How Many Tennis Lessons Do I Need? The 230 Detailed Answer

Tennis is a very popular sport in Australia and is played by people of all ages. Tennis can be played in pairs (called “singles”) or in pairs (called “doubles”). Players use racquets to hit a ball over a net to the other side of the court.

A tennis game includes a variety of game types, including hitting the ball over the net, rallies (when the ball is hit back and forth between opponents), quick movement, and strategic play.

Tennis can be played as a sport or as a pastime with friends and family. In any case, playing tennis is a good sport to maintain your health, fitness, strength and mobility. It has been calculated that a one hour single game of tennis burns around 600 calories for men and 420 calories for women.

In addition to the fitness and physical health benefits, tennis also offers numerous social and mental health benefits.

Health benefits of tennis

Tennis can be a great workout and a lot of fun. Playing tennis has many health benefits, including:

Increase in aerobic capacities

Decrease in resting heart rate and blood pressure

Improvement in metabolic function

increasing bone density

reduction in body fat

Improving muscle tone, strength and flexibility

increasing response times

Other benefits of tennis

Tennis is not only a great physical workout, but also:

a non impact sport

a great way to meet people and spend time with friends

suitable for all ages and skill levels. Regardless of your level, you can find someone of similar skill level to play with

helpful to relieve stress

regardless of youth or strength – you can play for a lifetime or start playing at any age

played across Australia and in many parts of the world

Start playing tennis

Tennis is very popular in Australia and is played in both organized competitions and parlor games. To play tennis you need a racquet, a ball, a court with a net and an opponent.

Club courts and public courts are available for rent in most suburbs and cities. If you can’t find anyone to play against, many tennis clubs have organized social games, competitions and tournaments that give you other tennis players to play with. Alternatively, if you don’t have a tennis partner, you can practice your skills by hitting a tennis ball against a wall.

Prevention of tennis injuries

Avoid playing with a pre-existing illness or injury. If in doubt, speak to a doctor.

Warm up your muscles and joints before hitting the court.

Maintain an appropriate level of fitness. Perform conditioning and training exercises specifically designed for the physical demands of tennis.

Occasionally, repetitive stroke injuries can occur in tennis. Proper technique and playing tennis at a volume that suits your fitness level can help prevent injury. Make sure you have enough liquid on hand and drink regularly.

Play at a level appropriate to your age and physical condition.

If court conditions are wet, consider playing indoors or postponing your game, especially if the surface is slippery.

Where to get help

Things to remember

Tennis is one of the most followed and practiced sports around the world and every day there are more kids who want to follow in the footsteps of great players like Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer and become the new ATP No.1.

But this sport has gained its reputation not only thanks to its great players, but also because of the myriad physical and mental benefits that its practice brings. Regular training improves physical condition, develops muscles, attention span, motor coordination and even promotes socialization.

Parents know all of these benefits, but are wondering what is the best age for children who enjoy this sport to start.

As with most sports, there is no specific age at which to start playing tennis. Whether or not a child is willing to take tennis lessons depends on their abilities, skills and abilities rather than their age.

Many children by the age of 4 already show quite advanced motor coordination skills that enable them to play tennis, but it must be taken into account that their attention skills are not yet very developed. At this age, the constant distractions turn tennis lessons into a mere game of racquets and balls.

While these classes are not intended to improve technique, they do familiarize the child with the equipment and the basic ideas of the game. It is recommended that during his “training” the child use rackets, nets and balls that adapt to his physical conditions.

Most experts say that the best age to start playing tennis in a more formal way is around the age of 5 or 6. By the time children reach this age, their psychomotor skills, coordination and attention are well developed and they are much more adaptable to the demands of play.

This is the perfect age to let children experiment with racquets, balance the ball and get in touch with the basic technique of this sport. The aim is to help children get used to the court, its dimensions, the grips and the weight of the rackets and balls.

In addition, thanks to this sport, the little ones will begin to improve their speed, agility and reflexes while toning all the muscles of their body. To avoid injury and discomfort, it is best to use junior tennis racquets around the age of 5 to 12 years. More ergonomic and lighter than those for adults, these rackets allow the child to perform the movements and strokes more comfortably.

Regardless of the child’s age, both parents and their parenting regime must be flexible and able to adapt to their desires and abilities, barring any kind of mental pressure or physical overload. At this age, parents simply have to aim for their child to have fun and socialize outside of the family environment.

Looking for a better workout? How about one that includes cardiovascular, strength and brain training at the same time? Incredibly, this is just the beginning of the health benefits of playing tennis. Learn the following 5 top benefits of this amazing sport.

Tennis Health Benefits You Need to Know

Countless new training programs and gimmicks appear left and right. You can spend a lot of money trying to find the best exercise regime. However, few of them can match the total body workout of tennis. Take a look at these incredible health benefits of this fast-paced game.

1) It’s good for your heart

Tennis requires a series of quick sprints over a period of 1 to 2 hours. It increases your heart rate and pumps oxygen and nutrients to your muscles more efficiently. When your aerobic capacity improves, it also allows your muscles to make better use of the oxygen they receive. They tire more slowly and at higher power levels. Over time, playing tennis lowers your resting heart rate and blood pressure. It also lowers the risk of heart attack, stroke and heart disease.

2) Control your body fat

You’re constantly on your feet, moving fast and making sudden changes in direction. It’s a full body workout as you run, swing, twist and stretch. You can burn between 400 and 600 calories per hour, which is great for reducing and controlling body fat. Many people find that playing tennis allows them to burn more calories than many other physical activities.

3) Improve your balance and flexibility

Your whole body has to work together to play tennis, exercising your legs, arms, hands and upper body. This whole body coordination requires flexibility and balance. Every shot you take improves this coordination, increasing your balance and flexibility. This means you reduce your risk of injury and increase your range of motion.

4) Tone your muscles

You run, swing your arms, stop, start, jump and crouch. They move back and forth, forward and backward, and at different speeds. You make sudden and frequent changes of direction while navigating the court after the ball. Unique among other sports, tennis is truly a full body workout. Your legs, shoulders, arms, hands, upper back and lower back will all get a good workout. You strengthen your core muscles. Regular tennis is optimal strength training for the whole body.

5) Stimulate your brain

Tennis combines physics with geometry and requires tactical and creative thinking. You must be vigilant, plan and develop shot patterns, and make split-second decisions. Your brain needs to coordinate many different parts of your body to play and improve your game. This improves neural connections the more you play. Not only that, the game of tennis requires a good amount of thinking and strategy, much like the game of chess. You have to think fast and execute tactical moves with precision. It has even been shown to improve memory and learning.

Move better, feel better

Stay fit, keep your heart healthy, exercise your muscles regularly, improve your balance and flexibility AND improve your cognitive skills. On top of that, it even makes you feel better and improves your mood. Whether you play it recreationally or competitively, tennis is a sport that gives you an optimal total body and brain workout every time. And it is fun! Additionally, these tennis health benefits are just the beginning.

Play at Giammalva

Discover tennis for yourself. Giammalva Racquet Club is a 25-acre tennis and fitness club in Spring, Texas that offers competitive and recreational activities for all ages and skill levels. We welcome beginners and first-time players to try a class, exercise or game. Contact us for more information on how you can get involved in this healthy and fun sport today!

If you are young and used to exercising regularly, do not think that this is a way to burn calories. You choose a sport because it’s fun, because your friends play it, or because your parents made you do it. However, as you get older, your metabolism slows, life becomes more hectic, and you realize that if you don’t get off the couch, you’ll gain weight and get out of shape.

Up until the age of 21 I played tennis 3 or 4 hours a day and still worked out afterwards so I never had to think about how many calories I was eating or what my cardio was like. Honestly, I used to eat 2 giant breakfast burritos every Wednesday morning and still not gain weight. Now I feel like I gain weight every time I smell even a little bread. Of course, I had to start thinking about what kinds of sports will help me with my cardio, help me lose weight, and still be pretty fun. Having played tennis all my life I thought it would be a good start.

So is playing tennis considered good cardio exercise? When you play tennis, you’re constantly moving your whole body, which causes your heart rate to increase and more oxygen to be pumped into your system. That’s the true definition of a good cardio workout. Tennis also burns a lot of calories and helps you lose belly fat.

If you would like more information before making a decision about whether tennis is the right cardio exercise for you, I encourage you to continue reading this article. Below we explain what makes a good cardio workout and how many calories you burn playing tennis.

