Almost every practice starts the same. It doesn’t matter if we talk about the recreational players or we take a look at the more advanced level, players use the first 10-15 minutes to hit each other. They start from the service line and after few shots, they move back to the baseline to start controlling the ball from the deep area. Should we approach tennis warm-up specifically to get more benefits than just hitting few shots over the net? Let’s see.

Marcin Bieniek

Too many players falsely believe in the meaning of the words “warm-up”. As these words state, warm-up is the activity to get body warmer but while stepping on the court, players should already have been after great physical warm-up and with proper „temperature” of the body. For many, on-court warm-up is also a way to get control over the shots but should 10 or 15 minutes be used just to get control? It is definitely not enough for competitive players to not improve any other area during this significant amount of time. Especially knowing that warm-up happens during every practice session.

To become a successful tennis competitor, players have to constantly improve their skills from different areas. They have to work on technical fluidness, grasp tactical knowledge, focus on tasks in hand for a long time as also be able to run, stop and recover hundreds of times during only one match. It shows how big work has to be done to develop a solid base for playing effectively so no time should be wasted during any session for drills that give athletes close to nothing.

There are many approaches to the first minutes of the tennis practice. Some coaches keep it more fun while others focus on specific tasks. Some players are focused from the beginning on their own performance while others prefer to talk to their friends to catch up with the latest rumors. There is no only one way to succeed in tennis so warm-up doesn’t have to be also every time the same but there are some quality rules that should be incorporated to transform hitting to each other into an opportunity to get advantage over the rivals with conscious work.

Top rules to use warm-up on the court in the most effective way:

Focus on position

You hit the ball with a racket but your position determines the chance for achieving a high-quality shot. Working with your legs and looking for optimal distance to the ball should be your priorities.

Ball perception

Yes, the ball is going to the center of the court but every ball is different. You should be able to read power, spin, depth, and placement of the incoming ball before it crosses the net. This information will give you time to step forward on shorter balls or to focus on tactical response to the backspin shot.

Set goal

Hitting without a goal is pointless. If we have a goal we have motivation to work hard as also we have clear feedback about the action. Try to avoid the net during the first 10 minutes or set the number of balls you want to hit in a row behind the service line and you will see how high-quality performance you can achieve at the beginning of the training session.

Gradually add pace

You don’t start the car at the highest possible engine speed because you don’t want to lose control as also you don’t want to break the car. The same approach you need to your body and racket during warm-up. Start slowly and after achieving desired control, gradually increase the pace of the shots.

Challenge your mind

Tennis puts a lot of pressure on the mental side so you have to work on your mental skills in every drill. To make the first minutes of the practice more challenging, set up the zone to hit into and compete with other players or use only one ball to avoid unnecessary mistakes.

It is not true that tennis is about hitting the ball. Tennis is about playing the ball and to do it effectively, players need various skills from different areas of athletic development. Warm-up time is part of the practice that many athletes don’t use properly so if you want to improve and get advantage over the rivals, change your approach to the beginning of the practice and take as many benefits as possible when others chat or “warm up” their bodies.

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