Due to COVID-19, the Gretna Dragons Volleyball team’s preseason activities including weight lifting, position training and team camps have been delayed. Along with many other school volleyball teams, they are concerned about what will come next. The team is unsure about when they will be back in a gym or a weight room. The Dragons have decided that their motto for this upcoming year is going to be “Never Satisfied”. The Dragons have leadership Zoom calls to communicate what they are going to do in preparation.
“Normally at this time, I would be in the weight room getting a workout in,” junior Emma Prentice said. “Due to everything that has happened, it is difficult to stay on top of things on my own. I have been doing many workout videos to stay in shape.”
At this time, the team would be in the weight room getting reps with weights and hard lifting along with workouts to train their muscles and improve their game. Due to regulations for social gatherings, the team, along with other sports teams, is not allowed in the weight room before their competitive season. Players are missing out on the motivation working with teammates provides.
“The most difficult thing is that I am used to being pushed in the weight room,“ junior Roan Brandon said. “Now I am trying to adjust to pushing myself when doing workouts from my own house, and push myself to actually get up and do them.”
In the past, the Dragons worked hard during the preseason to earn their spots at the state tournament. Coach Mike Brandon said that last year was one of his best years in the weight room, and it made each player better. The team encouraged each other to lift more weight, hold a plank longer, or do more reps of something. Without this group experience, they have to adapt to doing it themselves, along with having the ability to push themselves to get out of their beds to do a workout or out of their houses for a quick jog.
“I like to go on a ton of walks with my mom at different times of the day,” sophomore Skylar McCune said. “It gets me ready for the day and for more intense workouts. I have also been doing Xedge through Premiere safely to lift weights.”
Players have had free time that could result in laying on the couch doing nothing, but they are determined to get up and out and stay in shape to ensure they are ready for the season. The team has a mandatory meeting every Thursday to discuss and talk about their plans and what they have been doing to stay in shape. Along with working on physical activities, the team is also trying to work on leadership so Coach Mr. Brandon has assigned a new book called, “The Energy Bus” for the team to start reading.
With all that has affected the Dragons’ offseason, the team is still doing many things to stay in good physical and mental shape. Whether it is the online workouts, the team leadership zoom calls, or the new book that the team is reading together. As a team, they believe they will thrive and build their mental game during this offseason along with their physical.