What is considered good cardio?

A lot of people talk about their cardio exercise, but the vast majority of them don’t know exactly what a good cardio workout entails. Cardio workouts — also known as cardio or aerobic exercise — are workouts that involve your larger muscles (arms, shoulders, legs, back) moving either constantly or frequently. Because your body is constantly moving, your heart has to work harder to pump more blood, which increases your heart rate and makes you breathe faster.

By making your heart work faster, cardio workouts force more oxygen into your system (if you don’t remember your anatomy class, our hearts absorb CO2 and release O2 into our bodies). Every time you engage in a cardio workout, your body trains itself to use oxygen more efficiently. As this happens, many other positive things will happen in your body (which I will discuss later).

Based on the definition above, tennis can be considered a very good cardio workout. You move around frequently, use your arms and legs, increase your heart rate, and breathe more often. Some tennis exercises (like rallies or movement) lend themselves better to cardio than others (short points).

Below are some other sports that are considered good cardio exercises:

operation

To go biking

jump rope

rowing

boxes

To swim

Benefits of a good cardio workout

Now that we’ve covered the science behind a cardio workout, I wanted to mention some of the benefits it will bring you. If you choose tennis as your cardio workout, you will benefit from the following advantages:

Reduce the risk of various cardiovascular diseases; burn calories and lose weight; Improve your stamina and stamina; Stabilize your mood and increase your energy; improve concentration; Strengthen and tone your muscles.

How many calories do you burn playing tennis?

Calculating how many calories you burn playing tennis isn’t easy. The exact number depends on your age, weight, gender, the intensity of your training and how your body is used to playing. However, I have tried to categorize and estimate a rough number based on your weight and the type of tennis training you participate in. The numbers below are based on approximately 1 hour of tennis.

Your weight moderate drills or hitting Doubles Singles 120 LBS 286 Kcal 458 KCAL 140 LBS 334 KCAL 535 KCAL 160 LBS 382 KCAL 611 KCAL 515 KCAL 687 KCAL 7.2 200 LBS 5203 KCAL 525 kcal 630 kcal 840 kcal

Just for reference, a 140-pound person running at about 6 mph for an hour will burn about 640 calories. A 180-pound person running at the same pace for an hour burns about 800 calories. As you can see, tennis burns about as many calories as running – and it’s a lot more fun!

Can you really lose weight with tennis?

Now that you know how many calories you can burn after an hour of tennis, how does that translate to the weight you’ll lose? At the end of the day, weight loss occurs when you take in fewer calories than you expend. Since tennis helps you burn calories, it can definitely help you lose weight.

In order to lose a pound, you should be in a deficit of around 3500 calories. That means if you eat a balanced diet and decide to play tennis 3 or 4 hours a week you will lose a pound every 1-2 weeks.

Does Tennis Help You Lose Belly Fat?

When we consider different workouts, most of us are really looking for the workout that will help us lose belly fat the fastest. At the end of the day, to lose belly fat, you need to lose weight all over your body. Unfortunately, belly fat is usually one of the last to go.

However, tennis is considered a good workout to lose belly fat. In general, cardio workouts are considered helpful when it comes to burning belly fat. The fact that you’re engaging your lower and upper body when you play tennis helps activate your entire body, which helps shed belly fat. What’s more, you use your core for virtually every tennis shot – which helps you tone your abs.

What muscles does tennis train?

While tennis works the whole body, there are some muscles that naturally work harder than others. When it comes to your legs, the muscles that will be working the hardest are your calves, hamstrings, glutes, quads, adductors, and abductors. When you start paying attention, most tennis players have very well defined calves and quads.

When playing tennis, the upper body is also heavily used. Your abs (again, great for burning belly fat!), shoulders, upper back, chest, and forearms will be working hard and frequently, which will help them get stronger and more toned.

You should expect to feel quite sore after playing tennis, especially if you are not used to playing it often. A good recovery strategy is extremely important to reduce muscle soreness, so we have written an article detailing the best recovery methods and you can read it here – 9 Post-Game Recovery Strategies for Tennis Players.

Conclusion

If you’re still wondering if tennis is a good cardio workout for you, I highly recommend you at least give it a try. It will certainly help you when it comes to your health, but it’s also a lot of fun and helps you make friends. Soon you will be hooked!

If you’re looking for a way to improve your heart health, improve your balance and coordination, burn calories, work every muscle in your body, and have fun doing it, then consider tennis. One of the oldest sports out there, tennis is a fitness-friendly, timeless classic that you can play for a lifetime. Ready to see if it’s right for you? Read on to learn about the benefits of tennis, how many calories it burns, tips for a good workout, and more. Share on Pinterest Trevor Williams/Getty Images

What kind of training is tennis? Tennis is primarily a cardiovascular workout as it increases your heart rate and breathing (1). It also recruits your large lower body muscles for quick side-to-side and front-to-back movements and your upper body muscles to help you swing the racquet. Therefore, tennis can serve as a total body workout that increases cardiovascular fitness and improves muscular endurance and strength.

How many calories do you burn playing tennis? Tennis is a calorie-wasting, high-intensity cardio workout. After just a few minutes of chasing the ball, your pulse will increase and you will burn more calories. Cardiovascular exercises are typically broken down into three levels – low, moderate and intense intensity. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) considers singles tennis a high-intensity activity (2). In general, a 154-pound (69.9 kg) person burns 220-295 calories in 30 minutes of vigorous activity ( 3Trusted Source ). Because tennis matches can last anywhere from 90 minutes to almost 3 hours, a person weighing 150 lbs could burn 660-1,320 calories in one match. However, most people who play for general fitness only play 60-90 minutes. Summary Tennis is a high-intensity activity. A person weighing 69.9 kg (154 pounds) can burn 220-295 calories per 30 minutes of play.

Is tennis good for losing weight? Healthy weight loss is typically achieved through a combination of diet and exercise (4). Regularly engaging in aerobic activity like tennis can help create a calorie deficit, which can help you lose weight. However, research shows that diet has a greater impact on weight loss than exercise. Therefore, how many calories you consume is still crucial. Exercise can really pack a punch when you’re aiming to maintain your weight. According to some studies, exercise is more effective in preventing weight gain after significant weight loss (5). To maintain your current weight, the CDC recommends getting at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity per week (3). When trying to lose weight, exercising more to burn more calories can be beneficial, provided it fits your lifestyle, health, and goals. The exact number of minutes it takes to lose weight depends on the activity; how many calories you consume; your age, gender and height; and other factors. Check out this article to learn more about the links between exercise and weight loss. Summary Aerobic activity like tennis burns calories and can promote a calorie deficit. When combined with a calorie-restricted diet, exercise can aid in weight loss or maintenance.

Other Benefits of Playing Tennis Tennis is an excellent cardiovascular exercise that improves muscle strength, endurance, balance, coordination and flexibility. Since you need a partner to play a match, this can also improve social interactions. Tennis is also a sport that can be played at any age. Here are some of the key benefits of playing tennis. Promotes Heart Health Tennis can be a great cardio workout. Jasmine Marcus, DPT, says you can make tennis harder or easier by playing singles or doubles. Playing tennis is also good for your heart health. In fact, one study found that people who participated in racquet sports had a 59 percent reduction in cardiovascular disease mortality and a 47 percent reduction in all-cause mortality ( 6Trusted Source ). Improves social interactions Tennis is a social game, so you can train with your friends. Sport increases social interaction and promotes community – regardless of age. Because it is a lifelong sport, it can lead to increased physical activity throughout life (7). And despite its social character, the sport offers a lot of physical freedom when playing. This can reduce the risk of injury from contact with other people. “In addition, there is a low risk of contact with other players,” says Marcus. Because of this, many people can play tennis longer than more contact sports like basketball, soccer, or softball (8). Improves Musculoskeletal Function Tennis requires every muscle in your body to fire. According to a 2019 study, tennis players had better upper and lower body musculoskeletal function than non-players. Your musculoskeletal system includes ligaments, bones, muscles, soft tissues, and tendons (9). Researchers speculate that this may have to do with the hybrid high-intensity interval training nature of tennis. Promotes Balance and Coordination Racquet sports like tennis require a tremendous amount of balance, postural stability and coordination. For example, playing tennis requires a lot of lateral movement, which is not common in most people’s daily lives. You’ll be doing a lot of forward and backward footwork during a game, but it’s the lateral movements that really challenge your balance and coordination. Also, chasing a ball requires frequent changes of direction, which also improves muscle function and balance. This could be why some studies have found that tennis improves balance and reduces falls (10). Additionally, racquet sports like tennis can improve bone health and muscle function more than running (10). Summary Racquet sports like tennis can improve cardiovascular fitness, musculoskeletal function, balance and coordination. Tennis also encourages social interaction and staying active throughout life.

