PSA - cut out your poly before it goes dead, then you don’t have to blame your racquet or string for injuries!

socallefty

G.O.A.T.
I see a lot of players post that they got elbow/wrist/arm injuries and are debating whether to change their racquet - go lighter/heavier/more flexible etc. If they mention their string is poly, they get a litany of people saying they should not use poly. They rarely mention if they cut out their poly before it goes dead while I think playing with dead poly is a major cause for injuries. So, I wanted to post this Public Service Announcement (PSA) and am intentionally posting it in the racquet section as if you follow it, you won’t need to change your racquet.

PSA - Cut out your poly before it goes dead. Very few players are high level enough to break their poly before it goes dead and this includes 95% of rec players because stiff old-school poly goes dead in 5-10 hours and softer polys go dead in 10-25 hours (shorter duration the harder/heavier you hit or if you play only singles). If you play with dead poly, it WILL injure you and control will be erratic in addition to feel being ‘crappy’ so that it also compromises your performance - this is not the way to save money as medical/PT bills cost a lot.

How to know if your poly is dead? If you feel any tightness (even before pain) in your wrist/arm/elbow, the poly is dead. Cut it out before you develop any soreness/pain. If you play with the same string and tension, make sure you make a note of how many playing hours you played with it and cut it out in advance of that for future stringjobs. You should also be seeing erratic control and a worsening in feel, but this may be harder to spot if you are low-level or don’t play often - surest sign of dead poly is your body talking to you and telling you it feels tight or sore. This rule still applies in a hybrid stringjob as poly goes dead in hybrids also and you should cut it out if your wrist/arm feels tight even before you develop pain. If you get any pain, please ‘for the love of God’ cut out your strings and don’t try to coax a few more hours out of your stringjob. If you strung your poly many months ago and didn’t play with it much, be extra wary as poly can go dead quicker just from being under tension (strung in a racquet) for a long time - so you might feel tightness in your wrist/arm quicker and need to cut out an old stringjob sooner than normal. Don’t keep your backup racquet strung with poly in your bag without playing with it for many weeks and months as you are wasting the stringjob.

Other causes of injury:
  • Playing poly at high tension. Most polys (especially newer soft polys) play well at tensions in the low-mid-high forties (lbs) of tension and there is no reason to go higher. Most players below college level who play with higher tensions do so because they were used to stringing in the fifties with soft strings and think dropping 4-6 lbs is enough with poly. If you try lower tensions, you will see that comfort goes up a lot, control doesn't go down too much and you can play many hours longer with a poly stringjob before you feel discomfort. Be bold and try 40-44 lbs before you knock it or go back to higher tensions.
  • Racquets weighing below 10 ozs and above 12 ozs unstrung (as printed on the racquet) should be avoided as you have to be very small/weak or very big/strong to need racquets outside the weight range of 10-12 ozs to play well.
  • Racquets with RA stiffness above 70 unstrung or VF above 155Hz might be good to avoid if you have a history of injury. But if you string poly properly (low tension, cut it out before it goes dead), you might be fine anyway.
Some other points to reduce the risk of injury.
  • If you don’t hit too many winners on serves/groundstrokes and play (bunt) at a low level, you probably could play with soft strings and avoid poly as you have to hit hard to get the effects of increased spin/control. Please don’t play with poly because you don’t break it for a long time or because it doesn’t move when you play with it unlike soft strings - you should cut it out before you feel tightness/pain and then it doesn’t last long either. Play with poly only if you like the extra control and spin.
  • Try thin gauges of poly also as they have more comfort and power compared to thick gauges. Only high level players who break poly before it goes dead need to think about playing with 15g poly.
  • Change your tennis balls often and understand that if you play with low pressure balls for multiple matches or practices, this can contribute to injury. Serve practice with very old balls is bad for the shoulder.
  • If you are currently injured, rest long enough to not feel ANY pain before you start playing again. When you restart, you might not need to change your racquet or strings except possibly the gauge and tension as long as you follow the PSA.
  • Lastly, change your shoes often too if you are feeling knee/foot/calf pain or Achilles tightness that you did not feel when the shoes were new. These days, shoe soles last a long time and don’t wear out before the shoe support wears out. Also if you tighten your shoe laces too much to make old shoes that have loosened up ‘fit’ better, you run the risk of plantar fascitis injury. If your lower body is talking to you in the form of pain, listen to it and replace your shoes. If you get leg/knee pain just after you switched to a new shoe model, change back to a shoe model you are used to and see if the pain goes away. Some shoe designs (especially heel drop, arch support) might not be suitable for your feet. Also in some shoe models, you might need to size up half a size and wear thick socks to have a good fit.
Enjoy pain-free tennis by following the PSA. Then you can ignore the ’witch doctors’ who don’t follow the PSA and tell you to avoid heavy racquets, medium-stiff racquets, poly strings etc. that you like to play with. I‘ve played everyday for almost fifteen years with Babolat racquets/poly hybrids on hard courts in my forties/fifties (when I’m not traveling) without repetitive/overuse injuries by following my equipment guidelines although it took me a few years to figure out that some shoe models/old shoes can cause injury.

