Exercise of the Week: Y,T,W,L's

Level: Beginner to Advanced

Specificity: Shoulder stability

Goal: Injury prevention

Equipment: Physioball

This week we'll continue our series on shoulder stability with Y,T,W,L's. Again, our exercise this week is Y,T,W,L's not YMCA--sorry Village People fanatics.

The shoulder joint provides the greatest range of motion of any joint in the human body. Maintaining a healthy shoulder is crucial to success and longevity in volleyball as the shoulder is involved in all the major skills - serving, setting, digging, blocking and hitting. However, frequent use of a joint that provides such a wide range of motion can increase our risk for injury.

Our focus this week is providing a stable base for the shoulder, specifically the rotator cuff, by strengthening the scapulothoracic joint (shoulder blade, rib cage). The anatomy of the scapulothoracic joint can be seen here:

Y,T,W, and L refer to the position of the arms during each movement of this series. Although it may look simple this series is very challenging and beneficial. The start position for each movement is shown here:


Y: Lie with stomach on physioball with knees against ball. With arms relaxed in front of the ball begin by raising arms in front of you at a 45-degree angle so the body and arms form a Y. Aim for long arms and point your thumbs up, think Arthur Fonzarelli. Hey...Perform 8 repetitions and then move on to the T.


T: Lie with stomach on physioball with knees against ball. With arms relaxed in front of the ball begin by raising the arms directly to the side to form, you guessed it, a T with the body and arms. Point you thumbs up as you did in the Y. As you lift your arms retract, or draw your shoulder blades (scapula) together. Perform 8 repetitions and then move on to the W.

W: Lie with stomach on physioball with knees against ball. With arms relaxed in front of the ball bend your arms at the elbow, retract your scapula, rotate your hands back with your thumbs down, pinky fingers up while keeping your elbows tight to your ribs, forming a W. Perform 8 repetitions and then move on to the L.

L: Almost there! Lie with stomach on physioball with knees against ball. With arms relaxed in front of the ball, lift your elbows toward the ceiling and bend your arms so the upper arms are parallel to the floor. You should have a 90-degree angle at your elbows. Retract your scapula and externally rotate your arms until the backs of hands face the ceiling. Perform 8 repetitions and then relax, you deserve it!

Sets/Reps: Begin with 32 total reps (8 for each exercise) with no additional weight. These movements are much harder than they look. After 4 weeks, add 2 repetitions each week until you can complete 16 reps per exercise. At this time, if you have perfected your technique, you can consider trying this series with 1-2 pound dumbbells for 8 reps per movement.

Perform this series once or twice per week for best results.

Thanks for reading and be sure to check back next week for part IV of our series on shoulder stabilization for injury prevention.

See you on the beach!

Eric Hand, MA, CSCS

Exercise Physiologist and Strength and Conditioning Specialist
Fast Twitch Fitness

"We're all athletes. Some of us are just farther along in our training."

Pictures from www.stacktv.com and www.shoulderdoc.co.uk

Exercise of the Week: Subscapularis Stretch

Level: Intermediate to Advanced

Specificity: Shoulder stability

Goal: Injury prevention

Muscles Used: Subscapularis, Pectoralis Major, Deltoids

Equipment: Broomstick

This week we'll continue our series on shoulder stability. The shoulder joint provides the greatest range of motion of any joint in the human body. Maintaining a healthy shoulder is crucial to success and longevity in volleyball as the shoulder is involved in all the major skills - serving, setting, digging, blocking and hitting. However, frequent use of a joint that provides such a wide range of motion can increase our risk for injury.

Any program designed to promote the health and longevity of the shoulder should include a balance of strengthening and stretching exercises. For many of us the value of stretching is often overlooked. One of my clients put it best - "stretching is like the flossing of the exercise world, it's something that we know we should do but don't do enough." If it's been a while since you've "flossed" your shoulders, I encourage you to try this weeks exercise.

The anatomy of the shoulder and rotator cuff can be seen here:

Our focus this week will be on maintaining/increasing the range of motion of the internal rotators of the shoulder, including the subscapularis, pectoralis major, and deltoid muscles.

Start position: Stand and hold a broomstick or pole in your left arm.



Place your left arm against your abdomen with your left thumb up, pinky down.

Raise your right arm and reach back to grab the broomstick with your right pinky up, thumb down. The broomstick should rest against the back of your right arm.

Position your right arm so that your upper arm (humerus) is parallel to the ground and your forearm is perpendicular to the ground. You should have a 90 degree angle at the elbow.



With your left hand slowly pull the bottom of the broomstick forward until you feel a gentle stretch along the front of the shoulder and underneath your right shoulder blade (scapula).

