The Positive Effects on Volleyball Receiving Skills When Training with Lighter Balls

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the receiving ability and efficacy of volleyball players, which can be effectively improved after practicing with volleyballs of different weights. In this study, 36 elite male volleyball players were recruited and participated in a four-week training program in four groups: a lighter-ball training group (LBTG), a heavier-ball training group (HBTG), a normal-ball training group (NBTG), and a control group (CG). All subjects were required to evaluate their receiving ability during the initial training (week-0) and then to reevaluate it after two (week-2) and four (week-4) weeks of training. The statistical analysis revealed that the time factor (F2, 64 = 209.346, p < 0.001) and the time × group factor (F6, 64 = 17.463, p < 0.001) were significant but the group factor (F3, 32 = 0.340, p = 0.797) was not. The results revealed that the LBTG experienced a significant positive effect on the receiving test after four weeks of training, with an 8.6% improvement in skill performance after two weeks and a 16.4% improvement after four weeks. The HBTG, NBTG, and CG improved by 2.6%, 5.3%, and 3.8% after two weeks and by 6.3%, 9.3%, and 4.3% after four weeks, respectively. The main findings were that four weeks of volleyball training with a lighter ball resulted in significant improvements in player performance. In contrast, training with a ball with 70 g of added mass did not effectively enhance motor ability development.