Intriguing Warm-up...

[ProbableCharlie]

While watching some of the ladies on-court at Roland Garros, today, the EuroSport broadcast cut to a clip of one of the upcoming player's warm-up routines during a change-of-ends. I think it was of De Minaur. They were engaging in what struck me as a very novel warm-up routine involving passing a larger ball (basket-ball or volley-ball, I think) over their head with both hands and slamming it into the floor before catching it after the bounce to pass it back – alternating sides, left and right.

I hadn't seen this, before, but I can immediately appreciate the worth of it. On-court, I always find it takes absolutely ages to get the muscles in my sides properly warm and start to get proper upper-body contraction (on serves or higher volleys) and rotation on the more mundane shots.

I'm light-weight and short and without that upper-body action, I basically stand no chance against most opponents who are invariably 15cm taller and at least 10 kg heavier than me. Beyond tennis, I'm a rock-climber and dancer so muscle isolation is my strong-point. I can readily recognize when a muscle group is cold or slow and just not acting out the way I wish it to or think it aught to.

I haven't tried the warm-up – we're having a blooming monsoon outside, here in Allgäu (Southern Germany) – but I intend to. It strike me that it will not only warm up the muscles in one's sides but also serve to bring both hands into sync. because the catch-and-pass phase (over one's head) demands that.

Does anyone know more or have opinions on such a warm-up routine? Perhaps one, here, saw the clip, too?

I'm no sports-science or trainer bloke and, honestly, I mix warm-ups that serve me well at the base of climbs with those that serve me on the side of the ballroom or served me outside the pit when I used to still play squash – so far, they have kept me from doing damage to a cold back or ripping tendons or muscles. I came to tennis in my thirties – I'm no learned pro.

 

[SystemicAnomaly]

Look into plyometric training. Sounds like these players were using a medicine ball (or some other ball) as part of this type of workout / warmup. Typically players will engage in some sort of dynamic stretching / workout just prior to their regular warmup

 

[JW10S]

Look into plyometric training. Sounds like these players were using a medicine ball (or some other ball) as part of this type of workout / warmup. Typically players will engage in some sort of dynamic stretching / workout just prior to their regular warmup

Yes, this is a fairly common warm-up using a weighted medicine ball. A basketball or volleyball would not do much good.

 

[mad dog1]

While watching some of the ladies on-court at Roland Garros, today, the EuroSport broadcast cut to a clip of one of the upcoming player's warm-up routines during a change-of-ends. I think it was of De Minaur. They were engaging in what struck me as a very novel warm-up routine involving passing a larger ball (basket-ball or volley-ball, I think) over their head with both hands and slamming it into the floor before catching it after the bounce to pass it back – alternating sides, left and right.

I hadn't seen this, before, but I can immediately appreciate the worth of it. On-court, I always find it takes absolutely ages to get the muscles in my sides properly warm and start to get proper upper-body contraction (on serves or higher volleys) and rotation on the more mundane shots.

I'm light-weight and short and without that upper-body action, I basically stand no chance against most opponents who are invariably 15cm taller and at least 10 kg heavier than me. Beyond tennis, I'm a rock-climber and dancer so muscle isolation is my strong-point. I can readily recognize when a muscle group is cold or slow and just not acting out the way I wish it to or think it aught to.

I haven't tried the warm-up – we're having a blooming monsoon outside, here in Allgäu (Southern Germany) – but I intend to. It strike me that it will not only warm up the muscles in one's sides but also serve to bring both hands into sync. because the catch-and-pass phase (over one's head) demands that.

Does anyone know more or have opinions on such a warm-up routine? Perhaps one, here, saw the clip, too?

I'm no sports-science or trainer bloke and, honestly, I mix warm-ups that serve me well at the base of climbs with those that serve me on the side of the ballroom or served me outside the pit when I used to still play squash – so far, they have kept me from doing damage to a cold back or ripping tendons or muscles. I came to tennis in my thirties – I'm no learned pro.

All high level tennis players incorporate medicine ball tosses and slams in their training. It’s so effective at developing smooth and explosive rotational core strength that all rec players should incorporate it in their training as well. All tennis coaches should incorporate it in their lessons as well. Unfortunately only the really good coaches do and I have yet to see any rec players tossing medicine balls as part of their warmups.

 

[SystemicAnomaly]

Yes, this is a fairly common warm-up using a weighted medicine ball. A basketball or volleyball would not do much good.

Actually, doing the warmup drill with a volleyball or basketball can provide some benefit as part of a dynamic warmup. Using either can help to warm up the upper arms (esp the triceps), shoulders / rotators and abs / core.

A basketball weighs about 600 grams -- quite a bit more than a tennis racket. But its MOI might be somewhat less.

When warming up for competitive volleyball we would often incorporate a "pepper drill" using a volleyball. Prior to peppering, however, we would start to warm up the shoulders, arm, etc, with a volleyball, using a 2-handed overhand throw (same as the medicine ball overhead spiking throw). Somewhat easy at first, but then more forcefully. The idea was to throw the ball downward (and forward) so that it bounced between you and your warmup partner.

After a number of these, then we'd do the same with 1-handed overhead throws (1st one arm, then the other). The next step would be do do the same thing with a volleyball hitting (spiking) motion. Again, having the ball bounce between you and your partner. From there, we'd transition into the standard peppering drill

 

[JW10S]

Some years ago, I remember seeing Robin Haase of the Netherlands on the practice courts at Indian Wells. He had a medicine ball and would lift it over his head and throw it down to one side then the other, then quickly pick up his racquet and a ball and hit a serve. He did this many times. He was ranked in the 30's in the world then, so it seemed to work for him.