Heart rate training is useful for any sport because it provides feedback on the intensity of the training session. This gauge of intensity will help determine the demands that you put yourself through when playing tennis. If your heart rate reaches 170 beats per minute during a tennis match, then you will need to do some of your cardiovascular training at that level to train the energy demands your require to play a match. Once you know your heart rate zones and demands then you can design a complete cardiovascular training program. Using the 170 beats per minute (bpm) as an example, you should train some days at this level (which could be playing tennis), then other days of tennis training or other cardiovascular exercise should be completed at a lower intensity (in this case around 150 bpm) to prevent over-training. If you are training every day, then some days you can target a heart rate of 130 bpm to give your body time to recover. You should use the heart rate monitor to help monitor your intensity throughout the week so you avoid fitness plateaus and burn-out
Tennis
Tennis is a physical activity that works out the entire body and tests agility, balance, and hand-eye coordination. Stretching and gripping the racket properly can help avoid common injuries such as “tennis elbow”. Cardio training is helpful in conditioning the body to handle constant acceleration and deceleration.
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National Academy of Sports Medicine answeredThe first goal of tennis conditioning is to build a good fitness base for a long match. This means doing some cardio training at a low intensity to improve your aerobic base. The next step is to build cardio strength; this can be accomplished by doing 1 and 2 minute intervals at a high intensity to increase your anaerobic threshold. Once you have these two systems properly trained, you can design short sprint drills that will cover the court quickly. This can be a series of sprints from the baseline to the service line and net in different angles. It is important to concentrate on the deleceration at each cone so you have complete body control and can quickly change direction to another point on the court. Since you are able to complete 2-minute cardio intervals, you can perform these multi-directional cone drills for 2 minutes. The goal of this type of training is to stress both the cardiovascular system and the legs. -
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National Academy of Sports Medicine answeredTennis has a high demand for leg strength/endurance. Most points are won or lost on the break down of the footwork in a close match. This means that extra effort is needed to get to a ball quickly and under control to make a good stroke. For this reason, leg strength is very important and should primarily come from movement exercise and not weight equipment. Weights do have to be avoided, however a tennis player should not rely on the weights as the only strengthening program. Cardiovascular drills that involve acceraleration and decelertion will stress both the legs and the much needed cardiovascular system. Just having strong legs (by doing weight equipment) doesn't mean you will have the power needed at the end of a long point or set. The cardio training will not only strengthen the legs but also the heart and lungs.
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National Academy of Sports Medicine answeredCone and speed ladder drills are excellent conditioning drill to improve your speed and quickness on a ennis court. The M drill, T drill cone drills and one-ins, 2-ins and zig-zags on a speed ladder are 4 great dills to incorporate into your regular performance conditioning program. Footwork for tennis is very important. It starts with good mechanics, but having the conditioning to be able to maintain this footwork at the end of a long point or long set is even more important. It is the same as having the best strokes when someone is feeding you a ball; that is very important, but you neeed to be able to move quickly to get any ball. Even more important is the ability to decelerate so your body is under control and you can hit the ball with your perfect stroke. To be able to do this you need to train for the acceleration and deceleration demands of your sport. In tennis, these are short, repeated activities at high intensity both for the cardivascular system and legs. When trainig for tennis, you need short sprints with alot of controlled change of direction. This means your need to concentrate on the deceleration as much as the acceleration phase when using cone drills in training.
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National Academy of Sports Medicine answeredTennis is mainly an aerobic sport because of the length of the rest between games and sets. However, training only the aerobic system is problematic when players have to do a series of sprints in a point and need to tap into their anaerobic system. If the player has not trained this anaerobic system, they will start to fatigue quickly. This means that tennis is an aerobic sport, but performance is limted by response to anaerobic demands. Ultimately, you will need to train so you have a good aerobic base and doing high-intensity intervals to raise the anaerobic threshold will help during match performance. Additional long distance runs are not typically needed since the intensity and length of practices should provide the aerobic work capacity for which the long runs were meant. You will need at add short sprint training at a high anaerobic level a couple times per week to make sure the anaerobic sytem is ready for any demands the match might bring.
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National Academy of Sports Medicine answeredPerform high to medium levels of resistance training during the tennis pre-season. Resistance training is important to build strength, endurance, and power.
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National Academy of Sports Medicine answeredVary the workout regimen every three months. It is important to change the routines because repeating the same exercises for extended periods of time will dramatically decrease the initial effect that it had on the body.
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National Academy of Sports Medicine answeredIt is recommended that you allow one rest or recovery day for every five to seven days of competition. At the end of a season, however, you need to have a minimum of two weeks of complete rest. Not allowing enough rest time will increase risk of injury. You need to make sure that you give the body enough time to recharge after a season of intense competitive play.
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National Academy of Sports Medicine answeredIn off-season tennis training, focus on recovering from the last season and preparing the body for the next competitive season by starting off with light weights and then progressing into moderately heavier weights. In the early part of the off-season training, focus on injury prevention and muscular endurance. This should be accomplished through low weight, high repetition movements that are done on an unstable surface or in unstable ways to challenge the nervous system and correct muscle imbalances. Good examples are single-leg squats or dumbbell chest press on a ball performed for three to five sets of fifteen to twenty repetitions. In the later part of the off-season training, focus on increasing muscular strength and size. This is best accomplished by using moderate to high weight resistance in more stable environments. Examples are squats or a bench press performed for three to five sets of eight to twelve repetitions. Perform workouts two to five times a week and allow the body ample rest before taxing the same muscles again.
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National Academy of Sports Medicine answeredThe main causes of back injuries when playing tennis are overuse of your lower-back muscles, an improper warm-up, and poor flexibility of your hips, latissimus dorsi, and back muscles that run up and down the spine. Complete a proper warm-up before each game. This ensures that muscles are flexible and warmed before you use them in a match. Begin with a general warm-up like a light jog for about five minutes. Follow this general warm-up with specific static stretches in areas where you feel tight. Often in tennis players, the hips, latissimus dorsi, adductors, and calves are chronically tight due to the demands of the game. Incorporate static stretching of these areas, holding each stretch for thirty seconds. Follow static stretching with dynamic stretching, moving through full ranges of motion for the upper and lower body, helping to excite the muscles and prepare you for the demand and speed of the game. Some dynamic exercises you can incorporate are walking lunges with a twist, push-ups with rotation, squats and side-to-side tube walking. In addition, make sure you have the proper tennis racket size and weight and supportive shoes to wear during your season.