Sand Volleyball Setting Tips
Can You Set Better in Beach Volleyball?

Learn to fine tune your sand setting technique and improve your beach volleyball setting skills by facing your target and building leg muscle speed and strength

Learn to fine tune your sand setting technique and improve your beach volleyball setting skills by facing your target and building leg muscle speed and strength (Ralph Aversen)

Two important tips for you to improve your volleyball setting on the beach is for you to

• develop your sand legs and
• face the direction where you want the ball to go before and while you are setting the ball to your target.

This is valid whether you are hand setting, bump setting a ball to your teammate or whether you are shoot setting the ball across the net into the opposing team's court as an attack.

You always want to get into position first to make a beach volleyball set which means you want to avoid running and setting at the same time as much as possible. (Ralph Aversen)

This simply means that a player can't have their body face one direction and then while setting re-direct the ball outside the plane of their body in another direction to 

• set the volleyball to their teammate or
• to get the ball over the net.

When trying to improve your beach volleyball set, remember that those crafty over the shoulder "now you see me look here, but I'm going to set the ball over there" types of sets will be called for throws by the ref as setting violations every time.

Wherever the direction is that your body faces, is where you are allowed to set the volleyball ball.

You always want to get into position first to make a beach volleyball set which means you want to avoid running and setting at the same time as much as possible.

Whether you need to set the ball to a target in front of you or to one in back of you, as long as

• the ball stays within the plane of your body 
• comes out of your hands cleanly
• without being held and
• with a minimum amount of spin on the ball

then the chances are high that you've made a legal sand volleyball set.

When you set the ball as long as the ball stays within the plane of your body, comes out of your hands cleanly without being held with little spin then you've made a legal set. (R. Aversen)

Beach Volleyball Setting: What are sand legs? To be clear sand legs happen when your leg muscles are strengthened by consistent exercising in the sand. (Ralph Aversen)

What are sand legs?

To be clear sand legs happen when your leg muscles are strengthened by consistent exercising in the sand.

While training with pro beach volleyball women Nina Matthies and Elaine Roque, I had to learn that until I got my "sand legs" if I set the ball on the run while trying to use my hands, I was increasing my chances of being called for a throw or a lift because I hadn't developed yet

• the speed or
• the strength

needed to have my body completely positioned underneath the ball to deliver a clean overhand volleyball set.

For girls and female volleyball players transitioning from the indoor game to the beach  it takes some time to develop your "sand legs".

This was one of the beach volleyball setting tips that took me a little while to get used to but I learned it thankfully at the beginning of my career.

While I was consistently training in the sand which would help me develop my leg strength, I still needed to be able to perform beach volleyball skills in a way that would allow me to gain maximum control of the ball without making unforced errors.

This should be your goal too!

Be sure to check out more beach volleyball articles below.

This has been an important message by your favorite volleyball coach! That's me!!

Thanks for visiting.

Be sure to check out more of my volleyball articles by clicking one of the links below!  (April Chapple)

Follow me on Instagram @coach_apchap to improve your game even faster!

I share alot of individual, partner and easy-to-do volleyball serving drills we do in class with my followers.

Many of these volleyball practice drills you can do at home by yourself or try at your next practice with your teammates.

If you're a B team or JV player trying to make varsity next year...your goal should be to complete 1000 reps a day of at least three of the basic skills on your own...volleyball passing, serving and setting should be at the top of the list. 

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