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Time Motion Analysis and Energy Demands for the
Sport of Volleyball
Brianne Connizzo
Introduction to Coaching
Spring 2008
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In order to create a proper training program, it is necessary to know the
energy demands of the sport and the physiology of its athletes. Most sports can
be divided into two categories, aerobic and anaerobic, but the division is like a
continuum in that there are many sports that are both anaerobic and aerobic.
Sports that are solely aerobic are those that involve periods of prolonged activity
like long-distance running. Anaerobic activities involve short bursts of energy in
which the presence of oxygen is not needed to produce the necessary fuel. This
includes short sprints. Volleyball is most often considered an anaerobic sport
with aerobic capacities. The level of intensity with respect to aerobic and
anaerobic activities changes in the sport of volleyball from position to position as
well as front row to back row.
Humans have three types of muscle fiber – one type of slow twitch fibers
and two types of fast twitch fibers. Slow twitch fibers use the aerobic system to
produce energy while fast twitch fibers use oxygen and can produce energy
through the anaerobic system. The fast twitch fibers are helpful for fast, explosive
movies. Viitasalo et al. (1987) studied the types of fiber used by the Finnish
volleyball teams and determined that on average, the players used more fast
twitch fibers than slow twitch fibers which proves volleyball to be an anaerobic
activity involving fast, powerful movements. Some fast twitch fibers however,
the fast oxidative glycolytic fibers (FOGs), can be trained to improve
performance in endurance sports. This probably accounts for some of the aerobic
capacity of playing volleyball.
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One of the most common tests of aerobic capacity is heart rate. Heart rate
can be measured using a telemetry strap throughout exercise and finding an
average heart rate. For volleyball, there is high anaerobic activity followed by
periods of rest. The average heart rate is not a reliable source for this analysis
because the average will not show the spikes cause by quick sprints. However,
studying the maximum heart rate produced during competition can help
determine the aerobic capacity of the exercise. For the Finnish national team, the
average heart rate held during the competition was 130 beats per minute but the
maximum heart rate was almost 190 beats per minute (Viitasalo et al., 1987, 197)!
There are a lot of rest periods during a match so the average heart rate doesn’t
give any significant results, but because the maximum heart rate was so far away
from the average, it shows that there are periods of very high level heart rate
followed by periods of low heart rate; this is seen in short sprinting activities
which proves volleyball has a large anaerobic capacity.
The aerobic threshold (AeT) and anaerobic threshold (AnT) are used to
describe the level of intensity of exercise. The level at which blood lactate reaches
a concentration of 2 mmol/L, which correlates with about 65% of the maximum
heart rate, is the Aerobic threshold. The anaerobic threshold is the point at which
lactic acid starts to accumulate in the blood stream. These two tests are useful
measures for deciding exercise intensity for training in endurance sports like
distance running, cycling, and rowing and for short repeated exercises with long
recovery periods as well. According to Viitasalo et al. (1987), the anaerobic
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threshold during several competitions was 166 beats per minute and the Aerobic
threshold was about 145 beats per minute. Since the maximum heart rate is
above the anaerobic threshold, it can be concluded that volleyball has anaerobic
qualities but the average heart rate (130 beats per minute) is low, which proves
there are many aerobic aspects as well.
Exercise psychologists define VO2 max as the maximum rate of oxygen
consumption. It is the most important factor in determining your ability to
exercise for long periods of times; it measures your capacity for endurance. VO2
rates will be very high for highly aerobic sports like rowing which require a lot of
endurance. Sports like swimming and short-distance running will have low VO2
max rates because anaerobic exercise does not require as much oxygen to be
produced in order to fuel the muscles with energy. Team sports, like basketball
and volleyball, will have a VO2 max rate that lies somewhere in the middle of the
range because they are both aerobic and anaerobic activities. Viitasalo et al.
(1987) tested a set of 10 Finnish Club players and 10 players from the Finnish
National Team to find the maximum VO2 rate and found the rate to be between
51.2 and 62.0 with the average being about 56.7 ml/kg/min during both
competition and during a treadmill test. Puhl et al. (1982) also produced a mean
of 50.6 ml/kg/min with a standard deviation of 5.7. The range for volleyball
players during competition could be generalized to anywhere between 50 and 60
ml/kg/min. This value is along the same level as other team sports like
basketball and soccer, but it is still low enough for volleyball to be considered “a
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moderately stressful aerobic sport event,” which means that aerobic capacity is
very critical in performance because of the repeated actions performed,
especially the vertical jump (Viitasalo et al., 1987, 195).
