Top 7 Drills to Improve Your Volleyball at Home

volleyvibesclub
Apr 29
6 min read

One of the biggest differences between good volleyball players and great ones isn't talent — it's what they do between training sessions. The players who improve fastest are the ones who find ways to practice on their own, reinforcing the techniques their coaches teach before the next session.

The good news? You don't need a gym, a net, or a full team to get better at volleyball. Most of the fundamentals can be practiced with just a ball and a wall — right at home.

Here are the 7 most effective at-home drills recommended by the coaches at Volley Vibes Club in Markham. Add these to your routine between sessions and you'll notice measurable improvement within weeks.

Before You Start: What You Need

✅ One standard volleyball (size 5 for ages 12+, size 4 for younger players)
✅ A solid wall (brick, concrete, or drywall with space around it)
✅ A flat open space — driveway, basement, or backyard
✅ Approximately 20–30 minutes per day
✅ Consistency — these drills only work if you do them regularly

No net, no court, no teammates required. Let's get started.

Drill 1: Wall Passing (Forearm Pass)

What it trains: Passing platform consistency, arm control, footwork

How to do it:

Stand 2–3 meters from a solid wall
Pass the ball against the wall using your forearm platform
Let it bounce back and pass it again — keep a continuous rally going
Focus on keeping your platform flat, your elbows locked, and your legs driving the ball

Key points:

The ball should return to the same spot every time — if it's going left or right, your platform is tilted
Don't swing your arms — let your legs and platform angle do the work
Keep your knees bent throughout — never straighten up between contacts

Progression:

Week 1: 20 consecutive passes without losing control
Week 2: 30 consecutive passes
Week 3+: Move further from the wall and maintain the same control

This is the single most valuable at-home drill for any beginner. Want to perfect your passing mechanics? Read: The Beginner's Guide to Volleyball Passing (Bumping)

Drill 2: Wall Setting

What it trains: Fingertip control, hand shape, setting consistency

How to do it:

Stand 1–1.5 meters from the wall
Set the ball against the wall using overhead technique — ten fingertips, no palms
Let it rebound and set it again continuously
Focus on consistent hand shape and release point

Key points:

The ball should go to the same spot on the wall every time
Your hands should be shaped and ready before the ball arrives, not during contact
Push with your legs on every set — setting is a full-body movement

Progression:

Start with 20 consecutive sets, build to 50, then 100
Add back sets: set the ball forward, let it rebound, set it backward over your head, repeat

For a full breakdown of setting mechanics: What Is Volleyball Setting and Why It Matters

Drill 3: Serving Target Practice

What it trains: Serve accuracy, consistency, mental focus under pressure

How to do it:

Set up 3–4 targets on a wall or fence: chalk marks, tape squares, or water bottles on a ledge
Serve the ball at each target from a distance of 6–9 meters
Track your accuracy — how many out of 10 hit the target?

Key points:

Pick your target before your toss — not after
Practice both underhand and overhand serves
Vary your targets: high, low, left, right — this builds court versatility

Scoring system:

Bull's-eye (center of target): 3 points
Edge of target: 1 point
Miss: 0 points
Try to beat your previous score each session

This drill builds the mental focus that makes serving automatic under game pressure. For full serving technique: How to Serve a Volleyball – Step-by-Step for Kids

Drill 4: Solo Ball Control (Juggling)

What it trains: Hand-eye coordination, touch, overall ball control

How to do it:

Stand in an open space and alternate between setting the ball above your head and passing it back up to yourself
Keep the ball in the air as long as possible using only volleyball contacts
Mix in forearm passes, overhead sets, and even controlled overhead contacts

Key points:

Keep the ball above head height at all times
Count consecutive contacts — challenge yourself to beat your record
Stay light on your feet and keep moving to the ball

Progression:

Beginner: 10 consecutive contacts
Intermediate: 30 consecutive contacts
Advanced: 60+ contacts, mixing pass-set-pass-set alternating pattern

This is a favourite warm-up drill at Volley Vibes Club because it develops the soft hands and quick reactions that make every other skill better.

Drill 5: Approach Footwork Practice

What it trains: Spiking approach timing, explosive takeoff, and footwork muscle memory

How to do it:

In an open space (no ball needed), practice your 4-step approach repeatedly
Left – Right – Left-Right plant (for right-handed players)
Focus on acceleration — each step faster than the last
Explode off the plant and jump as high as possible, reaching your hitting arm above your head

Key points:

The final two steps should be nearly simultaneous — a powerful "left-right" plant
Arms swing back during the plant, then drive upward during the jump
Land on both feet, balanced and ready to go again

Progression:

20 repetitions per session
Add a ball toss at the peak: toss the ball up before your approach, time your jump to meet it at the top

For full spiking mechanics: How to Spike a Volleyball – Tips for Young Players

Drill 6: Reaction Ball Drops

What it trains: Defensive reflexes, lateral quickness, low body position

How to do it:

Stand in defensive ready position — knees bent, weight forward, arms ready
Have a parent, sibling, or friend drop a ball from shoulder height without warning
React as fast as possible, pass the ball back to them before it hits the ground twice

Key points:

Stay low throughout — the moment you stand up, your reaction time increases dramatically
Shuffle your feet to the ball — don't reach
Keep your platform ready at all times

No partner variation:

Bounce the ball hard against a wall from close range and react to the rebound
The unpredictable bounce simulates a deflected spike

This drill directly translates to digging hard spikes in live gameplay — one of the hardest skills to develop without this kind of reactive training.

Drill 7: Serving Endurance Sets

What it trains: Serving consistency under fatigue, mental toughness

How to do it:

Serve 50 balls in a row against a wall or over a rope/net
Track how many land in your target zone
Rest 60 seconds and repeat for 3 sets

Key points:

Maintain the same pre-serve routine on every ball — breathe, visualize, toss, hit
The goal is consistency, not power — keep mechanics clean even as you get tired
Challenge yourself: can you serve 40/50 in your target zone?

Why fatigue matters:In a real game, you often serve at crucial moments — after long rallies, at the end of tight sets, when nerves are high. Training while fatigued builds the automatic muscle memory that holds up under pressure.

Building a Home Practice Routine

Here's a simple 20-minute daily routine using these 7 drills:

Time	Drill	Reps/Duration
0–3 min	Wall Passing	3 sets of 20
3–6 min	Wall Setting	3 sets of 20
6–9 min	Approach Footwork	20 reps
9–13 min	Serving Target Practice	3 sets of 10
13–16 min	Solo Ball Control	3 sets, max contacts
16–18 min	Reaction Ball Drops	15 reps
18–20 min	Serving Endurance	1 set of 20

Do this 4–5 days per week in addition to your Volley Vibes Club sessions, and you'll improve at a rate that surprises even your coaches.

Home Practice + Professional Coaching = Maximum Improvement

Home drills are powerful — but they work best when combined with regular professional coaching. Without a trained eye watching your technique, it's easy to practice bad habits and reinforce them through repetition.

At Volley Vibes Club in Markham, Coach Hani and Coach Minoo provide the technical feedback that makes your home practice meaningful. They identify what's working, what needs adjustment, and what to focus on before your next solo session.