workout ?'s

[snowman]

just want to know whats a good workout for a tennis player? ex. min's ran stuff like that.

[tennis4you]

A lot of times Tennis magazine gives good examples of workouts, but they seem a little scarce to me. It all depends on how determined you are. Minutes ran? More than the day before. It depends on hwo hard you are running, you working on speed or endurance?

I just hit the weights for the whole body and play a but load of tennis. I rarely run just for exercise. I firmly believe that the best exercise for tennis is tennis. :)

Scott Baker
http://www.tennis4you.com

[Marc]

I bet Coach Tom Kosinski will know. :) You can read about his coaching experiences at: http://www.sports-central.org/sports/tennis/articles/article70.shtml

[coach tom]

Like all other sports, tennis has an "in season" and "off season" regimen that is different. If you are a serious tennis player, then you should be looking to add some strength and tons of anaerobic exercises to your regimen. While Scott and others subscribe to the "tennis is the best exercise for tennis" philosophy, I do not. Basically that type of workout is subject to the level of the player you play, and often that is not very consistent nor is it always competitive. I played tennis all this past summer, three times a week, and only once a week did I really get a workout. The other times I was playing people at a lower level (that's all that were available to me). They got a workout but not me.

To train for tennis, do tons of sprints. One I do with my team is the "suicide". Thats start at the doubles side line, and then you run to the first alley line, and back, to the center service line, and back, to the far service line, and back, to the other doubles sideline and back and then reverse it until you've touched all the lines twice. Do that 2-4 times. Then we sprint the length of the courts. for this you need at least two courts side by side, three is best. You start at the same line, then sprint across the doubles sideline of the first court. Walk back, but no longer than 10 seconds. When you get back to the line, repeat it. Then walk back again, and sprint to the far doubles sideline of the second court. Walk back, and do it again. Then sprint to the far doubles sideline of the third court, walk back, and do it again. That should make you pretty winded. For extra measure you can do the same on a track, sprinting 100 twice, then 200 twice, then 440 twice. You get the picture. Twice a week you should mix in a run of at least a mile. Work your way up to two.

For strength, in season should be focused on push ups, crunches/sit-ups, swans or back raises and double knee jumps. This should build enough strength to keep you looking and feeling good. I use the court as stations, and have one corner for pushups (timed at one minute, not number of reps), then another corner for crunches, then one for swans and the last for double knee jumps. Do this like a circuit training routine for at least three times around, a minute or two at each station. You'll feel it, I guarantee it. Off season, or winter if you don't have access to an indoor court, a light weight routine focusing on shoulders, legs, abs and wrist/forearms will do. Look for lower weight, higher reps. A good trainer, or one at your local high school should be able to set you up. There are also tons of tennis books now that focus solely on this.

You also need agility, coordination and speed. Jumping rope is the number one here. You should aim to jump like pro boxers, not like local 4 year old girls. Jumping rope is a full body workout and definitely a good coordination exercise. I also recommend one drill which I call five balls. Put five balls on the center service line, where the service line and center service line meet. Then sprint from the baseline, pick up a ball, and put it on one of the four corners formed by the doubles sidelines, net and baseline. The balls cannot roll after you place them, and must be right on the corner. After you have placed them all, then reverse and pick them all up and put them in the middle. No rolling balls. This coordinates the feet, hands, forces you to bend at the knees and change directions. To make it harder, do it while always facing the net.

Thats a quick and dirty. Light weights in or out of season is ok, but anaerobic stamina is key.

Hope that helps.

Coach Tom

[tennis4you]

True, but if you are not getting the workout in your tennis matches it is your own fault. You have to find tennis players that make you work! If they are not readily available to you then move to a different city. :)

I play guys anywhere from 4.5 to 5.5 players. They all seem to give me a pretty good workout. After 3-4 hours of tennis a day, I feel I have gotten a great work out. Don't have that kind of time in the day, then maybe you need to hit the sprints after your match.

I am not a expert on this tough, Coach Tom is probably the better source of info, I just know what works for me. I hit the weights for strength and leave the cardio up to tennis. :)

4.4% body fat and I can play all day. If the workout is not borken, no need to fix it.

[coach tom]

Gee Scott, you don't have any fat. You must not be from the old school.

I learned from the masters, the Aussies (Laver, Newcombe, Roche, Stolle, etc.). My pre match routine still includes a pint of the finest ale, some type of baked bird, and a lot of Oi, Oi, Oi (LOL!)

Yes, I agree that if you are playing 3-4 hours a day, you don't need too much extra. Unfortunately most of us don't have access to that type of player too often. So I make it up in the gym and on the track. I think Snowman, being somewhat new to the game, needs to build some discipline, and my suggested routine should help.

By the way Scott, your court or mine?

The "Coach"

[tennis4you]

Any court is cool with me, I just love to play.

Being new to the game I agree that 3-4 hours is probably not going to benifit Snowman best.

Being from the old school, nah. I am only 26, I don't even know what the old school is. I just love to play and it gets you in shape in the end. I used to do sprints with my Grandmas dog. He was fast, so I prefered it when he was 13, I could keep up with him. :) But I just did that for fun out side of the 3-4 hours a day. I find walking awfully boring. And when I do walk FAST!!! Now that I have a wife who is due with our first in 2 weeks I have to walk s l o w so she can keep up, it drives me nutz!!!

I used to ride my bike on a bike trail too while I was in school just to fill the time. Now that I am married, have a house, soon to have a kid, I find my filler time being my webpage. Things ghave changed. Did I say say 4.4%, heck, these days I feel like 44%. :) I am looking forward to summer! I don't get as much indoor tennis in the winter as I wish I could. Until I get rich from my website I can't afford it 3-4 hours a day. :)

[Marc]

Originally posted by coach tom

To train for tennis, do tons of sprints.
Sorry to break up your guy's nice conversation here... :uhoh: but I had to do those before in my basketball experiences... yuck. :(

[tennis4you]

If you are looking to increase your speed it is the best option. Sorry Marc! No one said it would be fun. :) But it is fun to win!

[snowman]

hey guys thanks for the info! hey, scott on your "footwork" article it would benefit a lets say slow witted person like me. i know i'm doing some of the steps all wrong. do any of you guys have a video on footwork your willing to sale? oh, forget it i'll search for one.