How do you go from 80 to 100?

[Jaewonnie]

I'm 14, 5' 10", and around 160 lbs. The fastest serve i've ever hit was around 85 mph. I know how helpful a serving video is but i cant really upload one right now. I'll try later. But how do people serve 100mph? I find it impossible! I've tried hitting harder, supinaiton, knee bend, body rotation, jumping in more but all that happens is me losing my balance and swinging and missing and the ball falling on my head.

What do I do to get it up to that speed?

Anyone else experienced the same problem?

 

[ryangoring]

Pronation!
When you pronate your wrist/forearm you generate more force into the ball.
Check this video out:
http://www.coachkyriltennis.com/revealed.php
It is a 10 min vid but you will get a lot of it

 

[NickH87]

Jeez you are big for your age, I am the same height and 5 pounds heavier and almost 22.

Anyway I dont have any advice for you because I am not one to be offering it.

 

[chess9]

You'll get faster when you get some testosterone. Just wait, it'll ruin your life any day now.

-Robert

 

[Jaewonnie]

You'll get faster when you get some testosterone. Just wait, it'll ruin your life any day now.

-Robert

testosterone hit me when i was 11. And its still around
hate the acne side effect....

 

[WildVolley]

The serve is heavily technique based. If something is off in your motion or timing, you can lose a lot of velocity. So work on proper technique first and keeping your shoulder healthy and speed will usually come. I've seen people injure shoulders by training to swing too hard with poor form.

Outside of the tennis court, I find throwing a football and throwing old rackets high into the air like tomahawks helps develop speed. When training with weights, don't forget to work your rotator cuff muscles, especially external rotation. I've also seen people get some good speed gains training with the speedchain device.

 

[Geezer Guy]

If you're trying really really hard to hit the ball really really fast, you may be tightening up your arm way to much. You'll hit a much faster ball with a loose and relaxed arm. Relaxed muscles move faster, and it'll also help you get more racquet-head speed. And, just lotsa practice.

 

[USERNAME]

U dont gotta hit 100mph+ serves, just place them really well and u will get a ton of short balls, aces, and unreturned serves. Serves r all technique tho, so just make sure u got the mechanics down (dont force anything, it should b fluid.)

 

[raiden031]

Its about developing a consistent toss, proper motion, and timing it all perfectly. I've been working on this for a long time and I have patches of good serving and patches of bad serving. A few months ago I got my serve clocked and with a poor toss and hitting the ball less than cleanly, I served up to 90mph. I know I can serve faster than this but I haven't had the opportunity to get it clocked again. Recently I spent alot of time working on the toss because it was erratic. Getting the toss and motion timed right is difficult and takes lots of practice.

Just make sure the components of your serve are sound and practice them and your speed will increase and so will your consistency. You can tell when you're hitting it cleanly because of the pop and you can feel the sweet spot. The goal is to get this feel without trying to arm the ball or hurt yourself.

 

[mtommer]

What do I do to get it up to that speed?

It's probably an issue unique to yourself. Try taking some video and posting it. Whatever little hitch you have might be better "diagnosed".

 

[topher.juan]

Pronation!
When you pronate your wrist/forearm you generate more force into the ball.
Check this video out:
xxxxxxxxxxbslinkremovedxxxxxxxxx
It is a 10 min vid but you will get a lot of it

That vid is pure BS. Show me someone who's 1st serve is 120mph and above hitting the backboard @ ~4' consistently and I will start listening to how they put power on the serve. This guys balls are landing well before the backboard, that is NOT a powerful serve. Pronation while essential is overhyped, I think people say the word because most don't know what it means and the term makes you look like you know what you're talking about; pronation is a given if you're using the right grip (ie. you cannot NOT pronate with a continental grip -- you don't even have to tell someone to do it). Oh, and order my FREE dvd for monthly payments of $9.99, call now!!!!!!

 

[paulfreda]

How to go from 80 to 100 ?

Develop forearm and wrist snap.

Pronation is one kind but not the only kind.

 

[<3tennis!!!]

everyone talks of pronation but the amount of people i see not using their legs correctly to explode into the ball is surprising. you need to use your legs A LOT in your serve..

 

[neverstopplaying]

everyone talks of pronation but the amount of people i see not using their legs correctly to explode into the ball is surprising. you need to use your legs A LOT in your serve..

Excellent point!

 

[ryangoring]

That vid is pure BS. Show me someone who's 1st serve is 120mph and above hitting the backboard @ ~4' consistently and I will start listening to how they put power on the serve. This guys balls are landing well before the backboard, that is NOT a powerful serve. Pronation while essential is overhyped, I think people say the word because most don't know what it means and the term makes you look like you know what you're talking about; pronation is a given if you're using the right grip (ie. you cannot NOT pronate with a continental grip -- you don't even have to tell someone to do it). Oh, and order my FREE dvd for monthly payments of $9.99, call now!!!!!!

But he wasn't putting his whole body in motion, just using the wrist from pronation.
I'm not trying to get people to buy the products, if they do then thats on them, but he makes a good point in the video that I wanted to share. AND I DID!!!!!!!

everyone talks of pronation but the amount of people i see not using their legs correctly to explode into the ball is surprising. you need to use your legs A LOT in your serve..

It is true that your power comes from the ground up, but he said he was doing that and seeing the results that he should have. So pronation, along with the other mechanics will help him develop that hard hitting serve.

 

[mental midget]

everyone talks of pronation but the amount of people i see not using their legs correctly to explode into the ball is surprising. you need to use your legs A LOT in your serve..

no you don't.

a smooth, efficient motion, consistent toss, balance and TIMING into the ball are all way more critical to developing a great serve.

most people trying to 'explode into the ball' end up lunging wildly, throwing themselves off-balance and screwing up their timing. exaggerated leg bend is something you can experiment with once you've got everything else working properly, it is nowhere near step one to a better serve.