What is a Good Approach Jump in Volleyball

What is a good approach to jump in Volleyball? For adult males, an approach jump of 35 in (89 cm) is good, while a good vertical jump for female volleyball players is 26 in (66cm). Remember that a good approach jump depends on many factors like physique, fat level, age group and the level of sport you are playing.

Good Approach Jumps For Different Volleyball Players

For different types of volleyball players, good approach jumps for different positions are:

Type of Players	Approach Jump Height
Professional Female Athletes	26 in (66 cm)
Professional Male Athletes	35 in (89 cm)
Children	20 in (51 cm)
Old Hobbyists	18 (46 cm)

How to measure approach jump in volleyball?

Two of the most common ways to measure your vertical jump are:

Measuring it With Wall

You can measure your approach jump in volleyball by standing sideways to a wall, taking three steps and touching the wall with the peak of your hitting hand. Always chalk the wall near the expected approach jump point to find out exactly where you hit your hand, or have a partner to see what was your exact touching point on the wall. Then measure the distance from the bottom of the wall to the point where you hit the ball to find your approach jump height.

But whenever you are measuring your approach jump, always be cautious to avoid injury. You must not try the approach jump on a wall facing you since you are always vulnerable to hitting the wall and getting multiple injuries.

Using Vertec Vertical Jump Trainer

This is the professional way to measure your approach jump, but you need a Vertec for this purpose, which might get expensive for some people. Anyways if you do have access to vertec, you can put it in front of you, take three steps back and come forward to hit as high as you can. This way, you end up measuring your approach jump professionally.

How to Increase My Approach Jump in Volleyball?

Here are the top tips to make higher vertical jumps in volleyball:

Jumping exercise

Jumping rope is a great exercise for volleyball enthusiasts who want to work on their jump. Your approach jump in the game is always impulsive, which means that you need to build your jumping strength in order to jump higher in the real game.

Increase stretching

Stretching is also a great exercise if you want to improve your approach jump in volleyball. As a matter of fact, stretching gives flexibility to your muscles. For example, stretching reduces your muscle contraction, which plays a critical role in vertical jumping.

Almost all the athletes in different sports attend mandatory stretching sessions, so volleyball hobbyists can also do the same on a small scale to improve their vertical jump.

Muscular Training

Just like every other thing, approach jump also comes with practice. So if you are not well-trained for high jumps, you should not even try to make them in the game. This is due to the fact that good jumpers have their lower body muscles trained well, which helps them in making a good vertical jump in volleyball.

Some of the most important muscles used in vertical jumps are:

• Quads
• Hamstring
• Glutes
• Calf muscles

So if you want to increase your approach jump in volleyball, doing the exercises for these muscles is a way to go.

And if you try to jump higher without strengthening your muscles, you are prone to injury.

When I was a newbie in volleyball, I tried to jump higher and ended up twisting my ankle. When I saw my coach, he told me that ankles are always vulnerable to twisting if you do not have the right landing angle after jumping. So, always ensure that you do good landing exercises as well to avoid any possible injury.

Reduce Your Lower Body Fat

Another important aspect of making higher vertical jumps in volleyball is to lose lower body fat. Approach jumps are always higher for those players who do not have too much lower body fat, as it is difficult to carry it while jumping.

Factors Impacting the Approach Jump In Volleyball

Here are the things that can impact the approach jump of any volleyball player.

Height of the Volleyball Player

The work you need to put in order to make your approach jump perfect majorly depends upon your height. As a matter of fact, getting a perfect approach jump is easier for taller players compared to the smaller ones.

If you are a taller player than other people on the court, you can easily outplay your option by striking the ball at the higher points. Isn’t it?

For example, if you are 6 feet 5 in long spiker and the defenders on the other side are 5 ft 10 in, you can spike the ball at a greater height to avoid facing any blockade from the opposition players.

Even if they jump, they will not be able to stop the ball easily, thus giving you points.

But always remember that the same thing can also go against your team if your opposition has a taller spiker who is smashing the ball mercilessly.

So if you have a higher height than average numbers, you really need not to worry about approach jumps.

The Position of the player

Usually, smashers have to make a relatively higher approach jump as strikers or smashers have to throw the ball on the opposition’s court.

Body Fitness

Body fitness and physique also play a crucial role in determining the approach jump. That is why the average vertical jump tends to reduce with the passage of age.

Final Thoughts

Having a good approach jump is always an additional skill in the bag of volleyball players. But you must remember that getting the high jump won’t be an overnight process. In fact, you increase your jumps with time by doing regular exercises and practices. But it is something that can surely be built with time.