Hold the stretch for 15-30 seconds and repeat 3-5 times.

Stretching is best performed at the end of a workout after you are thoroughly warmed-up. Include the Subscapularis stretch 2-3 times per week when you get back from the beach and while you're at it, sweep up all that sand you just dragged in!

Thanks for reading and be sure to check back next week for part III of our series on shoulder stabilization for injury prevention.

See you on the beach!

Eric Hand, MA, CSCS

Exercise Physiologist and Strength and Conditioning Specialist
Fast Twitch Fitness

"We're all athletes. Some of us are just farther along in our training."

Exercise pictures from www.floota.com

Exercise of the Week: Side Lying External Rotation

Level: Beginner to Advanced

Specificity: Shoulder stability

Goal: Injury prevention

Muscles Used: Infraspinatus and Teres Minor

This week we'll begin our series on Shoulder Stability. Maintaining a healthy shoulder is crucial to success in volleyball as the shoulder is involved in all of the major skills - serving, setting, digging and hitting. The shoulder joint provides the greatest range of motion of any joint in the body which allows us to perform the skills listed above. However, frequent use of a joint that provides such a wide range of motion can increase our risk of injury.

Our exercise this week is designed to increase the strength of the external rotators of the rotator cuff. The anatomy of the shoulder and rotator cuff can be seen here:

Why spend time to strengthen the small muscles of the rotator cuff? To put it simply, a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. When the rotator cuff muscles are weak, the rest of the shoulder complex is put at risk because it now has to take on an unnatural portion of the work.

The good news is a few simple exercises is all it takes to strengthen the rotator cuff muscles. Our first exercise, and one of the most effective strengthening exercises for the rotator cuff, is the Side Lying External Rotation.

Start position: Lie on your right side with a light dumbbell in your left hand.


Begin with your left arm bent 90°, your upper arm held tight against your ribcage and your forearm angled toward the floor.

Gradually rotate your left shoulder so that the forearm travels upwards, away from the floor. Raise the dumbbell as high as you can, without letting your upper arm lose contact with your ribcage.

Slowly return to the starting position. Complete 10 to 12 repetitions. Repeat on the opposite side.

Incorporate strengthening exercises like the Side Lying External Rotation into your conditioning routine once or twice per week for best results.

Thanks for reading and be sure to check back next week for part II of our series on shoulder stabilization for injury prevention.

See you on the beach!

Eric Hand, MA, CSCS

Exercise Physiologist and Strength and Conditioning Specialist
Fast Twitch Fitness

"We're all athletes. Some of us are just farther along in our training."

Exercise pictures from http://stacktv.stack.com/

Exercise of the Week: The Box

Level: Beginner to Advanced

Goal: Improve footwork and ability to change direction quickly

Equipment: None

This week concludes our series on agility training. Remember, agility is the ability to move quickly and change directions while maintaining control of the body. To be effective on the beach an athlete will need speed, balance, power and co-ordination. Agility training plays an integral role in developing these attributes.

Our drill this week is the Box. This is an excellent drill to warm-up the lower body, improve our footwork and enhance our ability to change directions quickly.

Be sure to perform a thorough warm up (click here) before performing the Box drill.


Start in the back left corner, facing the net, and sprint straight ahead to the net.
Immediately transition to a shuffle across the court to the front right corner.
Transition quickly to a back pedal all the way to the back right corner of the court.
Finish the drill by shuffling across to the back left corner of the court where you started.

Repeat 3-5 times with 45-60 seconds of rest in between repetitions.

Key points - When you shuffle stay low in a defensive position and avoid clicking your heels or crossing your feet. Keep the weight on the balls of your feet and not your heels.

Intermediate and advanced players can increase the intensity of the drill by adding an approach jump after the sprint to the net and a block jump after the first shuffle.

For variety you may also want to try the following pattern.


Incorporate agility drills like the Box into your conditioning routine once or twice per week for best results.

Thanks for reading and be sure to check back next week when we'll start our series on shoulder stabilization for injury prevention.

See you on the beach!

Eric Hand, MA, CSCS

Exercise Physiologist and Strength and Conditioning Specialist
Fast Twitch Fitness

"We're all athletes. Some of us are just farther along in our training."

Pictures from http://stacktv.stack.com/

Exercise of the Week: Line Hops

Level: Beginner to Advanced

Goal: Increase ability to change direction quickly, injury prevention

Equipment: None

This week we'll continue our series on agility training. Agility is the ability to move quickly and change directions while maintaining control of the body. To be effective on the beach an athlete will need speed, balance, power and co-ordination. Agility training plays an integral role in developing these attributes.

