Getting a stronger serve

[Headshotterer]

Right now I got my serve motion down, but I want to make it stronger with more knee bend and footwork, but I have no idea what im doing.
Is the knee bend motion and rotation same for all serves?
Got any advice?

[WHSTENNIS]

Right now I got my serve motion down, but I want to make it stronger with more knee bend and footwork, but I have no idea what im doing.
Is the knee bend motion and rotation same for all serves?
Got any advice?

Bending your knees and rotating hips will help i know that, but also try to lift some weights.
What i do is do a little knee bend, rotate, and jump using mostly the power of my arm though and i get about 105 out of it(i am 14 years old). But what is strong in your opoinon?

[coloskier]

Watch any video of Pete Sampras.

[T1000]

Knee bend, rotating hips and shoulders, and throwing your body into the serve will help. The only problem with this is if your not quick, someone could get a good return and you'll be out of position. I can hit 120, but that's if i'm lucky. (I'm 5'11" and 16)

[TennisCoachFLA]

Try this website. I came across it last year and I think it gives some decent advice.

http://www.aroundhawaii.com/lifestyle/health_and_fitness/2006-04_how_to_improve_your_tennis_serve_speed.html

[Fedace]

Bending your knees and rotating hips will help i know that, but also try to lift some weights.
What i do is do a little knee bend, rotate, and jump using mostly the power of my arm though and i get about 105 out of it(i am 14 years old). But what is strong in your opoinon?

What kind of Weight lifting do you recommend, specificallly ?

[TennisCoachFLA]

For tennis weight training advice check out "The Ultimate Guide to Weight Training for Tennis" by Robert Price.

You can get a slightly used copy for about $5.00 at Amazon.

[ElectricTennis]

Watch Roddick. I have watched his serve over 500 times. I analyze it, then go out and try it.

Roddick gets his server so powerfull by his motions.

He throughs the ball up high and is bending his knees extremely, creating a jump and superb power, and allowing him to come down right on the ball.

Also hitting the ball at its highest point right before it drops will give allllot more power.

[mtommer]

Go to fuzzyyellowballs.com They have some excellent instructional videos.

[NovakWannabe]

OK, how fast is your serve right now? We can see where to go from there.

[mitsuki]

I find that tossing the ball more in front and making contact at a higher point makes a big difference in power. By the way, WHSTENNIS, are you by any chance from Hawaii?

[ElectricTennis]

I am serious about what I said though, I will tell you that.

[Jtillinghast]

try devoloping your shoulder. do some weight training and hit a bunch of practice serves everyday.

[[d]ragon]

practice alot. weight training (working shoulders,abs,quads esp.) can definitely help. also, starting learning how to aim your serve

[Tallahassee_Technifibre]

Keep a fluid motion and don't try to hit it hard.

[Fedace]

Keep a fluid motion and don't try to hit it hard.

Also in last issue of Tennis magazine, something about having a Loose Grip and relaxed arm.

[10isDad]

Go to fuzzyyellowballs dot com. They have a nice (free!) video series about the serve and other strokes.

[halalula1234]

you need to use the acceration from your legs to your shoulder to ur arms then your wrist. Then snap it all into one and your serve will whip like a bullet. also relaxing the grip helps a lot.. with the correct technique u can serve so much faster.. my old service motion was really bad it was kinda like a bad version of hewitt's serve and the max speed was only 117mph and i get a lot of faults..now i changed my motion and try to use my whole body and relax my grip the serve speed and accuracy dramaticly increased now max is 129 but i normally only get 100-125mph and im just 5 ft 6.

Another tip: Be smooth and fluid with your motion and movement and also use the right grip, never focus on just hitting it hard but instead focus on your body parts and the techniques then the power will come..hope this helps :)

[Moz]

For tennis weight training advice check out "The Ultimate Guide to Weight Training for Tennis" by Robert Price.

You can get a slightly used copy for about $5.00 at Amazon.

I have that book and feel that is a con. It's basically a general weight training book with a tiny bit of tennis specific training. Compare it to the other "Ultimate Guide....." books to other sports and you'll find it's just a cookie-cutter effort. Very poor.

IMO weight training will help squeeze a tiny bit more out of your serve and enable you to serve well for a longer period of time. Technique should be the focus.