by Volleyball Voices

Created on: January 04, 2007   Last Updated: April 27, 2007

The volleyball serve is the first form of attack. It's the first attempt you have to make a Direct point against the oposite team. You should always serve to make a point or put the oposite team in difficulty.

You will learn quickly that what you do with your feet and lower body determines how well you will perform all volleyball fundamentals. That's why alot of my advice and tips focus on the correct positioning of your feet and lower body.

Feet

In order to begin the serve we first start with your feet positioning. Right handers place your right foot behind your left foot so your Right foot is perpendicular to your Left. Your left foot should be pointed Exactly in the direction of where you want to serve.
If you want to serve down the line then your Left foot ,hips and upper body should be pointed straight ahead. When serving cross court your left foot , hips and upper body should be turned and facing cross
court. All your body weight should be on your back (right foot. The only lower body movement needed when you serve will be a shift in
weight from your back (Right) foot to the front (Left) foot.

Upper Body - Left Arm

Extend your Left arm straight out in front of your palm facing up. Place ball in the palm of this hand.

TOSS

The toss is one of the most important elements of the serve. Make sure the starting position for your Left arm is straight out in front of you - not down by your waist. With a straight Left arm Toss the ball no more than 2 feet in the air.
For practice, while learning, let the ball fall to the ground. A correctly tossed ball will land about 10-12 inches - Every Time.
Your toss should be the same EVERY TIME. Two feet up in the air and 10 inches in front of your LEFT foot. If you Toss to the left or right of your front foot

1. you will be forced off balance.

2. you will be forced to chase your toss - which will force you Not to serve in the direction you want to. Believe it or not the TOSS is where many serving errors start.

RIGHT ARM

Right arm is fully extended with fingertips and palm facing downward lightly covering the top of the ball. After the toss - you step forward shifting your body weight from back foot to front foot to
meet the ball. At this moment you begin your arm swing.

Start your RIGHT arm swing by pulling your arm straight back - palm facing outward - keep elbow high your elbow should pass Over the level of your ear - in slow motion you should be able to turn your
head slightly to look underneath your elbow as you pull your arm back - use

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