I was cleaning out old Firefox bookmarks and came across this one.

A really long, long time ago, back at SAIC I think, I was a frequent contributor to the rec.sport.volleyball newsgroup. (Yes, this was well before the internet was popular, web sites with "forums" weren't around, so this was the way a group of people with similar interests communicated.)

Anyway here's the post (notice the funny email address @SAIC.COM):

ro...@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Robin Amano) writes:

:
: I have a question I though would never get answered, because I don't know
: anybody. So if possible, what does the US team do for strength training?
: Weights? Plyometrics? If so, what do you do? Squats? Depth jumping?
: Bounding? Sorry if you already answered this, but being that the topic
: on the net is vertical leap, maybe a lot of people would be interested.
: I always wondered what the best do. Take Care and Goodluck!!
:
I have seen this type of question quite a bit lately, in the newsgroup, and
in my email. So, here's the general answer to the USA team conditioning,
jump/weight training, etc.

Our season runs from mid-January to mid-November. All of our 'routines' are
based on this 'year' schedule.

Conditioning: For most of year, do cardiovascular work after practice (which
goes from 8-12pm M-F) 2 or 3 times a week. Start the year with 6 weeks or so
of distance running (2 miles) to build a good cardio base. Then start moving
into sprints. Start with 440s, then 220s, 100s, 50s, and even 20s. Stay with
each distance for a month or so. We do a 440 sprint for time at the start
of the year, then the rest of the year, the sprints are at 70/80/85% so we
have to come in at a certain time.

Weights: Lift 3 times a week after practice, on the days we don't run. Again
start the year building a base, high reps, lower weight...then work into lower
reps (down to 4x6 reps or 10,8,6,4,2reps) with increased weight. As for
which lifts: Flat bench, incline bench, shoulder press, lat pulldowns, upright
rows, seated rows, tricep/bicep work, shoulder work (light weight), leg
extensions, leg curls, calf raises. The big question that is always asked is
SQUATS. That is optional for us - a few guys do them. I don't because of bad
knees, and they do more harm than good. We get a lot of work for our legs in
the course of a 4 hour INTENSE practice.

Jump Training: Occasionally (maybe 4 or 5 times a year) we will do a month
or so of jump training after practice. This consists of jumping at the net,
with weight belts or ankle weights, and working on form with our arms/hands.
Other exercises include attaching surgical tubing between our ankles, and
moving side to side (increasing the distance between the feet - thus creating
tension in the bands) on the court. We test our verticals on a 'vertec'
probably about every 2 months.

Lastly: we are tested 3/4 times a year for body fat and VO2 MAX. Our body
fat must be uner 10% or we cannot practice (until you get it down). But the
goal is 8%. Mine is 7.4% VO2 Max is a test of volume of oxygen that your
lungs cycle for a given time, and is a measure of how in shape you are. The
test consists of riding a stationary bike for 5 mins as fast and as hard as you
can while a doctor monitors heart rate, blood pressure, etc. For anyone who
knows what the numbers mean, we must be above 50 to practice.

That's about all I can think of. Feel free to email or post with further
questions.

Good Luck.
-Dan
-------------------
Dan Hanan USA#12
d...@quebec.saic.com
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