Strength Training For Tennis
Tennis is a superb sport. It requires excellent hand-eye coordination, good agility, and keen spatial awareness. In addition to the physical and mental challenge, a good singles match provides both anaerobic and aerobic conditioning. Although skill is essential for top-level tennis, technique development is easier if you are fit—which is also the critical factor for staying power during the second and third sets.
Phases of training
Peaking is not an important factor in tennis, at least for professionals. They can find a tournament somewhere throughout the whole year to earn their bread and jam. However, if your goal is to win a club or county tournament, then the opportunity for peaking is far more possible. You may perform more endurance and basic strength development exercises during the off season, then concentrate more on agility and sharpness in the months approaching the event.
When you watch the game of tennis you can appreciate the power and strength players tdoay have. On top of that, factor in the fact that matches can last anywhere from 30 minutes to over 5 hours, and you quickly realize that tennis players have to have extrordinary fitness, power and endurance. A properly designed strength and conditioning program can help any player elevate his or her game to a new level.
The USTA Sport Science Department has put together a strength and conditioning program that does not require any fancy equipment or even a weight room. Originally designed for the USTA National Coaches as an “On the road training manual”, these exercises can be used by virtually any tennis player to prevent injuries and enhance performance.
Advanced Strength Exercise
After two months of basic training, you should be ready for some more advanced strength exercises. Some of these will replace the introductory exercises, while others will provide supplementary training relevant to tennis performance.
Legs
Let’s begin with the powerful leg muscles that generate the force for your ground strokes, as well as your movements across the court. Instead of training the quadriceps and hamstrings separately, replace the leg extension and leg curl with the leg press that works both of these muscle groups and the gluteals simultaneously. The leg press permits heavier weightloads, and is the best exercise for developing functional leg strength. In addition to the quadriceps and hamstrings, the hip adductors and abductors play a major role in your weight shifts and lateral movements.
Benefits of Strength Training in Tennis
Practicing skills in any sport is important and tennis is no exception, but do you ever feel like no matter how much you practice you cannot quite be the player you want to be? Perhaps an element missing is strength training specific to tennis.
Strength training has become an important tool for competitive athletes in all sports. More and more players at every level are turning to this type of training to become the best they can while preventing injury and sustaining a healthy lifestyle.