This message is not sponsored by your local orthopedic surgeon or physical therapist, but should be sponsored by your local stringer who hopefully strings for you more often.
 
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socallefty

G.O.A.T.
Yes @socallefty , you'll reach a different audience, maybe wider too, I got 16,000 views of that serve return video I posted here and there, I think it was just a few hundred views here in comparison.
I am not a big user of social media apart from TTW and LinkedIn. So, I don’t know much about Reddit. I use TTW because it entertains me to post on here about a hobby I enjoy.

If someone thinks it will help more tennis players in the real world, you can cut and paste it elsewhere. Here I have some credibility (hopefully) from posting for many years and elsewhere, no one might care about what some new user posts.
 

dennis

Semi-Pro
Can someone explain the mechanism of how dead poly (and flat balls) cause injuries? I understand the idea that tennis string becomes less elastic through use, and therefore it follows that the force from impact will be more acute as there is less of a trampoline effect. But on the other hand, old poly will have lost so much tension that this won't be the case. I could see old poly cushioning more than a fresh string job for this reason.
 

stephenclown

Professional
Can someone explain the mechanism of how dead poly (and flat balls) cause injuries? I understand the idea that tennis string becomes less elastic through use, and therefore it follows that the force from impact will be more acute as there is less of a trampoline effect. But on the other hand, old poly will have lost so much tension that this won't be the case. I could see old poly cushioning more than a fresh string job for this reason.

Notched strings don't move on contact as much, this causes a stiffer response from the string bed in my experience and the way in which the ball comes off. The elasticity doesn't really change all that much from my understanding and looking at twu data.

Flat balls I guess would cause more strain because you naturally have to swing harder for the same ball speed and spin.
 

Tranqville

Professional
I'd also like to join the petition to TTW administrators to sticky and promote this post. Posting a youtube video on TW channel on this topic would be great! @TW Staff

It also makes business sense in increasing poly consumption, helping both TW and manufacturers, while saving player's arm health! Win/win for everyone!
 

McLovin

Legend
Here's the thing...while I do cut my poly out after a certain amount of time (longer now that I'm using ReString Zero), there are many people I string for that play them until they break. And these are guys that play at a fairly high level (4.5-5.0, a few have won a 4.5 National Championship), using frames such as Pure Aeros and Ezone 100s.

I've been stringing for them for 5-10 years, and not one of them has had any arm-wrist injuries. Yes, I've mentioned to them they probably should restring them once the mains start moving around, but they just ignore me. And you know what? They hit the ball great until the end.

So...as general rule, yes, good advice. But clearly NOT required for all.
 

Rally

Professional
Here's the thing...while I do cut my poly out after a certain amount of time (longer now that I'm using ReString Zero), there are many people I string for that play them until they break. And these are guys that play at a fairly high level (4.5-5.0, a few have won a 4.5 National Championship), using frames such as Pure Aeros and Ezone 100s.

I've been stringing for them for 5-10 years, and not one of them has had any arm-wrist injuries. Yes, I've mentioned to them they probably should restring them once the mains start moving around, but they just ignore me. And you know what? They hit the ball great until the end.

So...as general rule, yes, good advice. But clearly NOT required for all.
High level could be the reason why. Are these high level players hitting hard enough to saw through the poly in under 15ish hours of court time? Are they using thinner gauges too? I'm more interested in the rec level 3.5s and below who play with fashionable racquets and poor technique/fundamentals.
 

PRS

Professional
stiff old-school poly goes dead in 5-10 hours and softer polys go dead in 10-25 hours
This part is interesting to me. I usually find the stiffer poly strings actually last longer (8-12 hours) than the softer poly strings (6-10 hours) before going dead. Not a hard rule by any means, but most poly strings I have tried fall into those ranges for those that actually should be using poly.

Note: just cause someone doesn't fall into the *should* category doesn't mean they can't use, or get no benefit from, poly.
 

McLovin

Legend
Are these high level players hitting hard enough to saw through the poly in under 15ish hours of court time?
It depends...most of them play predominately doubles, so the 'hour' measure is hard to calculate. However, I've had them use string for 3+ months (normally a 17g, like YPTP), and I know a few play 3-4 times a week.
I'm more interested in the rec level 3.5s and below who play with fashionable racquets and poor technique/fundamentals.
Poor technique will cause arm issues on it's own. Old poly will just get them there quicker...
 

socallefty

G.O.A.T.
Here's the thing...while I do cut my poly out after a certain amount of time (longer now that I'm using ReString Zero), there are many people I string for that play them until they break. And these are guys that play at a fairly high level (4.5-5.0, a few have won a 4.5 National Championship), using frames such as Pure Aeros and Ezone 100s.

I've been stringing for them for 5-10 years, and not one of them has had any arm-wrist injuries. Yes, I've mentioned to them they probably should restring them once the mains start moving around, but they just ignore me. And you know what? They hit the ball great until the end.

