Which activity is more gruelling, cross country (running 5 km non-stop at a high pace) or a tennis five-set match (like the AO 2012 men's final)?

Which activity is physically more exhausting?

  • Cross country running 5 km

    Votes: 2 8.3%
  • AO 2012 men's final

    Votes: 22 91.7%

  • Total voters
    24

Megafanoftennis100

Professional
Pretty much as it says in the title. For me, when I was taking sports classes at high school, cross country was a complete nightmare and it was super exhausting, as I had to consistently run at a very fast pace for 5 kilometers!
But is this more exhausting than a tennis five-set match, like the 2012 AO final between Djokovic and Nadal?
Keep in mind that we are only talking about how gruelling each activity is, not necessarily the level of difficulty.
 
D

Deleted member 758560

Guest
octobrina won the most loyal ndal fan of ttw nomination
 

AlienBug

New User
First of all cross country isn’t nonstop running at a “very fast pace.” It’s running at a high- moderate pace for about 25 minutes. Tennis is a series of explosive sprints followed by short rest. Then repeat for an hour or more.

Think of a sideline to sideline sprint for a ball. Could you maintain that pace for 25 minutes?
 

Megafanoftennis100

Professional
First of all cross country isn’t nonstop running at a “very fast pace.” It’s running at a high- moderate pace for about 25 minutes. Tennis is a series of explosive sprints followed by short rest. Then repeat for an hour or more.

Think of a sideline to sideline sprint for a ball. Could you maintain that pace for 25 minutes?
If I was given short breaks between those exercises, then yes, easily. I could even maintain it for 6-7 hours.
tbh I think Djokovic and Nadal are very overrated for their stamina and endurance. Their 2012 AO final match only lasted, like, what? 5 hours and 53 minutes? They had so many breaks during the match and yet, they were panting and sweating so heavily all the time. And they even collapsed at the end of the match and needed chairs. Lol that is just pathetic and laughable. As much as I am a Djokovic fan, I must admit that this was a shameful display from him.
Even my former high school buddies are way fitter than Nadal and Djokovic. I swear, if Djokovic were as athletic as one of my high school athlete buddies, he would have won like 35-40 Slams instead of 24. But of course, Djokovic obviously has way better tennis technique than any of us.
 

Sport

G.O.A.T.
Would you kindly provide an explanation for it?
Yes, naturally, I would indeed kindly attempt to offer an explanation. Here it is:

I'm surprised Nadal and Djokovic ended the match. I think we were a few minutes away from having the first ever Grand Slam final where one or both of the players would retire due to exhaustion. It's no exaggeration to assert it was the most physically demanding and grueling contest in the history of the sport. Nadal is known for sweating abundantly, but this match was something else. He has never sweated so much as that night. And Djokovic almost colaped, needing to fall on the ground to be barely able to breath. They both were "dead", like zombies on the court in the final set, giving every single drop of energy they had.

But, as the old saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words:

jan-29-2012-melbourne-victoria-australia-beads-of-perspiration-fly-C9N36N.jpg


hi-res-137880871-novak-djokovic-of-serbia-falls-to-the-floor-exhausted_crop_exact.jpg


2012_01_29_nole.jpg



rafael-nadal-novak-djokovic-610getty.jpg


djokovic-nadal-australian-open-2012.jpg
 
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PaddyDutch

Semi-Pro
First of all cross country isn’t nonstop running at a “very fast pace.” It’s running at a high- moderate pace for about 25 minutes. Tennis is a series of explosive sprints followed by short rest. Then repeat for an hour or more.

Think of a sideline to sideline sprint for a ball. Could you maintain that pace for 25 minutes?
First of all cross country isn’t nonstop running at a “very fast pace.” It’s running at a high- moderate pace for about 25 minutes. Tennis is a series of explosive sprints followed by short rest. Then repeat for an hour or more.

Think of a sideline to sideline sprint for a ball. Could you maintain that pace for 25 minutes?
Competitive cross country 5k is done at a pace 1% below puking.

It is a 20 minute effort at a pace that you can barely sustain for the race distance. There is nothing moderate about it.

That being said, the question by the OP is like ‘which is better, jeans or spaghetti?’
 

Megafanoftennis100

Professional
Competitive cross country 5k is done at a pace 1% below puking.

It is a 20 minute effort at a pace that you can barely sustain for the race distance. There is nothing moderate about it.
Yes exactly! Spot on! Finally, someone who understands! Thank you!
Yeah cross country at a competitive level is extremely tough and easily as tough as a tennis 5-set match. To be honest, the 2012 AO final was super overrated. And I also think Djokovic and Nadal are very overrated for their stamina and endurance. The media portrays them as some kind of physical gods when they are not even that athletic. If anything, they get tired so easily that it's actually annoying.
Their 2012 AO final match only lasted, like, what? 5 hours and 53 minutes? lol They had so many breaks during the match and yet, they were panting and sweating so heavily all the time. And they even collapsed at the end of the match and needed chairs. Lmao that was simply pathetic. As much as I am a Djokovic fan, I must admit that this was a shameful display from him.
That is why tennis is such an easy sport in which to gain fame. You can be an absolute slug and yet, still be the best player in the world. It's a joke fr.
 

john_boy

New User
Competitive cross country 5k is done at a pace 1% below puking.

It is a 20 minute effort at a pace that you can barely sustain for the race distance. There is nothing moderate about it.