Lactic acid is a byproduct in the process of fermentation during exercise.
During intensive exercises like sprinting, the demand for energy is very high and
lactate is produced faster than it can be removed. This causes an increase in lactic
acid which ensures energy production to be maintained. It is a fuel for muscles to
continue to exercise. The concentration of lactic acid in the body right after
exercise is a very good indicator of the type of exercise that was just performed.
When exercising, energy production depends on both the anaerobic and aerobic
system, but the lactic system contributes after the first 20 seconds. Lactate
concentration significantly increased during short periods of intense exercises,
suggesting that a high lactic acid concentration, taken right after exercise, will
prove a highly anaerobic activity. After vertical jumping, Chamari et al. (2001)
found that 15 minutes after repeated maximum jumps, the [La-1] was over 2
mmol/L. The authors also proved that high lactate increased is induced by
intense sprints as opposed to these vertical jumps, which is why the approach
caused more fatigue than vertical blocking jumps. The run-up causes a high
lactate increase. This run-up condition can cause up to a 3.8 mmol/L increase.
Hertogh et al. (2004) confirmed this by testing run-up and jump conditions for an
attack and found a 3.73 mmol/L increase. This proves that a high lactate
concentration will be found in anaerobic activities. In general, the lactate
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concentration for the duration of a competition was shown to be around 3
mmol/L, which proves that volleyball is a highly anaerobic sport (Viitasalo et al.,
1987, 197).
The fitness demands of volleyball are very similar to those rated in
Appendix I. Although there is no direct evidence to support these conclusions
cited, ratings can be made from personal experience as well as from the logistics
of playing the sport in a competitive setting. Volleyball has a great demand for
both speed and power. Volleyball players need to be quick on their toes and
explosive because it is a very fast paced game. The flexibility for players is
average; the back row players have to move into awkward positions to get hardto-reach ball and the front row players have to cut awkward angles with their
hitting shoulders, but this quality is not essential to competitive play. Although it
seems that a large quantity of strength is needed from volleyball, especially
during hitting, this is an illusion caused by a fast arm swing and an explosive
approach. The strength rating is low because there is a higher demand for power
and agility. This is similar with endurance because although long rallies require
lots of energy, there are also long recovery periods; the rating for endurance is
medium.
Volleyball is a highly anaerobic sport, with some aerobic qualities.
Martens (2004) rates the sport as Medium for aerobic and Medium-High for
anaerobic. Based on evidence stated above and personal experience, this is a very
good analysis. Originally I had thought that volleyball was a purely anaerobic
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activity, but being a back row player, I don’t get to experience most of the aerobic
activity. The aerobic activity is caused by repeated actions like blocking and
attacking. This shows an inconsistency between the energy demands of each
position, but it is not significant enough to change the general energy demand
analysis.
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Works Cited
Chamari, K., Ahmaidi, S., Blum, J. Y., Hue, O., Temfemo, A., et al. (2001). Venous
blood lactate increase after vertical jumping in volleyball athletes.
European Journal of Applied Physiology, 85(1/2)
Puhl, J., Case, S., Fleck, S., & Van Handel, P. (1982). Physical and physiological
characteristics of elite volleyball players. Research Quarterly for Exercise &
Sport, 53(3), 257-262.
Viitasalo, J. T., Rusko, H., Pajalo, O., Rahkila, P., Ahila, M., et al. (1987).
Endurance requirements in volleyball. Canadian Journal of Sports Sciences,
12(4), 194-201.
Hertogh, C., Chamari, K., Damiani, M., Hachana, Y., Blonc, S., et al. (2005).
Effects of adding a preceding run-up on performance, blood lactate
concentration and heart rate during maximal intermittent vertical
jumping. Journal of Sports Sciences, 23(9), 937-942.
Laconi, P., Melis, F., Crisafulli, A., Sollai, R., Lai, C., et al. (1998). Field test for
mechanical efficiency evaluation in matching volleyball players.
International Journal of Sports Medicine, 19(1), 52-55.
Martens, R. (2004). Successful Coaching. (S. Parker, C. M. Drews, K. D. Bernard, &
P. Fortney, Ed.). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
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Appendix I
Figure 1: Fitness Demands Chart
Sport or
Activity
Energy Fitness
Aerobic
Volleyball Medium
Muscular Fitness
Anaerobic
Flexibility
Strength
Endurance
Speed
Power
High
Medium
Low
Medium
High
High