So...as general rule, yes, good advice. But clearly NOT required for all.
If they are good enough to break poly, they probably break them within a reasonable time frame in terms of playing hours. A lot of players cannot break poly with their hitting unless it is very thin gauge and they are the ones who end up playing many months with them.

Anyway these are guidelines and not hard and fast rules. Better the caliber of player and the more they hit the sweet spot with less impact shock, less the chance of injuries.
 

jimmy8

G.O.A.T.
Buy a stringing machine so you can string often. I have one. I got it used for cheap. I string every 8-10 hrs of play or 2 weeks whichever comes first. This is for health and for playability. And I change shoes often. Change insoles every 40 hours of play and shoes every 80-120 hours of play. I buy cheap insoles. Hoping to get custom insoles someday. I buy expensive shoes though. They are worth it. I'm sure custom insoles are worth it too. I highly recommend spending the money, not for the sake of tennis businesses doing better, it's for your health. I know most people are going to just do whatever until they finally figure it out. Most people learn only by doing.
 

nyta2

Legend
do you guys usually cut or break?
i probably should cut at the 6-8h mark, but usually just let it break at the 10-12h mark (generally i'm stringing a racquet once a week - these days with ypt.{pro,strike} or lux)
 

HitMoreBHs

Professional
Unfortunately, there’s still no objective testing method that allows us to tell definitively when a particular poly string job in our racquets is dead.

For all the string tension measuring devices and methods (including dynamic ones), and highly technical lab research, no one has ever been able to provide a definitive set of measured criteria that defines “dead poly”. No easy to understand video evidence clearly demonstrating the performance difference between dead vs fresh poly that a 12 yr old could make sense of. Tension-elasticity graphs can clearly show the difference between soft vs stiff poly, but even so, they can’t produce a(ny) graph(s) that show(s) “when the graph goes from this to that, the poly is dead”.

As such, we’re left with subjective assessment. Due to the individual nature of this, most rec club players think that “dead poly” is nothing more than the imaginings of OCD gearheads or stringers trying to tout for more business. Unfortunately, until objective easily demonstrable evidence exists, such will remain the general perception.

It also doesn’t help that in the UK, many club level tennis players can be frugal to the extreme when it comes to tennis related expenditure. The one thing going for them is that there’s no concern for dead poly injuries with their zombie balls anyway!
 

socallefty

G.O.A.T.
It also doesn’t help that in the UK, many club level tennis players can be frugal to the extreme when it comes to tennis related expenditure.
There is a knowledge gap where rec players don’t know that dead poly is what is causing their arm tightness/pain in many cases as they never had to worry about it with soft strings and stringers don’t tell them about it. When they get pain, they think it might be their racquet’s fault or string’s fault, but they never question that they are just playing too long with the stringjob. So, they continue playing with the stringjob after getting pain till they develop an injury.

If there was a warning on the string package that says cut out the string if you feel tightness/pain as this is a perishable product, maybe players would have more awareness. I still don’t understand why stringers in pro shops don’t tell customers to cut out their poly strings when they feel pain and let them get injured.
 
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Cowboy

Semi-Pro
This is all good advice, and a great topic of discussion. I second the notion for @TW Staff to do a YT video on the matter.

Anecdotal information: I have been doing the Kirschbaum Flash 17g playtest. In the process, I have been taking notes and paying very close attention to how my racquet has played with that string. It played one way for the first hour (0-1 hour), transitioned significantly between the first and second hour (1-2 hours), and held pretty constant from hours 3-7. From talking with people, and reading others comments on this forum, it seems like that is a very common thing with poly string. I don't know what to expect from it in terms of playability duration, but I don't think its dead yet. That said, I don't expect to get many more matches out of it.
 
Your guidelines are sound, but I think that lots of folks are stupid about this stuff. Some stringers, too.

My PSA to our peers in the realm of rec. tennis would read more like:


Don't use poly.
Men are too stubborn for this advice, especially those who start tennis as adults coming form other sports, me man, me tough, me use poly. Really though, poly is everywhere in the beginner rackets.
 

GodlessEndeavor

Professional
Don't use poly.

I'd be willing to bet that the vast majority of rec players who use poly are better served by something like Tecnifibre Triax even if we don't want to use traditional multifilaments or syngut for whatever reason.

I'm including myself in that - I still want to experiment with poly, but I wouldn't be surprised if I eventually convince myself that nothing significantly improves my game compared to Triax. The 1.38mm gauge version can last for a long time for me.

edit - I think the video in this thread adds some evidence to my belief: https://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/ind...-atp-408-playing-with-triax-at-42-lbs.765785/
 
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puppybutts

Hall of Fame
gear changes can help, but the number one thing most people ignore is basic fitness. strength, stretching, recovery. "weekend warriors" is a familiar term in the doctor's office for a reason. just like trying to sprint after sitting on the couch or at a desk for 40 hours in the week will injure you, trying to swing, snap, rotate, etc. with your arm suddenly can cause injury. if you're in shape, your body is far more resilient.

restringing every 5-10 hours is a nice thought, but the reality is most rec players aren't going to do that. that's paying for or doing your own string job every 2-5 outings. even a decent number of pros don't restring or switch to a racquet with a fresh string job that often.

you note that lower-level players may have difficulty spotting when a poly is dead. frankly, if they're too low in level to notice changes in their string, they're probably too low-level to be hurting themselves with poly anyway, because they're simply not generating enough force. the more likely culprit is improper technique or poor fitness. if all your wrist does off the tennis court is hold a phone or type on a keyboard, it's going to be injured when you try to force it to swing a racquet for two hours.
 