Tips for the Best Tennis Workout When you’re ready to add tennis to your fitness routine, there are a few things you can do to make your time on the court more successful. Benjy Robins, director of tennis at CordeValle, says the best way to learn the right techniques is to take private or group lessons with a teaching professional (11). Lessons aside, here are some tips for new players (11): Challenge other players. You can get better by practicing with all players – players who are both more advanced and less advanced than you.

You can get better by practicing with all players – players who are both more advanced and less advanced than you. Never skip a warm-up. It will help you play better and prevent injuries. Focus on a dynamic warm-up before the game and maintain static stretches for your post-game recovery.

It will help you play better and prevent injuries. Focus on a dynamic warm-up before the game and maintain static stretches for your post-game recovery. Prioritize the right form. This reduces your risk of injury and improves your skills.

This reduces your risk of injury and improves your skills. stay alert Move your feet and always watch the ball. Focusing on the game can improve your performance.

Move your feet and always watch the ball. Focusing on the game can improve your performance. Play alone or with a partner. You can hit the ball against a wall or play with a machine that keeps sending balls your way. Or you can play with a partner.

You can hit the ball against a wall or play with a machine that keeps sending balls your way. Or you can play with a partner. Try different surfaces. If you have joint problems, experiment with playing on different surfaces. The three main types are grass, clay and hard courts like concrete. One way to get the most out of your tennis game and prevent injury, according to Marcus, is to engage in a regular strength-training program. “Tennis will strengthen your heart, but it will have less impact on your skeletal muscles.” So to improve your overall health and reduce your risk of injury, it’s important to also lift weights. If you’re a tennis player, Marcus recommends focusing on your arms and legs, particularly your rotator cuffs and the muscles around your knees. Summary Strength training, proper warm-up, practice with players of different levels, proper form, and tuition can help you get the best tennis workout.

At Lighthouse Point Yacht Club we have a beautiful tennis complex with 10 clay courts, three of which are illuminated for your after-dark enjoyment. Not only is tennis fun, but it offers so many benefits for your health and overall well-being. Did you know that playing tennis for an hour can burn up to 600 calories for men and 420 calories for women? This is just the beginning of the benefits of playing tennis!

8 benefits of playing tennis

#1. Improve your aerobic skills

Playing tennis involves a lot of running around the court, but you won’t even notice the whole exercise if you’re concentrating on one thing – hitting the ball! As a result, you’ll build your stamina and aerobic skills while having a great time.

#2. Improve your physical health

There are many ways tennis improves your overall physical health such as: B. lowering your resting heart rate and lowering your blood pressure. In addition, it can lower body fat while improving muscle tone, strength and flexibility, and metabolic function.

#3. Use a full range of muscles

When you play tennis, you engage so many different muscles – from your upper body to your lower body. In the lower body, you’ll work your calves, hamstrings, quads, and glutes. At the same time, your core gets a good workout, including your abs, erector spinae, obliques, and latissimus dorsi. As for your upper body, you train your chest, upper back, shoulders, and arms.

#4. Added brainpower

You might not expect to boost your brain power while playing a heated game of tennis, but in fact you do! Tennis has been shown to improve critical thinking skills, as well as mental alertness and tactical thinking. It does this by forcing your brain to make certain connections.

In addition, tennis gives you a boost of serotonin, an important brain chemical that has been linked to the sleep cycle, emotional well-being and appetite. This means that playing tennis can help you sleep better and regulate your emotions – a win-win for your emotional and physical health.

#5. A chance to socialize

Tennis is both a team sport and a competitive sport, meaning you need more than one person to play. As a result, it becomes a social sport that gets you talking and hanging out with other people. This is good for your body and mind, as well as your overall well-being and happiness. The time spent playing tennis is physiologically very rewarding.

#6. Helps prevent diseases

By helping keep cholesterol levels low and your lipid profile in check, tennis helps fight and prevent disease. This means you have a lower risk of developing high blood pressure, cardiovascular problems and having a stroke.

#7. weight loss

Playing tennis regularly can help you shed unwanted pounds. The constant running, stretching, and twisting while using every inch of your body burns a lot of calories. Play long enough and you’ll tap into stored fat.

The American Dietetic Association reports that recreational tennis players can burn up to 600 to 1,320 calories playing two hours of individual sessions. Competitive players can hope to burn between 768 and 1,728 calories.

#8th. reduce stress

We all need ways to reduce stress – after all, stress is part of our modern everyday life. Tennis offers a fun way to relieve stress and free your mind from anxiety. Many other forms of exercise still keep your mind racing. For example, running on the treadmill makes it easy to think about work stress or dinner, but letting your mind wander while playing tennis makes you lose sight of the ball.

Play tennis at LHPYC!

LHPYC offers all the amenities of a premier tennis club and more. You can play in your free time, take lessons or enroll in our junior program. We also offer private, semi-private and group lessons to perfect your skills. Learn more

Who is the fittest tennis player of all time?

Fitness in sport has changed rapidly in recent years, with the advancement in technology and our understanding of diet and nutrition it is almost impossible to reach the top of a sport without being in peak physical condition and tennis is here no exception.

Tennis is a very fast-paced game that is often played with large bursts of energy over a long period of time. There are many different components that make up a physically fit tennis player, including not just endurance but also elements of skill. As a professional tennis player playing at the highest level, you must possess great flexibility, muscular endurance, aerobic endurance and speed, all of which make up a player’s physical fitness. In addition, agility, balance, reaction time, coordination, and strength are all elements of skill-based fitness that a top player needs.

Tennis is a sport that includes some of the fittest athletes in the world and can only be compared to sports like boxing, decathlon and Ironman events. In team sports such as football or rugby, it is possible for the individual participants to take a break from the action even if the ball is still in play, but this is not possible in tennis.

Looking back, tennis’ fittest players include Martina Navratilova, who won a Wimbledon doubles title at the age of 46, Michael Chang, who seemed to cover every inch of the court in every match he played, and Ivan Lendl, who kept to strict training schedules to stay in peak physical condition. Other past players who would also make the group include John McEnroe, Pete Sampras and Steffi Graf.

Today there are many players on both the men’s and women’s tours who can be considered to be in excellent physical condition. However, the truly outstanding players are Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Serena Williams. Federer shines on court with ease coupled with great stamina and is still capable of beating players much younger than him. Perhaps a few years ago Djokovic would have struggled to match Rafael Nadal in terms of match endurance but seems to have overcome that and is getting fitter and stronger on the court. Nadal, on the other hand, has seen injuries hampering his progress lately. Serena Williams is still considered the favorite for every tournament she enters, and that’s in no small part due to her fitness and physique, as well as her skill.

The question remains: Who is the fittest tennis player of all time? Well, if players who were at the top fifteen or twenty years ago came back now, in the shape they were in then, and played a full five or three set match against Novak Djokovic or Serena Williams would they be able to maintain their level of play throughout the game? The answer has to be no, simply because nutrition, technique, training, preparation and understanding of the game have all improved tremendously over that time, making Novak Djokovic the fittest tennis player right now, now and possibly ever.

In the future?

This article was written in 2014. No doubt there will be very fit players in the years to come who will challenge the champions listed here. Even a poll from a few years ago is starting to look outdated. ESPN’s poll of the greatest tennis “athlete” of all time, conducted in 2012, shortlisted Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Martina Navratilova, Pete Sampras and Serena Williams, with Federer being crowned the greatest.

Related Pages

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What to Eat: Game Day Diet for Tennis Players January 1, 2017

Nutrition in tennis is important

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Nutrition in tennis is important

A bottle of spring water just won’t cut it during an intense match. Every tennis player needs both hydrating and nutritious elements to keep energy levels high and fatigue at bay.

Here are three essential items to keep in your bag on game day to improve your tennis performance. Pack them up the night before so you don’t forget them.

Water: How tennis players hydrate

Many players start games or train to some degree dehydrated. Any lack of water can have a negative impact on your tennis performance and well-being. Also, progressive dehydration (through sweating and not drinking enough fluids) can lead to cardiovascular stress and decrease your strength, endurance, and mental performance.