Our drill this week is the Line Hop. This is an excellent exercise to warm-up the lower body and increase our ability to change directions quickly.

Draw lines, two to three feet long, in the sand to form a + shape.


Facing the net, stand in the lower right corner of the box. It may help to think of this spot as box 1. The box immediately to your left would represent box 2. The box immediately in front of box 2 would represent box 3. The box immediately to the right of box 3 would represent box 4.



Starting in box one perform small, quick hops in a 1-2-3-4 pattern (left, forward, right, back). Repeat this pattern as many times as you can for 15 seconds. Rest for one minute and repeat.

For variety try hopping in different patterns. Some examples would be 1-3-2-4 (diagonal, back, diagonal, back), 1-4-2-3 (forward, diagonal, forward, diagonal), 1-2-4-3 (left, diagonal, right, diagonal).

Perform 2 sets of 2 different patterns.

Advanced athletes can work up to single-leg hops, repeating the pattern for 10 seconds with 30 seconds rest in between sets. Remember to work both legs!

Key points: Think of moving you feet as quickly as possible while staying in control, imagine hot coals underneath your feet! Keep your hips square and land as softly as possible.

Incorporate agility drills like the Line Hop into your conditioning routine once or twice per week for best results.

See you on the beach!

Eric Hand, MA CSCS

Exercise Physiologist and Strength and Conditioning Specialist
Fast Twitch Fitness

"We're all athletes. Some of us are just farther along in our training."

Picture from http://stacktv.stack.com/

Exercise of the Week: The Lateral Hop and Hold

Level: Intermediate and Advanced

Goal: Increase ability to change direction quickly, injury prevention

Equipment: None

This week we'll continue our series on agility training. Agility is the ability to move quickly and change directions while maintaining control of the body. To be effective on the beach an athlete will need speed, balance, power and co-ordination. Agility training plays an integral role in developing these attributes.

Our drill this week is the Lateral Hop and Hold. This is an excellent exercise for increasing our agility and reducing muscle soreness and risk of injury in the hips and knees.

Be sure to perform a thorough warm up before performing the Lateral Hop and Hold.

Stand on right leg with right knee slightly bent.

Hop two to three feet laterally toward the left.

Land softly on the left leg and hold position for two seconds.

Push off left leg to hop laterally to the right.

Land softly on the right leg and hold position for two seconds.

Repeat for a total of 10 repetitions.

Intermediate players should perform 2 sets with 30 seconds of rest between sets.

Advanced players should perform 3-4 sets with 30 second rest periods between sets.

Key points: Keep your hips square and land as softly as possible. Gradually increase the intensity of the exercise by bounding higher and farther from side to side.

Incorporate agility drills like the Lateral Hop and Hold into your conditioning routine once or twice per week for best results.

See you on the beach!
Eric Hand, MA CSCS

Exercise Physiologist and Strength and Conditioning Specialist
Fast Twitch Fitness

"We're all athletes. Some of us are just farther along in our training."

Picture from http://stacktv.stack.com/

Exercise of the Week: The T Drill

Level: Beginner to advanced

Specificity: Acceleration, Deceleration, Lateral Movement

Goal: Improve Agility

Equipment: 4 cones

This week we'll begin our series on agility training. Agility is the ability to move quickly and change directions while maintaining control and balance of the body. The beach game requires players to move in various movement patterns (forward, backward, lateral, at 45 degree angles) within a single rally. To be effective on the beach an athlete will need speed, balance, power and co-ordination. Agility training plays an integral role in developing these attributes.

The first agility drill we'll review is the T drill. The T drill is an effective way to improve agility as it involves acceleration/deceleration, movement forward/backward/lateral as well as quick changes in direction.

Be sure to perform a thorough warm up (click here) before performing the T drill.

To set up the T drill, place two cones 10 yards apart from one another. Place a third cone in the middle of these two cones and a fourth cone ten yards from the third cone to form a T.



Start at the bottom (cone A) of the T and sprint to the middle cone (cone B).
Upon reaching the middle cone, side shuffle to the left cone (cone C).
Upon reaching the left most cone, immediately change directions and shuffle to the right most cone (cone D).
Upon reaching the right cone, change directions and shuffle back to the middle cone (cone B).
Finish the T by backpedaling to the start cone (cone A).

Repeat 2-5 times.

Key points: Keep your hips square, stay low in a defensive position and do not cross your feet as you shuffle.

Incorporate agility drills like this into your conditioning routine once or twice per week for best results.

See you on the beach!

Eric Hand, MA , CSCS
Exercise Physiologist and Strength & Conditioning Specialist
Fast Twitch Fitness

“We’re all athletes. Some of us are just farther along in our training.”

Picture from topendsports.com