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K1Y

Professional
I see a lot of players post that they got elbow/wrist/arm injuries and are debating whether to change their racquet - go lighter/heavier/more flexible etc. If they mention their string is poly, they get a litany of people saying they should not use poly. They rarely mention if they cut out their poly before it goes dead while I think playing with dead poly is a major cause for injuries. So, I wanted to post this Public Service Announcement (PSA) and am intentionally posting it in the racquet section as if you follow it, you won’t need to change your racquet.

PSA - Cut out your poly before it goes dead. Very few players are high level enough to break their poly before it goes dead and this includes 95% of rec players because stiff old-school poly goes dead in 5-10 hours and softer polys go dead in 10-25 hours (shorter duration the harder/heavier you hit). If you play with dead poly, it WILL injure you and control will be erratic in addition to feel being ‘crappy’ so that it also compromises your performance - this is not the way to save money as medical/PT bills cost a lot.

How to know if your poly is dead? If you feel any tightness (even before pain) in your wrist/arm/elbow, the poly is dead. Cut it out before you develop any soreness/pain. If you play with the same string and tension, make sure you make a note of how many playing hours you played with it and cut it out in advance of that for future stringjobs. You should also be seeing erratic control and a worsening in feel, but this may be harder to spot if you are low-level or don’t play often - surest sign of dead poly is your body talking to you and telling you it feels tight or sore. This rule still applies in a hybrid stringjob as poly goes dead in hybrids also and you should cut it out if your wrist/arm feels tight even before you develop pain. If you get any pain, please ‘for the love of God’ cut out your strings and don’t try to coax a few more hours out of your stringjob. If you strung your poly many months ago and didn’t play with it much, be extra wary as poly can go dead quicker just from being under tension (strung in a racquet) for a long time - so you might feel tightness in your wrist/arm quicker and need to cut out an old stringjob sooner than normal. Don’t keep your backup racquet strung with poly in your bag without playing with it for many weeks and months as you are wasting the stringjob.

Other causes of injury:
  • Playing poly at high tension. Most polys (especially newer soft polys) play well at tensions in the low-mid-high forties (lbs) of tension and there is no reason to go higher. Most players below college level who play with higher tensions do so because they were used to stringing in the fifties with soft strings and think dropping 4-6 lbs is enough with poly. If you try lower tensions, you will see that comfort goes up a lot, control doesn't go down too much and you can play many hours longer with a poly stringjob before you feel discomfort. Be bold and try 40-44 lbs before you knock it or go back to higher tensions.
  • Racquets weighing below 10 ozs and above 12 ozs unstrung (as printed on the racquet) should be avoided as you have to be very small/weak or very big/strong to need racquets outside the weight range of 10-12 ozs to play well.
  • Racquets with RA stiffness above 70 unstrung or VF above 155Hz might be good to avoid if you have a history of injury. But if you string poly properly (low tension, cut it out before it goes dead), you might be fine anyway.
Some other points to reduce the risk of injury.
  • If you don’t hit too many winners on serves/groundstrokes and play (bunt) at a low level, you probably could play with soft strings and avoid poly as you have to hit hard to get the effects of increased spin/control. Please don’t play with poly because you don’t break it for a long time or because it doesn’t move when you play with it unlike soft strings - you should cut it out before you feel tightness/pain and then it doesn’t last long either. Play with poly only if you like the extra control and spin.
  • Try thin gauges of poly also as they have more comfort and power compared to thick gauges. Only high level players who break poly before it goes dead need to think about playing with 15g poly.
  • Change your tennis balls often and understand that if you play with low pressure balls for multiple matches or practices, this can contribute to injury. Serve practice with very old balls is bad for the shoulder.
  • If you are currently injured, rest long enough to not feel ANY pain before you start playing again. When you restart, you might not need to change your racquet or strings except possibly the gauge and tension as long as you follow the PSA.
  • Lastly, change your shoes often too if you are feeling knee/foot/calf pain or Achilles tightness that you did not feel when the shoes were new. These days, shoe soles last a long time and don’t wear out before the shoe support wears out. Also if you tighten your shoe laces too much to make old shoes that have loosened up ‘fit’ better, you run the risk of plantar fascitis injury. If your lower body is talking to you in the form of pain, listen to it and replace your shoes. If you get leg/knee pain just after you switched to a new shoe model, change back to a shoe model you are used to and see if the pain goes away. Some shoe designs (especially heel drop, arch support) might not be suitable for your feet. Also in some shoe models, you might need to size up half a size and wear thick socks to have a good fit.
Enjoy pain-free tennis by following the PSA. Then you can ignore the ’witch doctors’ who don’t follow the PSA and tell you to avoid heavy racquets, medium-stiff racquets, poly strings etc. that you like to play with. I‘ve played everyday for almost fifteen years with Babolat racquets/poly hybrids on hard courts in my forties/fifties (when I’m not traveling) without repetitive/overuse injuries by following my equipment guidelines although it took me a few years to figure out that some shoe models/old shoes can cause injury.

