Ok, do you all seriously think spandex helps you play volleyball much better than shorts?

Question

I have read many people talking about how hard it is to move and dive when wearing shorts. And I just want to know if you people are crazy or what?

Men's players are not handicapped by wearing shorts. And your shorts do not come down when you dive unless you are very very very bad at diving.

Do you really think that spandex makes you play better?

Do you know why spandex was first used in athletics? Spandex used to be used exclusively for nonathletic clothing. A college football player was sick of wearing shirts to practice that soaked up sweat and got heavy, so he got the idea of wearing women's spandex under his stuff instead of the shirts that he had been wearing.

Now, for a volleyball player, it has much less impact. Most volleyball shorts are designed thin to help out with mobility anyway. If you are wearing thick shorts, than that may be a problem, but outside of that, shorts are not really a problem.

So, do you really think spandex is that helpful?

Answer 1

i dont think that they are helpful.

just part of the uniform.

Answer 2

s*x sells, I know I watch pro am beach volleyball because of the small two piece they wear.

Answer 3

are you obsessed with this spandex concept? why why is this so important to you? yes it is helpful but who cares? think of the homeless children, you should  be preaching about them!!

edit- i'm sorry i worry about all the children homeless, starving, dead, alive just not the kind of shorts they wear.

Answer 4

Um my answer to this as a volleyball player is that it does help you jus cuz its easier. you dont have to worry about the shorts being in your way...instead you have tight ones on... and shorts that are tight you can get weggys and is unconfortable. so yea. spandex is a way to go!!!!!!!

Answer 5

I am a volleyball player and I say yes.

It is easier to move around in.

When you have to slide on the ground it is easier because regular shorts get caught on the ground.

Answer 6

I read once, and I believe this after reading it, in Volleyball magazine, an article about the benifits of spandex.  The basic concept of the article was that tight clothing makes you more aware of of your body, where everything is, and how you move.  I still believe it.  Also, I like having as little clothing on as possible cause if you're playing hard, then you're sweatin' hard.

Answer 7

Here is why we wear spandex:

It doesn't restrict movement!

They don't necessarily make you any better of a player, that's where you seem to have gotten mixed up.  They do however, allow players comfort in movement and as a female player, we don't want people to be looking up our shorts.  Have you played in just spandex?  =)   They're extremely comfortable, lightweight and flexible.  I prefer them because it's what I'm comfortable in.

Also adding spandex with other fabrics creates a more stable, durable garment. Adding spandex to a fabric also provides a higher level of comfort, a longer shelf life, and a better resistance to perspiration and body oils. This is why spandex has become so widely used in the "Workout Wear" and "Swim Wear" industries. The level of comfort and wicking ability found in Spandex are unparalleled, and do not exist in such high amounts with any other fabric.  So there you go..thats why we like spandex... no swass for us!

Who says shorts come down when you dive?  Where are you getting these ideas?  I grew up in volleyball and I've NEVER ever heard half of this stuff.

Are you getting these ideas from people who don't even play or what?  Of course a piece of clothing does not affect your personal athletic ability, but it does allow comfort which equals better performance.

Answer 8

Psh, I hate spandex. I have a pair, but they don't help with anything. It just makes girls look really skimpy in the way they dress, and most of the time they're pulling it out of their butts too! It makes me really self conscious and I can't really do anything without feeling uncomfortable in it.

Answer 9

I think it helps you dive, and prevent pulled muscles, because the shorts are tight they heat up your muscles

Answer 10

I can understand why you think the whole spandex thing is so important. Yes, it is sexist that we wear it and the guys don't. Yes, it probably attracts more people to watch the sport, a large percentage of which are probably perverts.

But really, the spandex doesn't bother me. Maybe it's because I'm younger, and maybe it's a terrible sign of how much society is degrading or whatever, but I don't think they show that much, or that it's such a big deal to show a little skin. Jeans are just as form-fitting, and some shorts or hot-pants are just as short.

In the end, it doesn't bother me enough to raise a fuss, and although I know it doesn't hinder male volleyball players not to wear spandex, I do believe that it helps girls in some way when they are playing, even if it is a purely psychological, "I'm wearing special volleyball clothes, and they make me play better" reaction.

Maybe you can argue that female volleyball players don't need that comfort, but in the end if we "all seriously think spandex helps [us] play volleyball much better than shorts?", doesn't that mean that it must be helping people mentally?

It's not causing anyone any harm, and as long as the girls are happy to wear it, which at the moment they are, and people recieve some kind of mental boost from wearing it, why change it?

Answer 11

yes. well they dont help u be a better volleyball player, they help protect your hips when you dive.

Answer 12

It simply makes it easier for you to move more quickly because they form fit your body, as if you were wearing nothing. Also when you dive and are low they enable people to see up your shorts.

Answer 13

Shorts (or Shorts with moisture-wick style clothing under shorts) - Men

Spandex - Girls

The world is a sexist place. I've often wondered why men don't have to wear them purely to make the people who force women to wear Spandex in competition look foolish and make them out to be the old perverts that they are.

I've learned to deal with it with women, although I'll never understand why some coaches outfit their teams with the funky colors, at least blue and black hide form to an extent. Sometimes, I'll have to admit, that I've honestly felt dirty watching a 15 year old girl's game in USAV. But I have never seen a real team of boys wearing spandex alone. I want boys to tryout, I'm not trying to ruin my varsity sport. If boys had to wear spandex, I'm sure I'd have no players.

Moisture wick-style under shorts are a different thing entirely. though.

btw, to the answer above me. Don't trivialize someone's conversation by making a world view opinion. We all know there are more important things to worry about. There are even more things to worry about then homeless children... dead children. Who are you to just worry about the homeless ones? :)