Solo Volleyball Drills (At Home)

You can improve passing, setting and ball control on your own with just a ball and a wall. Set and pass against the wall to get many touches quickly, practice your serving toss without hitting, and add footwork between reps. A rebounder net does the same job outdoors. Ten to fifteen minutes most days adds up quickly.

Players

1

Equipment

Ball + wall or rebounder

Session length

10–20 min

Skills

Passing, setting, serve toss, footwork

Setting up your space

• Find a solid wall with no windows, doors or pictures nearby — a garage wall, school wall or fence-free brick wall works well.
• Clear the floor of anything you could trip over.
• Use masking tape or chalk to mark a target on the wall: a line about 3 m high for setting, and a box about the size of a person's chest for passing.
• Ask before using a wall at school or a building that isn't yours.
• Rebounders: point the frame up for setting and passing returns; follow the maker's instructions for anchoring.

Solo drills

1. Wall setting (5–10 min)

Set the ball against the wall above your target line, catch nothing, and keep it going. Full instructions are on the Wall setting drill page.

2. Wall passing (5–10 min)

Stand about 3 m from the wall. Toss to yourself, then forearm pass the ball into the chest-high box. Let it bounce once if needed, then pass again. Progress to continuous passes without a bounce. Cue: “Angle your platform, don't swing.”

3. Self-set and self-pass (3–5 min)

No wall needed. Set the ball straight up about 1 m above your head, then pass it straight up, alternating. Count your best streak. Progress: higher contacts, or turn a quarter turn between each touch.

4. Serve toss practice (3–5 min)

Stand in your serving stance and toss the ball for your serve without hitting it. Let it drop. If it lands about one step in front of your front foot, on your hitting-arm side, the toss is good. Repeat 20 times. This builds the most common fix for missed serves.

5. Footwork plus touch (5 min)

Shuffle two steps left, pass a self-toss into the wall, shuffle two steps right, pass again. This connects movement and contact, like passing in a game. Add a ladder between sets for more footwork.

6. Arm-swing with a ball against the wall (intermediate, 5 min)

Toss and hit the ball down so it bounces off the floor into the wall and back to you. Keep the hits controlled. This builds hand contact and wrist snap for attacking. Skip this one if you are near windows or neighbors.

Watch it

Video: Sarah Pavan Volleyball on YouTube. Learn Volley is not affiliated with this channel.

A sample 15-minute home session

• 2 min: arm circles, light jog in place, shuffles
• 4 min: wall setting
• 4 min: wall passing
• 2 min: self-set / self-pass streak
• 3 min: serve toss practice

Safety

Warm up first (Warm-Up). Keep jumps and dives for the gym — at home, stay on your feet on a non-slip surface. Stop if anything hurts and see Common Injuries.

Drills used on this page

Frequently asked questions