This message is not sponsored by your local orthopedic surgeon or physical therapist, but should be sponsored by your local stringer who hopefully strings for you more often.
Very good post. Would like to hear more on shoes. What are some good ones?
 

onehandbh

G.O.A.T.
@socallefty , those are good guidelines. I've met so many people that play until their strings are totally dead and complain about wrist/arm/shoulder pain.

My strings last longer if I am just playing doubles. Singles wears them out much quicker because I hit more groundstrokes and serves.

Hitting or playing groundstrokes points/drills wears my strings out the fastest. Also, takes a lot more energy for me.

Personally, I cut them out after around 10-15 hours. Earlier, if am playing more singles/drills and/or the strings are notched a lot and about to break. I only have one of the current racquet I play with, so if it breaks I have to use a different racquet.
 

socallefty

G.O.A.T.
Very good post. Would like to hear more on shoes. What are some good ones?
My current fave is ASICS GR9. Before I switched to GR8 and 9, I played Adidas Barricades for a decade. I like the heavier shoes because they last 60-80 hours for me before the support wears out on hard courts - with lighter shoes, the support wears out in half that time. The lifetime is going to depend on how heavy you are and the intensity of your footwork also.
 

socallefty

G.O.A.T.
My strings last longer if I am just playing doubles. Singles wears them out much quicker because I hit more groundstrokes and serves.
Good point. I play a mix of singles, doubles and drills/lessons. If I play only singles with a string job, it lasts much less. I usually play singles for the first 8 hours and then use it for doubles, drills till I break it or cut it out.
 

dannyslicer

Semi-Pro
You forgot the fact that 95% of rec players do not swing hard enough to need poly in the first place.
Ever see college players hit? That loud CRACK sound when they hit? Yea, that's who needs poly.
The rest are witchdoctor equipment clowns
 

dannyslicer

Semi-Pro
Dead poly does not actually hurt your arm. That's why people keep using dead poly.
Dead poly is dead when the strings move so much that the ball does not reach the net.
 

dannyslicer

Semi-Pro
Sigh, 100 views and only 2 likes on a post I took some time to write carefully on what I thought is an important topic. Meanwhile I write some inane, jokey post criticizing Nadal or Djokovic and 20 likes happen in an hour:cry:
Don't feel bad.
This thread got 1 reply.
 

LOBALOT

Legend
I string for a guy that plays a Ti S6 or whatever that cannon is called. He also indicates he wants to use poly strung high and wants it to last forever.

That may explain why he shows up the court with enough arm and wrist equipment that he looks like a nose guard. All he needs is the neck roll... "Put me in coach!"

"Edited"
 
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socallefty

G.O.A.T.
I string for a guy that plays a Ti S6 or whatever that cannon is called. He also indicates he wants to use poly strung high and wants it to last forever.

That may explain why he shows up the court with enough arm and wrist equipment that he looks like a nose guard. All he needs is the neck donut... "Put me in coach!"

"Edited"
Pass this PSA along to him and anyone else you see on court with an elbow or wrist brace and maybe a knee brace. Most are probably playing with dead poly…and old shoes!
 
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BBender716

Professional
I am a rec player 3.5/4.0 and use full bed of poly. I have tried gut/poly as well but missed the higher launch angle, spin, and stiffer response. HOWEVER, I'm always cutting out my poly after 8-10 hours and have never had arm issues.

Actually, one point made by OP here no one's mentioned so far is using old balls for serving. That I definitely noticed issues with and got a crap ton of new balls for Christmas and store them INDOORS now.
 

dannyslicer

Semi-Pro
Actually, one point made by OP here no one's mentioned so far is using old balls for serving. That I definitely noticed issues with and got a crap ton of new balls for Christmas and store them INDOORS now.
Old balls are softer and therefore easier on the arm.
Compare the impact of hitting a foam ball vs. a baseball
 

BLACKOUT

Rookie
I see a lot of players post that they got elbow/wrist/arm injuries and are debating whether to change their racquet - go lighter/heavier/more flexible etc. If they mention their string is poly, they get a litany of people saying they should not use poly. They rarely mention if they cut out their poly before it goes dead while I think playing with dead poly is a major cause for injuries. So, I wanted to post this Public Service Announcement (PSA) and am intentionally posting it in the racquet section as if you follow it, you won’t need to change your racquet.

PSA - Cut out your poly before it goes dead. Very few players are high level enough to break their poly before it goes dead and this includes 95% of rec players because stiff old-school poly goes dead in 5-10 hours and softer polys go dead in 10-25 hours (shorter duration the harder/heavier you hit or if you play only singles). If you play with dead poly, it WILL injure you and control will be erratic in addition to feel being ‘crappy’ so that it also compromises your performance - this is not the way to save money as medical/PT bills cost a lot.