Drink plenty of fluids (such as water, juice, milk, sports drinks, and other decaffeinated beverages) throughout the day — at least 80 ounces per day. Drink regularly, even during a game, but stick to water and sports drinks as fruit juices are high in sugar. ADVERTISEMENT Try to drink before you get thirsty! And make sure you also rehydrate properly after a game.

Electrolytes: Avoid cramping during a tennis match

The most common heat injury on the tennis court is cramps. Heat-related tennis muscle cramps often occur during or after prolonged play due to significant sodium and chloride (salt) loss. To fully rehydrate, a player must replace sodium and chloride electrolytes lost through sweating. This is important because drinking water when you are sodium deficient can lead to hyponatremia (which means you have very low sodium levels, which can lead to headaches, nausea, and fatigue).

If you play or sweat in a hot environment, add salt to your diet (or eat foods high in salt) to avoid a sodium deficit and to maintain or restore hydration. Good sources of sodium and chloride include:

Salt: ¼ teaspoon (or 1.5 grams) has 590 mg of sodium

Salted Pretzels

tomato juice

Salted Sports Drinks (or Pedialyte)

Soup, cheese, tomato sauce, pizza and many processed foods

Carbohydrates: fuel for a tennis diet

Carbohydrates are crucial for optimal performance in tennis. Even if you eat a good meal before a game, after 60 to 90 minutes of intense one-on-one play, your carb stores will likely have decreased significantly. This affects your ability to maintain blood sugar and meet the energy needs of your muscles, which can quickly lead to fatigue.

In general, you should be consuming about 30-60 grams of carbohydrates per hour during gaming and practice. During periods of intense training or competition, aim for three to five grams of carbohydrates per pound of bodyweight (465-775 grams per day for a 155-pound player).

Bread, cereal, rice, pasta, fruits and vegetables are good primary sources of carbohydrates that should be regularly included in a tennis player’s diet. Foods with a high glycemic index—to raise your blood sugar levels quickly—are also good choices. Examples include plain bagels, ready-to-eat cereal, crackers, pretzels, honey, certain candies, and some sports drinks (those with carbohydrates made primarily from glucose, sucrose, or a glucose polymer).

Another tip: don’t skip breakfast. You should eat low-sugar items like cereal, toast, a glass of juice, pancakes (without a lot of syrup), fruit, and skim milk. Breakfast gives you energy for your tennis game and these foods will not weigh you down.

All tennis players differ in what foods and nutritional strategies work best for them. But these three items are must-haves in your bag and go a long way in keeping you strong and fast on the court.

When you see great players like Roger Federer in action, the sport of tennis can look deceptively simple. Roger almost seems to be gliding across the court, making powerful shots with no apparent effort. Go to court yourself, however, and it will seem a lot less easy. If you’re a beginner, you might find it difficult to hit the ball consistently, let alone hit with Federer’s power and accuracy.

Many people consider tennis to be one of the most difficult sports to learn because it requires hand-eye coordination, flexibility, agility, strength and speed. Players have to master different shots and learn the mental side of the game which is said to be the hardest part.

While learning to play tennis can be challenging, it becomes a lot easier when you have a game plan. We’ve written a complete guide on how to start playing tennis, with insights on how to choose equipment and how to plan your lessons, and you can read it here.

Is tennis difficult to learn?

If your ambition is to just walk into a parking lot and hit some balls over the net with a friend, tennis isn’t that difficult. Swing the racquet and you’ll gradually come into contact with the ball more often. Occasionally, something resembling a rally may erupt. However, if you want to play the game properly to join a club or enter competitions, there’s a lot more to it than that.

Using an effective tennis technique gives you the best chance of putting the ball where you want it and protects you from injury. It’s very easy to injure your arm, wrist, or elbow from repeatedly hitting a tennis ball with poor technique. The trainers are trained to help you find the best technique for you, so it’s generally helpful to sign up for a few classes. In the long run, this will help you improve faster and play better.

You’ll need good hand-eye coordination, which can be improved through tennis or other sports, and you’ll need to learn techniques for forehands, backhands, serves, returns, volleys and smashes. As you improve, you’ll learn to use different spins to make life harder for your opponents. All this will take a lot of time, but every little improvement can bring great satisfaction.

Is tennis physically demanding?

This heavily depends on how you play the game. If you want to play a smooth doubles with friends, neither of whom hit the ball very hard, the physical demands are about the same as a brisk walk. However, if you want to play at a high level, the requirements are considerable. To create powerful punches, you need to involve many different parts of your body, pushing with your legs, arching your torso, rotating your shoulder, and accelerating and flexing your arm and wrist. Repeatedly hitting the ball hard will stress all of these elements, potentially leading to a variety of stresses and the risk of tendinitis.

Another challenging aspect of playing tennis at a high level is the way players often have to sprint, jump and swing on hard court surfaces. Many tournaments are played on hard courts and many American players train on them.

Frequent tennis play on such an unforgiving surface can lead to stress fractures and a variety of sores and strains, leaving knees notoriously hard. Surfaces like sand and grass are less demanding, but players’ bodies are still put to the test in the biggest tournaments.

What is the hardest thing in tennis?

From a technical point of view, serving is probably the most difficult shot to get good at, as you have to position the ball yourself while initiating a complex chain of movements. Nonetheless, with practice, most players can at least become competent servers. When you play competitively, there are other aspects that pose a challenge every time you step onto the court, no matter how good your technique.

First of all, you need to find the right tactics to defeat your opponent, considering their strengths and weaknesses, as well as the conditions in which the game will be played. That’s complex enough, but it’s complicated by the fact that they will try to do the same to you.

Second, you must remain calm and appropriately relaxed, staying energized and focused when needed. All of these mental skills will help you stay positive and confident so you can be close to your best. It’s important not to worry about who might be watching, losing fear, or indulging in other negative thoughts. Developing the necessary mental toughness takes a lot of training and practice.

How long does it take to learn tennis?

This depends on what other sports you have played and your overall fitness. As a beginner, you can expect to be playing a decent parlor game within a few months. However, it requires several years of physical, mental and technical training before you can compete at a level close to that of the pros. Because of this, most top players started playing at a young age.

Is tennis harder than other sports?

Not long ago, ESPN evaluated the demands of 60 different sports and found that tennis is the seventh most challenging sport, tougher than baseball and soccer and a far cry from less physically demanding sports like golf.

One could argue that even this underestimates the challenges of tennis. Matches can last five or six hours in potentially intense heat, and players are generally on their own with no one to advise and everyone to judge. They have no teammates to close the gap when they have a day off, and their opponent will have specifically prepared to beat them. Minor injuries are common and players must try to overcome them and maintain a high level of play.

Final Thoughts

Tennis is pretty easy to play badly, but incredibly difficult to play well. Hardly any other sport offers a comparable mental and physical challenge.

How many of you know someone who has been playing tennis for decades and never improves? You may know some people. And you could be one of them.

As a coach and player who is out and about in the club scene almost every day, I see many, many players who never improve their tennis game.

I’ve trained some of them. And although they want to improve, our lessons weren’t much. They just couldn’t break the bad habits they had accumulated over many years.

I’ve thought a lot about this topic. I concluded that there are three main reasons why club players never improve at tennis:

The players lack solid technique and have no coaching to change it. The players don’t practice or practice too seldom to make a difference. Players don’t have the physical talent or coordination to improve their game.

I should preface this article by saying that it applies to older players rather than children or young adults. While younger people can also stagnate in their progress, they’re still relatively new to the sport, so I’m excluding them as examples.

My motivation for writing this article is to crystallize my thoughts on why club players stay at the same level throughout their playing lives. Perhaps my insights will help you improve your own game if your level seems to have peaked, and I’ll give you tips on how to do that here.

I often play at local parks and tennis clubs. Most of the time I see the same group of guys and girls playing at the same level year after year. It’s almost as if time freezes and they are the same players now and 10 years later.

While there are some who improve, the majority never do, despite playing multiple times a week. I think I have some answers as to why their levels are stagnant. Let’s get into that now.

The players lack solid technique and have no coaching to change it

Most club players enjoy playing tennis but shy away from training or lessons. While these players certainly want to improve, they are not willing to put in the work and effort (and money) to do so.

Raising your level in tennis of your own accord is a big challenge without good coaching. In my opinion, not addressing bad technique is the number one reason players don’t improve.

A lot of the club players I see have home shots and bad footwork. To improve, their game would need a major overhaul.

