Preseason Tennis Conditioning?

AceServer · Jan 23, 2014

Hi TT members!

I am a sophomore in high school planning to prepare for the tennis season. My coach advised our team to start conditioning starting tomorrow, noting that 6 weeks are required to properly be ready for tennis. I have a large frame, 6' and 185 pounds. I am not very fast nor do I have much endurance and stamina, but I wish to change that. I have not exercised since a few months ago (I know, terrible), and I want to be at my peak condition at the start of the season in order to possibly make Varsity.

The problem is, what should be my training regime? I have no clue what to do in order to get fit. The only things I have are a set of 5lb weights and an 8lb medicine ball. How much should I be running per week? I honestly have no idea what to do. If you could help or advise me on creating a fitness program that would be very much appreciated.

Thank you

SpeedKillz · Jan 23, 2014

AceServer said:

the key is to be consistent and not overtrain. dont condition one day so much that you have to take 2-3 days off. start little by little and build up.

do you have access to a gym? if so, running on a tread mill is fantastic to get out of the cold. you can do high interval intensity training. Google is your friend for those workouts. obviously if you want to increase your stamina you need to run further distances. if you dont have access to a treadmill it is okay, you'll just have to suck it up being cold. think of a good distance to run, example around a lake or around your neighborhood. time yourself when you run. run this course everyday or two days on one day off and two days on. each time your goal should be to complete the course in a time less then the day before.

if you also have access to speed ladder, that'd be fantastic as well. work on your overall footwork and stamina. 5 dot drill is a good one too for conditioning/footwork. again, google is your friend.

jump roping is also good. you play tennis on the balls of your feet and jump roping stimulates that. if u havent jump roped before then i want to let u kno it is tough. 5 minutes seem like a piece of cake but i doubt u will be able to jump rope for that long. similarly like to running, u should try to jump for a specific time and attempt to increase it. or you could count the number of jumps you do and increase it every time.

be sure to warm up properly and hydrate. listen to your body, if you feel exhausted and weak then you should take a day off and brainstorm why you feel that way.

it'll be prolly because you're not hydrated, not eating right or simply doing too much.

good luck.

r2473 · Jan 23, 2014

AceServer said:

So your coach told you and your teammates to start tennis conditioning, but didn't give you any sort of a program? Must be a real gem.

fuzz nation · Jan 24, 2014

One of our pals here (charliefederer I think) often refers to a routine called "The Thrower's Ten", which is supposed to be good for promoting healthy shoulders, rotator cuffs, etc. Could be worth a look. I agree with SpeedKillz that a jump rope is a very good thing for a tennis player. They're cheap and they don't require a huge space to get some work done.

If you're not doing any basic pushups now, it's a good time to start. No heroics necessary - if you can do a few sets of them through the course of a day, that should add up nicely over the next six weeks for you. If a set of let's say 15 gets you a little tired, then do two sets of those in the morning and two more later on. Keep that up every day and you'll be covering some solid ground once tryouts get started.

As for running, make sure you do a little sprinting and some footwork patterns (spider runs, etc.), not just jogging distance for cardio work. As tennis players, we need both endurance and quickness. Static stretching after you're done should help your recovery there. You can also do some sessions of ghost swinging with your racquet when you're not at the courts so that your balance and swing tempo aren't too rusty when you go out to start hitting some balls.

WildVolley · Jan 24, 2014

r2473 said:

Coaches are often teachers who don't have a lot of spare time, so this is not at all unusual. Usually, it is also against the rules for the coach to hold pre-season practices.

In this modern era of the interwebs, there are plenty of practical programs available online for free.

If I were the OP. I'd be doing a mixture of mild distance running and tennis specific sprints, line running, and footwork drills on alternate days with at least one rest day a week. Don't go too hard the first week but up the intensity to a level which pushes you hard by the third week.

I love doing sprint intervals, but it really pays to do some tennis specific footwork drills like star drills on the court which have you moving all directions and changing directions rapidly and often.

AceServer · Jan 25, 2014

Hey guys, started doing pushups and lifts, but it's snowing here so only that. What kind of foods should I eat and avoid to optimize exercise? I am Korean if that will make a difference.

SteveI · Jan 29, 2014

WildVolley said:

Hi,

I am a HS coach and we are able to practice all year. There is no longer any problems running any sort of off season workouts (NY State).

As a HS coach all you need to do: send e-mail to each player with a link to the many wonderful sites for tennis training. Try USTA.com for one.

http://www.usta.com/Improve-Your-Game/Health-Fitness/ask_the_lab_archive/

http://www.usta.com/Improve-Your-Ga...ure/Ask_the_Lab_Improving_Fitness_for_Tennis/

This should keep you busy,,

The main things you need to do are listed above:
Intervals are great, if you don't do anything else do them:

Good luck with your season.

Preseason Tennis Conditioning?

AceServer

Rookie

SpeedKillz

New User

r2473

G.O.A.T.

fuzz nation

G.O.A.T.

WildVolley

Legend

AceServer

Rookie

SteveI

Legend