not be how hard you are hitting it, it is just kind of hard to get at first.  but if you are able to just throw the ball over the next from behind the serving line, then you have enough strength, its just the timing and everything you need to get down.  it took me about a year to start getting consistant with my overhand serves! you just need to practice, a lot!

hope this helps! :)

Answer 4

Just try to hit about 50 volleyballs a day.

Answer 5

This is an easy trick to add power to your serve: start with your feet.

Instead of trying to *arm* it over, use the momentum of your entire body. Even if you are a biddy 90 lbs, if you use not just your arm, but all 90 lbs., you'll send the ball flying.

Here how...

Before you toss the ball to serve, if you are a righty, start with you left front in front of you, and most of your weight on your back foot, which will be, of course, your right foot. (Unless you are a three footed freak, in which case this technique will not work.) If you are a lefty, of course, vice-versa.

After you toss the ball, and you start to strike it, you should simultaneously push-off your back (right) foot, and "step through" your serve. If you step through your serve, you will get the momentum of your entire body behind the serve. After you contact the ball, and follow-through, you should continue with the step and finish with your right foot in front of your left. (If you are a lefty, of course, vice-versa.)

This push off of your back foot, will force your hips to rotate, which will force your shoulders to rotate, which will force your arm to pronate. It is a bio-mechanical chain reaction.

This motion is exactly how a tennis player servers, and how a baseball pitcher pitchers. Baseball players will tell you: good pitchers use their legs. Visualize a pitcher's wind-up. Basically, he is starting with his weight on his right foot, and "stepping through" the pitch. In volleyball, you do not need such an over-emphasized wind-up, but the concept is the same.

Feel free to follow-up if you have any more questions.

Answer 6

Enough practice will do it - a lot of it.  Don't use your shoulder, as this will give out later, and cause major problems.  The power is from your bent elbow straightening - you develop a fast elbow flick.  This can be practiced anywhere - you don't even need a volleyball to hit.  Start s-l-o-w then go faster and faster.  Never go all out fast, because your muscles need to warm up first. You always add the extra wrist curling over, upon contact with the volleyball, this adds the spin, so that your serve will always land in, and also climb the net and over any blockers.  With constant practice - this will become an automatic spike for you.

Purchase a cheap practice volleyball for $20 or under - this can take any kind of punishment outside on any surface.  You can practice throwing up the volleyball, as like in a set, then go forward and spike it against a wall somewhere.  Regular practice will ensure that you will be confident and go in with exact timing - you can vary the height later, so that you will do any kind of spike for any kind of set.  If you can practice with friends - so much the better, you can now dig, set and spike with them - still, no need for a net.  If you think this gets kinda boring (a ball and a wall) - then start some practice with your other (left?) hand/arm, because it is handy to spike with your other hand, when a set ends up in the wrong place.

Also develop a windmill serve - as this is handy for when you are tired of overhand serving.  It helps to have a serve, for when you are tired - the windmill uses your body weight, and works best when relaxed.  You can put on a lot of spin, with this serve - and for people not use to receiving this serve, it can catch them unawares.

Power will come with the practice and confidence.  You do have to work for it...

Answer 7

believe it or not if you have someone you don't like...pretend its their face. worked for me lol

Answer 8

go to the gym and lift some weights a few days a week or even if you just keep playing the game long enough you will get stronger and eventually they will start going over the net every time...

Answer 9

practice makes perfect. also, serving a volleyball doesn't take that much strenght; it takes technice.

Answer 10

get more power u need to throw the ball higher and make sure u hit the ball with a straight hand(not a floppy hand)

Answer 11

Break the serve into parts and practice them separately.  

If you are right handed, stand with your left foot forward.  Toss the ball so that it is about 2 to 3 feet above your highest reach.  You want it to land in front of your right shoulder and about 1 foot in front of you.   Do not serve the ball.  You want to practice the tosses.  Do 10 tosses.  Take 1 minute off.  Do 10 and so on.  Try for 100 tosses.

Move to the 3 meter line (10 foot line if you prefer.)  Again, stand with your left foot forward if you are right handed.  PLANT your right foot.  Do not step with your right foot.  This way, you are using all the muscles in your body, not just your arms.  You want to try to not move your feet at all.  If you want to step, step only with your left foot and only slightly.  Get 10 serves over from the 3 meter line.  Take one step back and get 10 serves over.  Keep making 10 and stepping back until you are at the service line.  

The main problems with serves ending up short or very slow are bad tosses causing bad contacts, stepping with your right foot and mental.  If you have a bad toss, you will have a poor and weak contact.  If you step with your right foot, you will lose power.  And if you do not think you can get the serve over, you can not get the serve over.  

Keep doing all of the above drills.   Practice your tosses without serving them.  Try to do at least 100 tosses every day, 7 days a week.

Start at the 3 meter line and work your way back to the service line.  This will practice good techniques and you will also work on your mental outlook.  Since you will be successful getting the serve over, you will start to believe that you can get the serve over.

Answer 12

increase your arm strength and swing faster. and make contact with like the palm part

pretty much just practice until you get it. over hand can take some people a while and others just a few seconds