While it’s entirely possible, the vast majority aren’t ready to start. Why? Because it would take a lot of time, coaching and practice.

Most older players with homemade shots fall into a comfortable position with their tennis game. I see them doing all sorts of excessive moves on their groundstrokes and serves that are completely unnecessary. These include odd movements, jerking, and very short, choppy hits.

Making any changes to their game makes them feel extremely uncomfortable. I experienced that first hand when I coached these players.

When I teach them proper hitting mechanics, they’re often so resilient it’s almost unbelievable. Some flatly refuse to change.

Others may try to make the changes I suggest, but as soon as they gather or play, they go straight back to their old, technically incorrect shots. Typically, the older the player, the less chance there is for change.

This is especially true for the guys who also lack athleticism and coordination. A certain amount of this is required to learn and use proper technique.

Tennis is a difficult sport to learn. It’s about moving your body in ways that go against your natural instincts, which makes learning uncomfortable.

I think a lot of people take for granted how much technology there is in the game. It’s obvious when you see a bad club player and a strong club player (5.0 or better).

While some people may believe that good tennis players are born, for the most part this is not true. When the right technique is learned early, it makes a big difference.

But most guys who can’t improve won’t, and for the reasons I’ve given, they don’t. And that’s fine if they just want to play for fun and exercise.

However, if you are a club player who has been stuck at the same level for years and wants to improve, I suggest this.

First you have to check your ego at the door for a few months. As you make major changes to your game, your ability to win games will decrease for a while.

However, this is not a bad thing. It is to be expected when you make changes. Treat it as a learning curve and don’t worry about losing.

Second, either find a good trainer or buy a good online course. A trainer would be much more preferable, but individual coaching is expensive and it can take many lessons to see improvement.

Your next best options are the online courses. They can take you by the hand and guide you step by step through each move. I like courses because they are designed to help you improve quickly and they cost a fraction of long-term coaching.

For those of you who don’t have a budget for tuition or courses, there are tons of free videos on YouTube. I have free videos on my YouTube channel that you can check out too.

The downside to this is that YouTube channels don’t offer truly free courses. Almost all videos are just tips, tricks and suggestions for better shots. I have a free three part series on the modern forehand on my YouTube channel if you’d like to check it out.

Once you’ve decided on one of these three options (a trainer, a class, free videos), the next best thing is to film yourself using the old technique and the new technique.

Remember that practice is pointless if your technique isn’t perfect. Otherwise you will only internalize a bad technique. So make sure you’re playing right by analyzing your video.

If you have trouble doing this, you can tell if your technique is good by sending your video to a trainer. If you want to send it to me, and if I have time, I’ll make you some suggestions. Email me!

Another thing you can do is compare your shots to those of a professional player. Best in super slow motion. Set up a screenshot side by side with the same angle. You can find many of your favorite pros striking out in super slow motion in HD on YouTube.

Once you get the technique right, you need to deepen it with shadow strokes – hundreds of them. When you feel confident and the technique feels more confident, you can start hitting.

Next, hit the court and work on a ball machine or with a practice partner. Finally, start using the new technique in fun, no-bet matches. Finally, and after months of hard work, you can use it in competitive games.

Remember that footwork is a big part of technique; It’s not just about hitting mechanics. I could write ten blog posts about footwork.

The next time you watch a professional tennis match on TV, instead of looking at the ball, look at the feet of the players. You will see them constantly moving, constantly adjusting and rotating their shots.

To see a truly noticeable improvement in your tennis game, your footwork needs to be better too. Some of the footwork requires technical know-how. Other parts can be improved with physical training in the form of flexibility exercises and sprints.

I have a few videos on footwork. The two most important things about footwork are getting ready for the ball early and spinning on your shots. Watch Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Alexander Zverev. All have some of the best footwork on the tour.

I didn’t mention much about serves and volleys. But they are also very important. If you want a great serve course I recommend this [link]. Volleys can also be very challenging for club players.

The key to volleying is to do less, not more. Simply blocking the ball works well most of the time. I wrote a popular blog post about the seven different types of volleys and I have very helpful videos for you to check out.

Hopefully this information will help you and give you some ideas. Now let’s discover the second main reason why club players never improve their tennis game.

Players don’t practice at all or practice too seldom

Many of the players in my club enjoy playing tennis. But they never practice. This will surely result in a stagnant game.

I believe that everyone on the pitch needs their own time to “figure things out”. This usually happens in practice sessions where there is no pressure and plenty of time to work on different things.

As I mentioned before, most club players are not willing to put the time and effort into training. For older players, however, this is somewhat understandable for a few reasons.

One reason is that players simply don’t have time to practice. A player might have at most a few hours of free time after work.

This person would rather play a singles or doubles match than complete a two-hour training session. After all, exercise sessions are usually grueling and not very fun.

It’s also difficult to find another player at your level to practice with. Not only that, you’re not even sure how to practice tennis.

The final reason for not practicing is technique. When a player has bad technique, he only reinforces that bad technique in practice. I think most bad players know that intuitively.

Even if a bad player practices often, very little progress can be made since the problem of poor technique is never addressed. Unfortunately, that was the case for me early on.

I would practice hour after hour, but show little improvement. It wasn’t until I got to grips with my technique that I was able to start improving steadily.

This is a common theme among club players. On the other hand, it’s different when a player learns from a coach or course and starts using the right technique.

However, I find that these types of players (the ones who start using proper technique) don’t improve either. But why do you ask?

The reason for this is that they train too infrequently. I see this in my adult students all the time. They come to a lesson with me and learn proper technique, which is great.

During our next lesson, which may be a week or two later, they can often remember the correct technique but do not execute it well. When I ask them if they practice, I often get a resounding “no.”

Even if a player corrects their form and knows how to use proper technique, there will be no improvement if they don’t practice.

It amazes me to think that a person could take a lesson and then expect significant improvement without practice. But I see it all the time.

My job is to correct their technique and make sure they hit well. But once they exit the lesson, it’s up to them to practice enough so that the new technique is ingrained in their muscle memory.

I find that a lack of practice or infrequent training is a big reason for stagnant progress in tennis. Unfortunately, this is also the case with children.

If you really want to improve in tennis and you practice a lot and hardly have any results, learn a good technique first. Once you have a good technique, you can practice as much as you want.

If you already know/have a good technique, you need to practice at least twice a week and preferably 3-4 to see a quick and noticeable difference in your tennis game.

Remember, you don’t have to practice that often forever. If you can practice three to four times a week for a month or two, that’s often enough to push you to a higher level and deepen the new technique. Try it and let me know how it goes.

Players don’t have the physical talent or coordination to improve their game

This is another major reason why players cannot or cannot improve. While the technique can be learned and practiced consistently, the physical abilities are fairly set.

We are all born with some level of physical ability and hand-eye coordination. While a player can always work to improve it, after our 30s it becomes a climb that often isn’t worth it.

Throughout my entire playing career, I can’t recall a single club player in their forties or older making intensive, long-term efforts to improve their stamina, speed and coordination.

Even if a person did this at that age, there is only a limited amount that can be done in middle age and beyond. Father time takes care of that.

If an older club player has good physical skills on the pitch, it’s because he had them at a young age. Good athleticism is usually maintained in tennis (although it declines slightly with age), barring injuries.

For those lacking in physical ability in their 40s and beyond, only some improvement can be expected. After all, tennis is an explosive sport and requires explosive movements at the higher levels.

Many club players just can’t coordinate their bodies to move explosively. Physical limitations are part of everyday life in sports. Even Michael Jordan and Pete Sampras showed tremendous decline in their later years.

In addition to the explosive movements, good tennis shots require certain complex movements. Unfortunately, some players cannot physically perform these moves no matter how hard they try.

For example, racquet speed is essential to hitting with strong topspin and speed. Some of the older players I work with can’t swing half as fast as I can. For whatever reason, they just can’t.

If such a person improves their technique, practices diligently, and improves their timing, they will make some nice progress. But they will never be able to crush the ball like certain players can.

Other players I work with just don’t run fast. No matter how many times I show them the right footwork to get to the ball, they do it far too slowly to take that quantum leap to the next level.

The serve is another big physical challenge for people. While the technique is complicated enough, the serve also requires a lot of physical skill to hit hard. Shoulder flexibility and power come naturally on heavy serves.

Most of the club players I work with just don’t have what it takes. They either can’t coordinate their bodies, swing far too slowly, or barely use their legs.

