2025 Australian Volleyball Development Tour. Aaron Tay, centre row, far left.

Volleyball Back Pain and the Best Volleyball Physiotherapy in Perth

If you’re a volleyball athlete struggling with volleyball back pain, you’re not alone. In fact, low back tightness, fatigue, and pain are among the most common issues in both junior and national pathway athletes. Volleyball requires explosive jumps, powerful rotations, and repeated movements. As a result, your lower back often becomes the first area to fatigue if recovery, strength, and control aren’t keeping pace.

At Star Physio WA, we’ve been trusted to look after volleyball athletes since 1997. From annual youth screenings to working with the Perth Steel Volleyball Teams, our clinicians deliver the best volleyball physiotherapy in Perth, helping athletes move better, recover faster, and perform at their best.

What Causes Volleyball Back Pain?

Usually, back pain doesn’t come from just one factor. Instead, it develops from a combination of:

• Poor recovery between sessions

• Sudden increases in training volume

• Muscle weakness, fatigue, or imbalances

• Movement control problems

• Previous injuries such as stress fractures or pars defects

Therefore, it can feel like a chicken-and-egg situation: did the weakness cause the pain, or did the pain cause the weakness?

Common Back Pain Patterns in Volleyball Players

Over years of working with volleyball athletes, our screenings have shown consistent patterns in those with volleyball back pain. For example, many athletes present with:

• Difficulty or poor control in single-leg squats or bridges

• Clear side-to-side differences in side planks

• Shorter than expected plank times for age and bodyweight

• A rapid increase in hitting reps over a short period

• Deconditioning after holidays or off-season breaks

Importantly, these patterns can be identified early. Once identified, our physiotherapists can design targeted prevention and rehab programs to address them and reduce pain.

Stress Fractures in Volleyball

Bone loading is essential in sport because it makes bones stronger. However, when bones are overloaded too quickly—especially in younger athletes—they can develop stress reactions or pain.

MRI scans often show bone changes in athletes even when no pain is present. Consequently, some athletes are told to stop all activity. Unfortunately, complete rest usually causes weakness, detraining, and sometimes even more pain.

Instead, the smarter option is expert load management. With the right advice and tailored training, you can often stay on the court while you recover. That’s why a second opinion from an experienced volleyball physio is so valuable.

The Star Physio Approach

At Star Physio, we don’t just treat pain—we test, screen, and guide athletes so they stay strong and game-ready.

• We use a Modified Biering-Sørensen Test with 20% bodyweight resistance. This test, unlike traditional versions, reflects real back endurance during gameplay.

• We also use McGill Core Endurance Tests (side planks and prone planks). Since normative values exist for both athletes and general populations, these tests give us useful benchmarks.

In addition, we are collecting data from WA volleyball athletes, including state youth squads and Perth Steel players, to better understand the link between endurance and back pain.

Together, these tools allow us to deliver the best volleyball physiotherapy in Perth—care that blends research, experience, and performance focus.

Stay Healthy and Keep Playing

Whether your goal is club competition, state representation, or national squad selection, managing volleyball back pain properly is essential.

👉 If you’re in pain, book in with Aaron, Simen or one of our volleyball physio experts.
👉 If you’re currently pain-free, schedule a volleyball screening to prevent future injuries and maximise your performance.

📍 Clinics in West Perth and Mosman Park
📞 Call 6424 9578
🌐 Book online here!

In summary, at Star Physio we help motivated athletes move better, play longer, and stay pain-free—without unnecessary rest or setbacks.

You can read more about Star Physios work with Volleyball here.

Aaron Tay leads Australian Volleyball Team Stretching