How to know if your poly is dead? If you feel any tightness (even before pain) in your wrist/arm/elbow, the poly is dead. Cut it out before you develop any soreness/pain. If you play with the same string and tension, make sure you make a note of how many playing hours you played with it and cut it out in advance of that for future stringjobs. You should also be seeing erratic control and a worsening in feel, but this may be harder to spot if you are low-level or don’t play often - surest sign of dead poly is your body talking to you and telling you it feels tight or sore. This rule still applies in a hybrid stringjob as poly goes dead in hybrids also and you should cut it out if your wrist/arm feels tight even before you develop pain. If you get any pain, please ‘for the love of God’ cut out your strings and don’t try to coax a few more hours out of your stringjob. If you strung your poly many months ago and didn’t play with it much, be extra wary as poly can go dead quicker just from being under tension (strung in a racquet) for a long time - so you might feel tightness in your wrist/arm quicker and need to cut out an old stringjob sooner than normal. Don’t keep your backup racquet strung with poly in your bag without playing with it for many weeks and months as you are wasting the stringjob.

Other causes of injury:
  • Playing poly at high tension. Most polys (especially newer soft polys) play well at tensions in the low-mid-high forties (lbs) of tension and there is no reason to go higher. Most players below college level who play with higher tensions do so because they were used to stringing in the fifties with soft strings and think dropping 4-6 lbs is enough with poly. If you try lower tensions, you will see that comfort goes up a lot, control doesn't go down too much and you can play many hours longer with a poly stringjob before you feel discomfort. Be bold and try 40-44 lbs before you knock it or go back to higher tensions.
  • Racquets weighing below 10 ozs and above 12 ozs unstrung (as printed on the racquet) should be avoided as you have to be very small/weak or very big/strong to need racquets outside the weight range of 10-12 ozs to play well.
  • Racquets with RA stiffness above 70 unstrung or VF above 155Hz might be good to avoid if you have a history of injury. But if you string poly properly (low tension, cut it out before it goes dead), you might be fine anyway.
Some other points to reduce the risk of injury.
  • If you don’t hit too many winners on serves/groundstrokes and play (bunt) at a low level, you probably could play with soft strings and avoid poly as you have to hit hard to get the effects of increased spin/control. Please don’t play with poly because you don’t break it for a long time or because it doesn’t move when you play with it unlike soft strings - you should cut it out before you feel tightness/pain and then it doesn’t last long either. Play with poly only if you like the extra control and spin.
  • Try thin gauges of poly also as they have more comfort and power compared to thick gauges. Only high level players who break poly before it goes dead need to think about playing with 15g poly.
  • Change your tennis balls often and understand that if you play with low pressure balls for multiple matches or practices, this can contribute to injury. Serve practice with very old balls is bad for the shoulder.
  • If you are currently injured, rest long enough to not feel ANY pain before you start playing again. When you restart, you might not need to change your racquet or strings except possibly the gauge and tension as long as you follow the PSA.
  • Lastly, change your shoes often too if you are feeling knee/foot/calf pain or Achilles tightness that you did not feel when the shoes were new. These days, shoe soles last a long time and don’t wear out before the shoe support wears out. Also if you tighten your shoe laces too much to make old shoes that have loosened up ‘fit’ better, you run the risk of plantar fascitis injury. If your lower body is talking to you in the form of pain, listen to it and replace your shoes. If you get leg/knee pain just after you switched to a new shoe model, change back to a shoe model you are used to and see if the pain goes away. Some shoe designs (especially heel drop, arch support) might not be suitable for your feet. Also in some shoe models, you might need to size up half a size and wear thick socks to have a good fit.
Enjoy pain-free tennis by following the PSA. Then you can ignore the ’witch doctors’ who don’t follow the PSA and tell you to avoid heavy racquets, medium-stiff racquets, poly strings etc. that you like to play with. I‘ve played everyday for almost fifteen years with Babolat racquets/poly hybrids on hard courts in my forties/fifties (when I’m not traveling) without repetitive/overuse injuries by following my equipment guidelines although it took me a few years to figure out that some shoe models/old shoes can cause injury.

This message is not sponsored by your local orthopedic surgeon or physical therapist, but should be sponsored by your local stringer who hopefully strings for you more often.
Appreciate you for this post. PREACH
 
I see a lot of players post that they got elbow/wrist/arm injuries and are debating whether to change their racquet - go lighter/heavier/more flexible etc. If they mention their string is poly, they get a litany of people saying they should not use poly. They rarely mention if they cut out their poly before it goes dead while I think playing with dead poly is a major cause for injuries. So, I wanted to post this Public Service Announcement (PSA) and am intentionally posting it in the racquet section as if you follow it, you won’t need to change your racquet.