Here’s my take on this whole physical ability issue. If you’re fit and under 40, you can certainly improve your physical abilities with strength training, plyometrics, flexibility exercises, sprinting, etc.

Once you are over 40, your physical capacity begins to decline. Yes, you can still improve it, but the energy required to do so will be reduced. Most club players in their 50s and beyond have seen better days physically.

Sure, exercise will help, but not as much because it probably won’t be intense enough. When you are older it is better to focus on technique if you want to see a significant improvement in your tennis game.

If after the age of 50 you had to choose one physical thing to improve yourself, choose conditioning. You can improve it with low-impact cardio sessions. Exercises to improve speed and explosiveness put a strain on the body and are difficult to perform after 50.

If you’re in your 30s or younger, I recommend doing plyometrics, sprinting, and flexibility exercises to improve your physical skills. Plyometrics is great for improving the fast-twitch muscles needed in tennis.

In my eyes, sprinting is almost essential. It mimics the explosiveness of stopping and starting required in tennis. It will also help you run faster on the court and recruit your fast-twitch muscle fibers.

Flexibility exercises are great because they help you move faster and better coordinate your body. If you can throw in some hand-eye coordination exercises, all the better.

You see, once you’re an adult your physical abilities aren’t going to change much without intense exertion. If you’re willing to make the effort, great. If not, then you have to live with what you have.

Realize that your physical ability determines how much your tennis game can improve. While you can progress in terms of technique, unless you can explode to reach a distant ball or swing fast enough to hit a crushing forehand, you can never far exceed your current level.

But that’s okay. We all need to play with ourselves and accept our abilities for what they are. Just make the best of what you have.

While it’s nice to think that we can all improve our tennis games significantly if we work hard, we should be aware that for some this may not be the case.

Conclusion

This article is a sober reminder of what it takes to improve at tennis. I didn’t want to sugarcoat it for you.

At the same time, I want to give you hope, which is why I added tips for improvement. You see, you can improve at any age. Do not be discouraged.

I say what I see from my perspective as a long-time club player and coach. Your perspective and reality may be different. The most important tool you have in tennis is your mind.

By the way, for players whose physique is an issue, you can improve your tennis tremendously by working on your volleyball game. The volley is mostly a touch shot and can be hit without much movement. It also doesn’t require complicated mechanics to hit.

If you’re a frequent doubles player, the main thing you need to do is improve your net game. The best way to practice your volleys is on a ball machine. Check out my YouTube videos on how to play volleyball.

Start with the block volley, progress to the punch volley, and switch to the drive volley and drop volley. Solid net play can make up for many other deficiencies in tennis.

I trust you got some value from this article. If you have any questions for me, leave them below. Thank you for reading!

It’s that time of year again; Wimbledon is just around the corner, inspiring many to dust off their racquets and hit the tennis courts.

But how can you improve your game (so as not to embarrass yourself too much)? We caught up with Andy Murray’s former coach, Mark Petchey, who took the Wimbledon champion from the top 400 to the world top 50 for the first time, and who shared his top tips for getting better at the game…

Lighter group PR

1. Hold the racquet lightly

Fight your instincts. Petchey explains that one of the easiest mistakes in tennis is gripping the racquet too tightly. “I see a lot of nervous players doing this for the first time because they think ‘if I grip tighter the swing will have more power’, but really it’s all about having a lighter grip that gives you more power momentum. Holding on only means you’ll get blisters and your game won’t be as good. Also make sure you hold the racquet very low so that the bottom is almost in the middle of the sponge of your hand. I see so many people holding it half and three quarters down; it just means your swing will be a lot less effective.

2. Think of the C shape

Have a bad serve? Every serve is different, and Petchey says that remembering “C-shape” is the easiest way to hit a good serve: “You can’t go too far wrong if you’re doing a C-shape on your serve do – starting from the top and all around – you can easily get power and control behind your shot. The C gives you enough time to throw a great ball; let the ball bounce on the ground once and at that time you come back to finish the rest of your C and make the position absolutely perfect for hitting the ball. Don’t do a half C, go all the way.

3. Bend your feet

It’s no secret that footwork is key in tennis, but Petchey reveals that a simple change in your stance can make all the difference in your game. “When your feet are properly angled, you’re much more likely to hit the ball exactly where you want it on the pitch. Position your feet so that one foot is pointing in the direction you want it to go — it will usually be diagonally — and place the other so it is pointing forward.”

4. Consider your eating habits

Petchey’s philosophy is the cliché: everything in moderation. “I have three liters of water and good, wholesome, healthy food. I don’t think you should overeat carbs in general, but getting plenty of protein is important. When it comes to food, I believe in anything, even a little bit of sugar. I would recommend eating shortly after playing tennis, it’s good to get something into the body. Eat more than an hour before going to the square, you won’t be ready if you eat just before.

Mark Petchey with Andy Murray in 2006. Getty Images

5. Remember “SSR”

Get the most out of your tennis skills by training anaerobically. “Running and cycling is a great way to build your fitness to prepare for tennis. Anaerobic means living without oxygen. You want to train that way, with an intense 40 seconds ‘on’ and 40 seconds ‘off’ “So practice drills are perfect for playing on the pitch. If you want to get good at tennis, you need to remember SSR: short, sharp and rest. This keeps you alert on the pitch and you know when to push and when to rest.”

6. Watch the ball

That sounds obvious, but Petchey says one of the best things to do when perfecting your serve is looking at the ball, rather than where you hope it will go. “Rookies are always paying attention to where the ball is going on the court when they serve. You should keep an eye on the ball as it bounces onto the strings of your racquet. Don’t let the ball out of your sight. If you watch his every move, you are in control on the pitch.”

7. Go back to basics

Petchey says we should never underestimate the importance of the little things we can do to improve our tennis game. “All the best players in the world start by throwing and catching balls and hitting tennis balls against a wall. If you don’t live near a course and want to improve your game, it’s easy. It’s all the little things that add up. Throwing balls as high as you can and catching them will result in a great ball throw. You don’t need a huge court, an outfit and the best racquet on the market to be great at tennis.”

Neilson Holidays launched the Mark Petchey tennis program at its Greek and Turkish beach clubs this year.

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When you see great players like Roger Federer in action, the sport of tennis can look deceptively simple. Roger almost seems to be gliding across the court, making powerful shots with no apparent effort. Go to court yourself, however, and it will seem a lot less easy. If you’re a beginner, you might find it difficult to hit the ball consistently, let alone hit with Federer’s power and accuracy.

Many people consider tennis to be one of the most difficult sports to learn because it requires hand-eye coordination, flexibility, agility, strength and speed. Players have to master different shots and learn the mental side of the game which is said to be the hardest part.

While learning to play tennis can be challenging, it becomes a lot easier when you have a game plan. We’ve written a complete guide on how to start playing tennis, with insights on how to choose equipment and how to plan your lessons, and you can read it here.

Is tennis difficult to learn?

If your ambition is to just walk into a parking lot and hit some balls over the net with a friend, tennis isn’t that difficult. Swing the racquet and you’ll gradually come into contact with the ball more often. Occasionally, something resembling a rally may erupt. However, if you want to play the game properly to join a club or enter competitions, there’s a lot more to it than that.

Using an effective tennis technique gives you the best chance of putting the ball where you want it and protects you from injury. It’s very easy to injure your arm, wrist, or elbow from repeatedly hitting a tennis ball with poor technique. The trainers are trained to help you find the best technique for you, so it’s generally helpful to sign up for a few classes. In the long run, this will help you improve faster and play better.

You’ll need good hand-eye coordination, which can be improved through tennis or other sports, and you’ll need to learn techniques for forehands, backhands, serves, returns, volleys and smashes. As you improve, you’ll learn to use different spins to make life harder for your opponents. All this will take a lot of time, but every little improvement can bring great satisfaction.

Is tennis physically demanding?

This heavily depends on how you play the game. If you want to play a smooth doubles with friends, neither of whom hit the ball very hard, the physical demands are about the same as a brisk walk. However, if you want to play at a high level, the requirements are considerable. To create powerful punches, you need to involve many different parts of your body, pushing with your legs, arching your torso, rotating your shoulder, and accelerating and flexing your arm and wrist. Repeatedly hitting the ball hard will stress all of these elements, potentially leading to a variety of stresses and the risk of tendinitis.

