Biomechanics References on Tennis Strokes

[Chas Tennis]

I recently found some references mostly by tennis biomechanics researcher Bruce Elliott and associates. I found them very interesting.

If you have some similar references please reply.

1) Two minute interview with Bruce Elliott on biomechanics, tennis, and coaching. Refers to the book

Technique Development in Tennis Stroke Production(2009), B. Elliott, M. Reid & M. Crespo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0qJjqzWaDA

Amazon, Barnes & Noble, etc. all list it as ‘out of stock’. No wonder I had not heard of this 2009 biomechanics book on tennis stroke techniques. I found it for sale at the ITF Store. $20.

2) Paper - Biomechanics and Tennis, Elliott (internal shoulder rotation on the serve)

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2577481/

3) An Australian tennis website includes video discussions-

http://www.tennis.com.au/coaches/resources

Instructional videos from a coach development workshop including 2 part Bruce Elliott & M. Reid video on the forehand. The first part is 56 minutes long and the first minutes are about foot work. Most stroke swing information starts at about 30 minutes.

(Note at the top of the webpage is a code to view the videos.)

http://www.tennis.com.au/coaches/resources/video

4) ITF paper on coaching the serve

http://www.itfcoachesconference.com/2009/user/24

5) Paper on the serve - Where do High Speed Tennis Serves come from? G. Noffal

http://www.coachesinfo.com/index.php...les&Itemid=173

6) Early 1995 paper on the serve and internal shoulder rotation - Contributions of Upper Limb Segment Rotations During the Power Serve in Tennis, B. Elliott et al.

http://www.exeter.ac.uk/media/univer...t_al__1995.pdf

7) Paper - A Review of Tennis Serve Biomechanics, M. Seeley

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q...Cj18xcY0hmI2pQ

8.) Biomechanical Principles of Tennis Technique, D. Knudson. Includes several insightful discussions.

9) ITF Biomechanics Stroke Power Point presentations, 2007

http://www.itftennis.com/coaching/pu...omechanics.asp

10) Paper - The Use of Technology in Tennis Biomechanics Research

http://www.itftennis.com/shared/medi...9_original.PDF

11) Available ITF Publications

http://www.itftennis.com/coaching/sp...nder/topic.asp

12) Paper - Shoulder joint loading in the high performance flat and kick tennis serves.(2007) Reid M, Elliott B, Alderson J.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...5/?tool=pubmed

13) Elastic Energy in Tennis -presentation B. Elliott

http://www.itfcoaching.com/elastic-e...is/player.html

14) Paper - Key Factors and Timing Patterns in the Tennis Forehand of Different Skill Levels
Johannes Landlinger, Stefan Lindinger, Thomas Stöggl, Herbert Wagner and Erich Müller . Timing diagrams of joint angular velocities before & after impact.
http://www.jssm.org/vol9/n4/15/v9n4-15pdf.pdf

When viewing PubMed.gov abstracts many publications may be available free. To view the free paper look for an icon in the upper right side of the webpage with the abstract. Usually indicates 'view free text' somewhere but that phrase is not a link. For example, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17513331 show abstract and link for paper #12.

(I thought that an ISBS biomechanics conference in July 2012 was to have a session on tennis and a special ITF tennis publication. But just learned that there’s no special session on tennis and, I guess ?, no special issue on the latest tennis research.)

[connico]

Fantastic post, I went to one of these conferences a few years back. Was educational!

[Chas Tennis]

This afternoon I received the IFT book Technique Development in Tennis Stroke Production(2009), B. Elliott, M. Reid and M. Crespo

Suppliers Amazon, Barnes & Noble, etc. all list it as ‘out of stock’. No wonder I had not heard of this 2009 biomechanics book on tennis stroke techniques. I found it for sale at the ITF Store. $20 + $8 shipping. (ITF, get some book retailers!)

https://store.itftennis.com/category...=/category.asp

Chapter titles:

1 Talent Development: A Progressive Approach
2 Biomechanical and Anatomical Principles
3 'Heaviness' in Stroke Production
4 Variability an Integral Feature of Stroke Development
5 Service Mechanics
6 Forehand Mechanics (including return of serve)
7 Backhand Mechanics
8 Net Play Mechanics
9 Contemporary Coaching of Technique

Includes a section identifying the joint motions. Very readable. Overall and detailed perspectives. Extensive references for each chapter.

Best tennis book I've seen, a great reference book!

[Chas Tennis]

"The goal of BME 473 is to teach the fundamental concepts of movement biomechanics with an emphasis on how muscles produce movement."

http://rrg.utk.edu/resources/BME473/...html#Lecture11

The interesting question for tennis is - How are the fastest muscle shortening velocities produced?

[Chas Tennis]

I may have misunderstood this picture of new research related to the stretch-shortening cycle on the microscopic scale.

The Hill Muscle Model shows the functional components of a muscle on the smallest scale. It provides a way to visualize what is going on and to think about how active muscle components (actin & myosin) and passive muscle stretch component (recently also the Titin protein molecule) might function.

Recently, new research has emphasized the role played by passive Titin, the largest protein molecule, also located within the sacomere in parallel with the active Actin and Myosin structures. Recently it has been considered that Titin in each muscle cell provides the main stretch capability of the muscle. An older theory views stretch as an overall muscle stretch to include tendons.

Actin, Myosin Animation (no Titin) - Active Muscle Shortening
http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/site...ntraction.html

Sarcomere with Titin Illustrations
https://www.google.com/search?q=sarc...w=1312&bih=703

Actin, Myosin & Titin Illustrations
https://www.google.com/search?q=acti...w=1312&bih=703

Report on Stretch Shortening Training with Biopsied Human Muscle Measurements. Added 2/5/2013
http://jap.physiology.org/content/100/3/771.full

Powerpoint presentation Stretch Shortening Cycle including Titin. Added 2/5/2013
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j...41867550,d.dmQ

New research on Titin
http://www.umag.ca/issue/spring-2012...le/clash-titin

This report in Figure 7 proposes a new way that Titin might be interacting with Actin to provide stretch functions.
http://ajpcell.physiology.org/content/299/1/C14.full

I don't understand this last research but maybe it implies that a stretch can be deliberately activated at various lengths of the muscle.

This new research might be especially important along with other research that indicates muscle shortening might be faster if 'passive' stretch is employed instead of active muscle shortening. (the Actin -Myosin animation above even looks slow).

In Biomechanics of Advanced Tennis (2003). Elliott said

"10-20% of additional racket head speed is achieved following a stretch shortening cycle."

(This publication is now 10 years old so there may be different views in 2013.)

Is that a simple addition to racket head speed or is passive stretch derived muscle shortening the only mode that can shorten that fast with control and reproducibility? Main principle of athletic movement?

See also
http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showthread.php?t=441023

[Chas Tennis]

ITF Coaching and Sports Science Review - 3 publications per year 1993-present. Short articles on tennis subjects including biomechanics.

http://www.daviscup.com/coaching-spo...-by-issue.aspx

http://www.daviscup.com/coaching-spo...e-archive.aspx