PSA - Cut out your poly before it goes dead. Very few players are high level enough to break their poly before it goes dead and this includes 95% of rec players because stiff old-school poly goes dead in 5-10 hours and softer polys go dead in 10-25 hours (shorter duration the harder/heavier you hit or if you play only singles). If you play with dead poly, it WILL injure you and control will be erratic in addition to feel being ‘crappy’ so that it also compromises your performance - this is not the way to save money as medical/PT bills cost a lot.

How to know if your poly is dead? If you feel any tightness (even before pain) in your wrist/arm/elbow, the poly is dead. Cut it out before you develop any soreness/pain. If you play with the same string and tension, make sure you make a note of how many playing hours you played with it and cut it out in advance of that for future stringjobs. You should also be seeing erratic control and a worsening in feel, but this may be harder to spot if you are low-level or don’t play often - surest sign of dead poly is your body talking to you and telling you it feels tight or sore. This rule still applies in a hybrid stringjob as poly goes dead in hybrids also and you should cut it out if your wrist/arm feels tight even before you develop pain. If you get any pain, please ‘for the love of God’ cut out your strings and don’t try to coax a few more hours out of your stringjob. If you strung your poly many months ago and didn’t play with it much, be extra wary as poly can go dead quicker just from being under tension (strung in a racquet) for a long time - so you might feel tightness in your wrist/arm quicker and need to cut out an old stringjob sooner than normal. Don’t keep your backup racquet strung with poly in your bag without playing with it for many weeks and months as you are wasting the stringjob.

Other causes of injury:
  • Playing poly at high tension. Most polys (especially newer soft polys) play well at tensions in the low-mid-high forties (lbs) of tension and there is no reason to go higher. Most players below college level who play with higher tensions do so because they were used to stringing in the fifties with soft strings and think dropping 4-6 lbs is enough with poly. If you try lower tensions, you will see that comfort goes up a lot, control doesn't go down too much and you can play many hours longer with a poly stringjob before you feel discomfort. Be bold and try 40-44 lbs before you knock it or go back to higher tensions.
  • Racquets weighing below 10 ozs and above 12 ozs unstrung (as printed on the racquet) should be avoided as you have to be very small/weak or very big/strong to need racquets outside the weight range of 10-12 ozs to play well.
  • Racquets with RA stiffness above 70 unstrung or VF above 155Hz might be good to avoid if you have a history of injury. But if you string poly properly (low tension, cut it out before it goes dead), you might be fine anyway.
Some other points to reduce the risk of injury.
  • If you don’t hit too many winners on serves/groundstrokes and play (bunt) at a low level, you probably could play with soft strings and avoid poly as you have to hit hard to get the effects of increased spin/control. Please don’t play with poly because you don’t break it for a long time or because it doesn’t move when you play with it unlike soft strings - you should cut it out before you feel tightness/pain and then it doesn’t last long either. Play with poly only if you like the extra control and spin.
  • Try thin gauges of poly also as they have more comfort and power compared to thick gauges. Only high level players who break poly before it goes dead need to think about playing with 15g poly.
  • Change your tennis balls often and understand that if you play with low pressure balls for multiple matches or practices, this can contribute to injury. Serve practice with very old balls is bad for the shoulder.
  • If you are currently injured, rest long enough to not feel ANY pain before you start playing again. When you restart, you might not need to change your racquet or strings except possibly the gauge and tension as long as you follow the PSA.
  • Lastly, change your shoes often too if you are feeling knee/foot/calf pain or Achilles tightness that you did not feel when the shoes were new. These days, shoe soles last a long time and don’t wear out before the shoe support wears out. Also if you tighten your shoe laces too much to make old shoes that have loosened up ‘fit’ better, you run the risk of plantar fascitis injury. If your lower body is talking to you in the form of pain, listen to it and replace your shoes. If you get leg/knee pain just after you switched to a new shoe model, change back to a shoe model you are used to and see if the pain goes away. Some shoe designs (especially heel drop, arch support) might not be suitable for your feet. Also in some shoe models, you might need to size up half a size and wear thick socks to have a good fit.
Enjoy pain-free tennis by following the PSA. Then you can ignore the ’witch doctors’ who don’t follow the PSA and tell you to avoid heavy racquets, medium-stiff racquets, poly strings etc. that you like to play with. I‘ve played everyday for almost fifteen years with Babolat racquets/poly hybrids on hard courts in my forties/fifties (when I’m not traveling) without repetitive/overuse injuries by following my equipment guidelines although it took me a few years to figure out that some shoe models/old shoes can cause injury.

This message is not sponsored by your local orthopedic surgeon or physical therapist, but should be sponsored by your local stringer who hopefully strings for you more often.
this should be printed on the string packages, just like horrible pictures are printed on cigarettes packs
 

K1Y

Professional
Read this again and found it even more valuable now. I am in the middle of a switch to TF tempo 298's but my wrist is having a little trouble with the stiffness. Multiple factors could be the case: smaller grip, old balls, overuse and tension around 48 lbs. I am trying to eliminate them one by one. Wrapped the overgrip with more overlap and going to restring at 42 lbs. I have a few extra questions, maybe @socallefty can help me with.