Another challenging aspect of playing tennis at a high level is the way players often have to sprint, jump and swing on hard court surfaces. Many tournaments are played on hard courts and many American players train on them.

Frequent tennis play on such an unforgiving surface can lead to stress fractures and a variety of sores and strains, leaving knees notoriously hard. Surfaces like sand and grass are less demanding, but players’ bodies are still put to the test in the biggest tournaments.

What is the hardest thing in tennis?

From a technical point of view, serving is probably the most difficult shot to get good at, as you have to position the ball yourself while initiating a complex chain of movements. Nonetheless, with practice, most players can at least become competent servers. When you play competitively, there are other aspects that pose a challenge every time you step onto the court, no matter how good your technique.

First of all, you need to find the right tactics to defeat your opponent, considering their strengths and weaknesses, as well as the conditions in which the game will be played. That’s complex enough, but it’s complicated by the fact that they will try to do the same to you.

Second, you must remain calm and appropriately relaxed, staying energized and focused when needed. All of these mental skills will help you stay positive and confident so you can be close to your best. It’s important not to worry about who might be watching, losing fear, or indulging in other negative thoughts. Developing the necessary mental toughness takes a lot of training and practice.

How long does it take to learn tennis?

This depends on what other sports you have played and your overall fitness. As a beginner, you can expect to be playing a decent parlor game within a few months. However, it requires several years of physical, mental and technical training before you can compete at a level close to that of the pros. Because of this, most top players started playing at a young age.

Is tennis harder than other sports?

Not long ago, ESPN evaluated the demands of 60 different sports and found that tennis is the seventh most challenging sport, tougher than baseball and soccer and a far cry from less physically demanding sports like golf.

One could argue that even this underestimates the challenges of tennis. Matches can last five or six hours in potentially intense heat, and players are generally on their own with no one to advise and everyone to judge. They have no teammates to close the gap when they have a day off, and their opponent will have specifically prepared to beat them. Minor injuries are common and players must try to overcome them and maintain a high level of play.

Final Thoughts

Tennis is pretty easy to play badly, but incredibly difficult to play well. Hardly any other sport offers a comparable mental and physical challenge.

You may think that because you didn’t play tennis as a child or even as a teenager, it’s too late to start now. The truth is that you can start playing tennis at any age and it is great for your physical and mental health. Tennis is truly a sport that can be played for a lifetime.

Take up tennis later in life

Regardless of your age, you can start playing tennis now and it is great for our health. You may be wondering where to start, what you need and how to go about it. Use the guide below to get started:

1) Proper gear

It doesn’t take much to start playing tennis. All you need is a racquet and sportswear, including proper shoes. All training clothes are suitable for tennis, so you don’t necessarily have to spend a lot of money. However, tennis requires good footwork, so you need to make sure you have a decent pair of tennis shoes. Avoid running shoes as they don’t provide the ankle support you need for quick lateral movements.

2) Tennis lessons

Whether you start playing as a kid or in your 20’s, 30’s, 40’s or beyond, it’s always best to start with proper tennis lessons. You should develop good habits from day one, as bad habits can prove difficult to change. You also don’t want to spend time backtracking.

3) Use a ball machine

Once you know the basics of the forehand and backhand stroke, you want to practice, practice, practice. A great way to improve your shot is to rent a ball machine and just practice returning balls. Listen to your teacher and use the ball machine to master what you’ve learned.

4) Don’t go alone

Tennis is a great social sport and you can really learn a lot by playing with a partner. Find someone to play weekly rounds with. Practice with one person throwing 25 to 40 balls gently over the net while the other throws them back, then switch. You can also practice hitting the ball back and forth like a game or try playing a game.

5) Play regularly

This is the key to improving in any sport or anything you want to do. Play regularly. Go to your tennis lessons and then play with a partner and practice every week. Your muscles need it for conditioning and muscle memory. Practice the skills you learn and you’ll see yourself improving week after week. A club is a great place to do this. While you’re at it, don’t forget to have fun!

Play tennis at any age

There really is no age limit for playing tennis. You can start as a kid or you can start later in life and you will enjoy it just as much. Plus, the health benefits of playing tennis are unmatched. Use these tips for playing tennis later to get started today. We know you will love it!

Contact us to learn more about getting started with adult tennis lessons and fitness training.

Tennis and badminton are often compared in different ways. Both are racquet sports, both require great speed and agility, to play well you need good hand-eye coordination and so on. Like many sports, they are easy to start but difficult to master.

So is tennis or badminton harder? If you compare the different areas for each sport, we find that badminton is much more difficult physically when it comes to speed, agility and explosive power. Badminton also has a lot more variations of shots compared to tennis, so there’s more to learn. The smaller pitch and faster projectile mean you need to have quick reactions as well as quick feet.

It’s hard to say that one is definitely harder than the other. They are two separate sports with their own distinct dynamics. Both have unique aspects that make them difficult in different ways. Let’s take a closer look at what we can compare.

fitness and physical exertion

The simplest comparison we can make between tennis and badminton is to compare the endurance and physical demands of each sport. It is easiest to compare between all sports. You need to be incredibly fit for both tennis and badminton if you play at the highest level. But even at lower levels of play you need to have some stamina, speed and strength for both. Let’s look at how each sport compares.

Good footwork is one of the building blocks for all racquet sports like tennis and badminton. However, both have different types of footwork. Badminton has a mix of short, sharp chases and running and jumping. Tennis requires some chase movements, but mostly involves a lot of running and sometimes gliding.

A tennis court is approximately 1.5 times larger than a badminton court (see our article comparing tennis and badminton courts). Tennis players, especially singles players, play from the baseline and since the ball can bounce off the court, they need to cover not only the size of the court but beyond. Tennis has you potentially covering longer distances after each shot during the rally.

In badminton, when the shuttlecock runs out, a player hits the net, or makes a mistake or scores a point, the rally is over. The shuttlecock cannot leave the court, so as a badminton player you know how big the court must be that you have to cover. Badminton requires quick reactions and even faster movements to tackle this albeit smaller court. In badminton, you cover long and short distances at high speed throughout a game. You must have explosive strength and agility to cover the entire court in badminton.

Of course, if you play doubles instead of singles in both tennis and badminton, you will cover less space overall. The amount you cover depends on the length of the rally and the standard you are playing at.

Length of games, matches, rallies and breaks

Elite-level tennis matches can last anywhere from an hour to well over three hours. That’s a long time on the pitch. The longest tennis match in history lasted eleven hours and five minutes! Nicolas Mahut and John Isner fought at Wimbledon for three days before Isner finally won.

This is obviously a very rare occurrence and given the way the rules were set it could have gone on forever. Badminton matches, on the other hand, can last anywhere from 30 minutes to almost two hours. The length of badminton matches varies greatly due to the different disciplines and general style of play.

Badminton styles vary much more in badminton between singles, doubles and mixed than tennis. The men’s doubles games are fast and furious and can be over in under 30 minutes. The women’s doubles has a more even process. The top pairs all have excellent defenses, making games last longer. So the time on the court can depend on what discipline you play.

The longest badminton match lasted two hours and 41 minutes. Naoko Fukuman and Kurumi Yonao of Japan fought Nitya Krishinda Maheswari and Greysia Polii of Indonesia at the Badminton Asia Championships. The Japanese pair prevailed with a brilliant display of endurance and resilience.

Tennis matches definitely last longer than a standard badminton match, even at the highest level. There was a Wall Street Journal study that looked at different tennis games and compared active playing time to total game length. They found that tennis matches have an average active playing time of 17.5%. The rest of the time consists of players going from point to point, drying off, taking breaks and switching sides.

When you watch a badminton match in comparison, there isn’t much wasted time. They have time between each point, but referees monitor the “rule of continuous play” more closely than ever. This rule states that the game must be continuous and little time must be wasted between points. You also only have two minutes between each game and only 30 seconds if the first player reaches 11 points. I’ve studied different games and found that badminton has a much higher active playing time. It averages between 40 and 50%, which means that in an hour-long game, badminton can be in play for up to 30 minutes.

It is worth briefly mentioning the rally lengths of each sport. On average, rallies in tennis last longer than in badminton. Because the player has a larger playing field, the projectile is slower, and the ball can ricochet, rallies tend to take longer. However, badminton rallies can be long, especially in doubles with evenly matched pairs with strong defenses. In badminton, a 30-second rally would yield about twice as many shots as a 30-second rally in tennis. So badminton has a much higher intensity. Players have very little time between shots. Watch the video below, it shows the longest rally in badminton history. The rally lasts more than 4 minutes and 30 seconds! You play a total of 255 strokes. It definitely takes some perseverance.