That being said, the question by the OP is like ‘which is better, jeans or spaghetti?’
Spaghetti 100%
 

PaddyDutch

Semi-Pro
…. If anything, they get tired so easily that it's actually annoying.
Their 2012 AO final match only lasted, like, what? 5 hours and 53 minutes? lol They had so many breaks during the match and yet, they were panting and sweating so heavily all the time. And they even collapsed at the end of the match and needed chairs. Lmao that was simply pathetic. As much as I am a Djokovic fan, I must admit that this was a shameful display from him.
I could not disagree more.

I think every ATP tournament winner is elite level for power, speed, stamina, accuracy and mindset. Slam winners are a level above it and Djokovic, Nadal and Federer are yet another level up.

I would say that goes for every top athlete in their field.

Everyone who says otherwise:
- pitch at 90mph or try to hit one of those
- run a 11 second 100m or a 55 second 400
- ride your bike at 35km/h for 150km
- throw a javelin over 40 meters
Etc etc etc

There are no easy sports, only sports that look easy. Except pickleball, but that’s more of a game, not a sport;)(y)
 

Djokodalerer31

Hall of Fame
Different muscle groups are involved in these respective sports and this should always be considered! First of all in tennis almost entire body is involved to certain capacity (one body part to lesser extent than the other...), you don't just "run" by using your feet and legs all the time, but you also perform swings, which are physical too for shoulders, arms and wrists! Even backside is involved almost at all times during movements, hips and weist too...look i'm not saying running isn't physical sport at all, i'm just saying that it's not fair to compare to the sport, where almost entire body (maybe with the exception of head) is involved...that's all...that's not a jab at running or anything...all i'm saying is that when i hear people ask "physically gruelling" it only makes sense to talk in the context of the whole body, that is involved in the proccess of competition, not just running is physical, but hitting and swinging is as well...
 

BeatlesFan

Bionic Poster
You've got to be kidding. I'e run 40+ marathons in my life and that's 26.2 miles and I am no elite athlete. Yeah, it can be gruelling depending upon the hills or the weather, but it's doable and hundreds of thousands of ordinary people complete marathons ever year under 4 hours. Anyone can run 5K barefoot if they're remotely fit, that's a nothing distance.

Five sets of tennis at an elite level is so much more difficult than a piddly 5K it's absurd to compare. How can you possibly think running 3 miles is in any, way, shape or form the same as Nadal/Djokovic playing 5 hours in heat at the AO?
 

Kralingen

Bionic Poster
I think the mental stamina side of this has to be factored in as well. When you’re running you know exactly for how long and the exact path you’re taking. Plus you control the general pace you’re going.

Tennis you don’t control - you react. While a lot of points are nothing, and you get to take breaks, I can imagine mental fatigue gets to you before it does physically.

So while running for 4 hours straight compared to a 4 hour tennis match is more difficult… a 5 setter is a much more difficult physical task than a 5k.
 

Megafanoftennis100

Professional
You've got to be kidding. I'e run 40+ marathons in my life and that's 26.2 miles and I am no elite athlete. Yeah, it can be gruelling depending upon the hills or the weather, but it's doable and hundreds of thousands of ordinary people complete marathons ever year under 4 hours. Anyone can run 5K barefoot if they're remotely fit, that's a nothing distance.

Five sets of tennis at an elite level is so much more difficult than a piddly 5K it's absurd to compare. How can you possibly think running 3 miles is in any, way, shape or form the same as Nadal/Djokovic playing 5 hours in heat at the AO?
Because Nadal and Djokovic are not super fit athletes. They are certainly above average in terms fo stamina an endurance, but still, compared to marathonists, they are rather pathetic. I mean, did you even watch that AO final back in 2012? Because I did. I was there. And honestly, it did not look as exhausting as some tennis fanatics make it out to be. Of course, in terms of technique and skill, it did look extremely difficult, yes, because they are literally the best of the best professional tennis players, but not necessarily the best athletes. In terms of endurance and stamina, it didn't look too hard. Above average for sure, but not "phenomenal" or "supernatural". I mean, come on, you get plenty of water breaks in between - in fact, every two games. Not to mention all that repetitive ball bouncing from both players delaying the points. I would rather play seven of those 5-set matches than do an exhausting 5 km cross country.
Seriously, I get it that you guys are all big fans of tennis, but honestly, Djokovic and Nadal may perhaps be the most overrated athletes of all time. And I say this as a Nole fan.
They are absolutely incredible tennis players, but as athletes, they are above average at best.
 

Megafanoftennis100

Professional
Guys, OK the poll is heavily one-sided for some reason. But hey, at least we can all agree that cross country is still more physically demanding than any of the five-set matches that Federer has every played in his career, right? 2007 WB final, 2008 WB final, 2009 AO final, 2009 WB final, 2017 AO final, 2018 AO final etc. - I am sure these are all not too tough for stamina and endurance, right? I mean, Fed very often gets free points off his serves and forehands, which is why he was able to win all those 20 GS titles, despite the fact that his stamina really sucks.
 

Kralingen

Bionic Poster
A marathon runner would not be able to play tennis at high intensity for 5 hours. They might be able to run for that amount of time but they would be laughably unprepared for a tennis match. How often do you jog forward in a tennis match anyway? It’s all explosive side steps and sliding - stop-start - using completely different muscles than a run.
 
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