1). When having 2 rackets. And not breaking poly strings. What would be an economical way of stringing and using them. You talk about not wasting a string job by stringing it and keeping it as a back up. Vey good point, but then is there ever a reason for non string breakers to have two rackets? Just in the rare case it breaks in a match? I can only think of having two tensions depending on balls/conditions, or stringing them both up for a tournament so you can have relatively fresh stringjobs for multiple matches.
2). I am trying to get my girlfriend (plays for about 2 years once a week) to lower her tension, but I dont want her to complain about loss of control. Right now she is at 55 lbs with luxilon adrenaline in a wilson ultra team (around 10 ozs). She likes the poly and she hates the multi feel. She doesnt have pain when playing on her own level, but she does experience wrist pain/soreness when she plays an hour against my heavier topspin shots. I do wanna change her strings more often but I everytime I check the strings I am suprised her strings keep their snapback for months and look/feel freshly strung still. Not sure if I should still change them if they are not dead in my book. 25 hours of play for her could be a timespan of 6 months max. So to wrap up: should I still restring or is that a waste? And should I drop it gradually 2 lbs per stringjob or just put her straight at 42 and let her adjust?
 

socallefty

G.O.A.T.
Read this again and found it even more valuable now. I am in the middle of a switch to TF tempo 298's but my wrist is having a little trouble with the stiffness. Multiple factors could be the case: smaller grip, old balls, overuse and tension around 48 lbs. I am trying to eliminate them one by one. Wrapped the overgrip with more overlap and going to restring at 42 lbs. I have a few extra questions, maybe @socallefty can help me with.

1). When having 2 rackets. And not breaking poly strings. What would be an economical way of stringing and using them. You talk about not wasting a string job by stringing it and keeping it as a back up. Vey good point, but then is there ever a reason for non string breakers to have two rackets? Just in the rare case it breaks in a match? I can only think of having two tensions depending on balls/conditions, or stringing them both up for a tournament so you can have relatively fresh stringjobs for multiple matches.
2). I am trying to get my girlfriend (plays for about 2 years once a week) to lower her tension, but I dont want her to complain about loss of control. Right now she is at 55 lbs with luxilon adrenaline in a wilson ultra team (around 10 ozs). She likes the poly and she hates the multi feel. She doesnt have pain when playing on her own level, but she does experience wrist pain/soreness when she plays an hour against my heavier topspin shots. I do wanna change her strings more often but I everytime I check the strings I am suprised her strings keep their snapback for months and look/feel freshly strung still. Not sure if I should still change them if they are not dead in my book. 25 hours of play for her could be a timespan of 6 months max. So to wrap up: should I still restring or is that a waste? And should I drop it gradually 2 lbs per stringjob or just put her straight at 42 and let her adjust?
1. I use HyperG Soft and though it won’t go dead before 12-15 hours for me (varies depending on mix of singles/doubles/drills), I do notice the difference when it is fresh below 5-7 hours and after. So, I play singles when it is fresh and then use it for doubles/drills after. That is one reason to have multiple racquets so that you can play fresher strings for the matches you consider more critical. I don’t change tensions for weather conditions anymore with poly as I don’t find much difference varying by 2-3 lbs and going higher than that impacts comfort too much for me. But if you are very tension sensitive, that might be a reason to have multiple racquets. I live close to the ocean where we have a marine layer of high humidity early in the morning and in the late evening when conditions are slower compared to playing in the heat of the mid-day - temperature also varies a lot between night and day as it is desert weather. So there are players who play with different tensions for the varying conditions.
2. With the same stringjob, I will feel wrist/arm discomfort within 20 hours (if it doesn’t break) playing mostly mid-high 4.5 men while my wife can play 10 more hours at least before she feels discomfort playing mostly 4.0 and low 4.5 women. So your GF might be able to get more hours with her strings if she plays less hard-hitting opponents. But poly will lose tension fast compared to other strings even if not used much and I would imagine the control and tension is less after 4-6 months even if not played much - so restring as often as your budget allows. Or get your GF to play more tennis! I would suggest changing her tension downwards by 4-5 lbs at a time and see if she likes it - if you go down drastically by 10 lbs in one stringjob, she might not like it. Generally stiffer strings seem more tension-sensitive to me in terms of how they play compared to softer polys.

Also you should never play with a stringjob if you are getting any soreness or pain - cut it out even before it happens.
 

Shroud

Talk Tennis Guru
Personally I break a ton of those rules. My take is that you can break those rules if the grip is big enough and the swingweight is high enough.

Lots of small grips and low swingweights have injuries.

Fwiw I played with one of the stiffest racquets ever made (profile 2.7) strung with kevlar/ poly strung at 86lbs, with questionable technique and had no injuries. I did have a big grip and high swingweight…

That said agree about stretches pre and post match. Tennis elbow happens mostly by tight muscles in the forearm pulling on tendons. Mine never hurt but man if you rubbed them they sure did. Massages with a baseball and wrapping the elbow with “thigh wraps” helped heal. Now with the high sw and big handle I am not worried about te myself.
 
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