The technique, the mastery of the shots

Tennis and badminton are both racquet sports, so naturally one of their most difficult attributes is mastering all their shots. Both sports have evolved over the years and thanks to new technologies with rackets, balls and shuttlecocks, new ways of playing have emerged. Let’s look at some shots from each sport and some of them can be difficult.

tennis shots

Handling a powerful shot coming your way requires strong wrists. Tennis racquets and tennis balls are much heavier than shuttlecocks and badminton racquets. As such, controlling the weighted force behind certain shots is inherently difficult.

Controlling spin is a challenge in tennis. In order to play the ball, you must watch the ball spin and be able to counter or control the spin. This is a difficult skill. Playing the ball with different slices and spins creates a lot of variety. The weight of the ball means you need good technique to handle the return properly. Here is a list of some tennis shots:

topspin shots

slice recordings

Serve overhead

shot praise

drop shot

badminton shots

Badminton has a variety of shots and you can play them from different positions. Unlike tennis, badminton shots are played from different heights. From playing an overhead smash to defending a smash at your feet. In badminton you can twist and turn, jump and swing while still playing shots.

Badminton requires both strength and finesse. It’s explosive and the variety of shots shows that you need aggression and control. Here is a list of some badminton shots:

Forehand serve

backhand serve

Clear

Elevator

drop shots

smashed

net shot

driving shots

These are just some of the shots in badminton. It should be noted that there may be variations with each shot. Badminton smash is a good example of where there is power smash, stick smash, half smash and slice smash etc. This is where deception plays a big role in badminton. It’s very difficult to master, but if you can make one shot look like the other, you can keep your opponents on their back foot. You can fool them, send them in the wrong direction, and disrupt their footwork.

It is impossible to master all shots in badminton as there are just too many. Top players can do them all, but I doubt any player has mastered them all. We can always improve and everyone finds certain shots easier than others.

Tactics and mental strength

Sport requires a lot of physical ability and talent, but that’s just one level. Tactical awareness and planning, as well as mental toughness, are required to be successful in sports. Tennis and badminton players use these skills in different ways. Let’s look at how these compare in both tennis and badminton.

Rally Rating and Serve

Therefore, both tennis and badminton use points scoring, meaning that any player can score even if they don’t serve. This creates a different dynamic in the development of tactics and the way the sport is played. For badminton this means that it is so important to keep the initiative and to be on the attack. Playing defensively has little advantage when you can score with or without a serve.

In badminton it is easy to see whether a player is on offense or on defense. This is due to the height of the net and the easiest way to score a point is to land the shuttlecock on the opponent’s side of the court. When you’re on defense, it’s obvious that the opponent is trying to hit the shuttlecock into the ground. When you attack, try to do the same. Tennis doesn’t have that dynamic. Most of the time the players are evenly matched and try to create openings by outmaneuvering their opponent.

Again, serve is vital to both sports, but for different reasons. In badminton, the serve is different for doubles and singles. In doubles, the goal is to protect yourself by serving well enough that your opponent can’t attack right away or win the point. Since most players’ tactic is to serve short and sweet over the net, you need to be able to serve well under pressure.

In singles there is less pressure from the opponent when serving because there is more space to serve. You can serve long or serve short and your opponent can’t really bet on one or the other because they don’t have a partner to help them after they return the serve. In badminton, this can almost feel like a disadvantage when serving. You have to be mentally strong on the serve and keep your nerve when playing against aggressive opponents.

The big difference between tennis is that your service is your greatest asset. In badminton, you take turns serving when you or your opponent score a point. If you don’t hit, you can’t serve. In tennis, a player serves for a game and changes after that game. Serving in tennis is such a great advantage because there are so many ways to build up the rallies and there are far fewer restrictions on serving in tennis than in badminton.

In tennis, you serve effectively with an overhead smash. However, there are so many variations you can do during the serve such as: B. cutting, playing straight, playing super fast or slow, etc. It is so beneficial that they are the “ace” when one player serves and the other just isn’t able to get it back.

The cost of mistakes

A single badminton match is the best of three games, each game is played to 21 points. A single tennis match is usually the best of three or five sets, each set consisting of the first to six games. In tennis, if you lose in a match, there are more ways to come back. This is because there are many games in tennis. If you lose a set 3-0, your opponent needs to win another four points to win another game, but you also only need to win four points to get a game back.

The costs of mistakes in badminton are less forgiving. Since there are only three games, if you’re down 0-10 in the first game, it’s a long way back to try and win the game. You must score twice as many points as your opponent to win this game. Often games can be decided early if a player scores a good chain of points. This makes badminton a very difficult sport for unstable players. In tennis you can afford a few mistakes here and there but still come back in a set.

Games and the nature of each sport

Tennis and badminton have so many unique aspects and characteristics. Many of these shape the way people play the game. The sports have been around for so long that people have found optimal ways to play shots, footwork, and tactics that just work well for any sport. Let’s take a look at how the nature of each sport makes it difficult to master.

Tennis, an endurance test

Tennis requires perseverance and perseverance. Despite the relatively low active playing time, the players are on the pitch for a long time. The games are strenuous, long rallies over long distances on the pitch require good aerobic capacity. We’ve already mentioned the long game times that elite players can experience.

Just being on the pitch for a few hours without much playing time is still a long time in general. The key to tennis is being able to “break” your opponent’s serve. In tennis, serving is more beneficial as it gives you the opportunity to set up the rally. When you can’t stop your opponent’s service play, games can really drag on.

The modern game generally has faster serves and faster shots. Bridging long distances quickly is therefore a must. Like a sprinter, you have to get out of the blocks quickly to cover the shot. Agility is useful but not essential as players have more time to see and react to incoming shots.

Badminton, a test of speed, strength and calculation

Badminton is the fastest racket sport in the world. At the highest level, players hit smashes at well over 350 km/h! The fastest badminton smash ever recorded was 493 km/h in test conditions and 426 km/h at competition level. The video below shows Mads Pieler Kolding beating the famous 426 km/h cracker.

And below is the video showing Tan Boon Heong scoring the biggest punch in history. This was done under test conditions where Yonex’s Nanoray Z-Speed ​​was tested.

Badminton is about speed and power, but also about tactical awareness and precision. Beginners will find badminton easy to pick up and get started. As they get better, they learn to increase the speed at which they play. The tempo of badminton can change from rally to rally, but the most successful players play at a fast pace. They take the initiative and play aggressively to actively gain points. It’s almost impossible to win badminton by playing defensively. Players train to be faster on their feet, be faster with their racquet and plan three steps ahead.

Players need a lot of anaerobic capacity to play badminton effectively. Rallies are bursting with power and energy. You need the stamina to do 100% of your work to win. The activity level is similar to HIIT training. You have short-long bursts of high intensity and then a short pause. Players need a good combination of speed, power and endurance, which is a difficult balance to get right.

Badminton is also a game of fine spans. It is the difference between putting the shuttlecock in or out, or hitting the net with the shuttlecock, and rolling over or rolling back. Badminton requires a lot of precision and accuracy. Players must be able to pressure their opponents by pushing them around the pitch to outmaneuver them.

packaging

Comparing tennis and badminton is like comparing apples and pears. They have similarities to racquet sports and they are challenging sports in their own right. Everything measured I still believe that badminton is the more difficult sport. It is both physically and technically demanding. It’s a game of fine margins and expert tactics with so many different playstyles that it’s impossible to master.

related questions

Is playing badminton easy? Badminton at the highest level is not an easy sport. Badminton is played comfortably with friends and is great fun. It’s easy for people to start playing badminton. The lightness of the shuttlecock and racquet compared to other sports makes it easy for beginners to start hitting the bird.

Is badminton a good workout? Badminton is an excellent workout at any level. Whether you’re a beginner or an advanced athlete, it’s a sport that gets you moving. Humans are adapted to constant movement, we are not made for sitting still. Badminton gets you moving in most ways imaginable, so it’s a very well-rounded exercise.

If you found this article helpful, reciprocate and share it with a friend. If you feel I’ve missed something, or have any other advice, please leave feedback and share your help with others below. Thanks again for reading.

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Written by Liam Walsh who lives in Manchester, England. Works as a software engineer but also works part-time as a father, badminton player/coach and creator of BadmintonsBest.

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