Whether you’re a seasoned player who’s grown up with a passion for tennis, have been inspired by Wimbledon stars, or need an extra-curricular to boost your college application… There’s no such thing as a tennis player who couldn’t benefit from a few tips and tricks to boost their performance.
No matter why you’ve decided the time has come to focus on your tennis game, these top tips and highly targeted exercises will have you serving and returning balls with greater speed, power, and accuracy in no time. But tennis goes beyond that, so these exercises will also help you build stamina, run faster and for longer, jump higher, and really take your game to the next level (no matter what level you’re starting at).
Strength Building
These strength-building exercises to improve your tennis game will have you serving harder, faster, and more accurate balls and give you the power you need to reach your targets.
- Pogo Jumps
Pogo jumps are one of the best exercises for improving your tennis game and are fantastic for power conditioning. The simple exercise strengthens the quads, hamstrings, and calves.
- Keep your legs as straight as you can and bounce as quickly and high as possible.
- Keep your feet together while you jump, and stay on the balls of your feet. Try not to let your ankles touch the ground.
- Aim for 25 jumps in a row and complete four sets.
- Weighted Chin-Ups
If you’re new to chin-ups, using a resistance band is a great way to help you pull through the movement. While the exercise looks simple, anyone who’s tried a chin-up for the first time knows it’s not the easiest to master! However, chin-ups are a fantastic way to build strength in the back and upper body: essential for boosting your tennis game.
- Hold a pull-up bar with your hands facing inwards, approximately hip-width apart.
- Taking as much time as you require, use your arms and lats to pull your body to the bar, continuing until your chin is just above it.
- Resisting the urge to “fall,” slowly lower your body back down, keeping your elbows pinned to your sides.
- Complete three sets of 10 chin-ups for impressive results.
- Medicine Ball Throws
Like chin-ups, this targeted tennis exercise helps build strength in the core and upper body to give you more power on the court. Ideally, medicine ball throws will be done with a partner – so you can toss the ball to each other – but if you don’t have a buddy to play with, you can throw the medicine ball against the floor or a wall.
- Hold a medicine ball in each hand, standing several feet away from a partner or wall.
- Rotate your shoulders back to prepare for the throw, then toss the ball with as much force as possible.
- Complete three sets of five throws using each arm.
Speed & Agility Training
Tennis isn’t all about how hard you can hit the ball; speed and agility are also essential when it comes to boosting your ability to move swiftly around the court.
- Cardio Interval Training
High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is an excellent way to boost your cardio fitness and enable you to move swiftly and efficiently around the court. Treadmill interval training is a brilliant way to practice this. Alternatively, you could take your cardio interval training into the real world: bonus points if you live near a beach, as the uneven terrain will provide an added challenge, boosting your agility and balance while you run.
- Warm-up: Run for 10 minutes at a moderate pace.
- Sprint: Sprint at around 90% capacity for 4 minutes.
- Recovery: Walk for 4 minutes.
- Repeat: Repeat four times.
- Resistance Band Deadlift
While deadlifting might be seen as more of a strength-building exercise, it’s actually a brilliant way to boost your speed and agility. As you increase the amount of force you can put into the ground, you’ll discover faster and smoother take-offs around the court.
You can complete this movement with a barbell, but resistance bands offer additional flexibility to the movement and reduce the risk of injury (plus, they’re better for on-the-go workouts).
- Hold the end of the resistance band in each hand and step onto the middle with your feet shoulder-width apart.
- Bend the knees slightly and drive your hips back (NOT lower than your knees), keeping the chest up and your core engaged.
- Straighten your legs and pull against the band to rise up. Hold for a breath, then lower back down.
Endurance
When it comes to boosting your endurance and maximizing your tennis game, you really can’t beat a good circuit training session. Create your own perfect circuit by compiling a set of targeted full-body exercises to complete in a round, and ensure you give yourself sufficient rest periods.
If you really want to take your tennis game to the next level, getting a pro onboard is a great choice! They can help you create targeted, personalized exercises that work to hone in on your strengths and give a much-needed boost to your weaknesses, both on and off the court.
You’ll be smashing the scores in no time.