Tennis Muscle Memory Fixes
First published on 9-09-2009. Bookmark & share
by Randy Lynn Rutledge - a previously certified USPTA Tennis Teaching Professional
( Note: retired in good standing, but stopped making USPTA dues payments )
( Note: retired in good standing, but stopped making USPTA dues payments )
Tennis is a game of habits. To turn a new tennis skill into a tennis habit or to fix an old habit requires you to put thought with action and repeat the process over and over. The thinking happens until it is no longer necessary.
After a tennis habit has been made, the reduction of thinking (mental clutter) allows the conscious mind to pay better attention to details of the tennis action of the moment and to send accurate visual input to the brain about what is happening during the tennis action of the moment. The tennis player begins to flow in the present moment with the tennis action; this is a process which can be disrupted by unnecessary thinking.
A process of programming is used by the conscious mind to teach the subconscious mind to automatically perform tennis skills. A tennis student can use conscious thought and action to repeat progressive motor tasks within any complete tennis skill until the subconscious mind can take over and repeat the complete tennis skill automatically (without conscious thought). Repetition of conscious thought and physical action must occur until full subconscious mind programming has been completed; thereafter, the subconscious mind is equipped to automatically perform all of the motor tasks involved in a complete tennis skill.
The best tennis you are capable of playing, with your current level of skills, can happen after the programming of tennis skills within the subconscious mind is complete. After tennis skills programming, the conscious mind becomes available to pay better attention to the tennis action as it flows in the present moment. The student's conscious mind must learn to trust the subconscious mind's ability to automatically do the planned tennis skills. This trust frees up the conscious mind to pay attention to and control any fluctuations of breathing, footwork or vision (three tennis absolutes). These three tennis absolutes are programmable skills.
FOOTWORK
Precise preparation, execution, and recovery footwork are vital to developing sound default tennis strokes. A student must learn to use functional footwork to position the shoulders properly so that the tennis racquet can be properly presented to the tennis ball in a way which will allow the ball to cross over the tennis net at a certain height (net clearance is the primary target) and continue (due to accurate speed selection) to an intended landing area.
THREE BASIC, FORWARD MOVING, PROGRESSIVE PARTS OF A DEFAULT TENNIS STROKE
The main three parts of the forward moving portion of a tennis stroke to be considered are the height of the racquet in the back, what direction the tennis racquet is facing at contact, and the design of the follow through.
1. Racquet height in the back (after racquet take-back)
The tennis student must adjust the height of the tennis racquet, according to the height of the on-coming tennis ball, before beginning the forward moving portion of the tennis stroke. This tennis racquet height adjustment is a functional variation which positions the racquet to send the tennis ball on a flight path which matches the racquet-head speed, racquet-face bevel, desired net clearance, and intended landing depth.
The tennis student must adjust the height of the tennis racquet, according to the height of the on-coming tennis ball, before beginning the forward moving portion of the tennis stroke. This tennis racquet height adjustment is a functional variation which positions the racquet to send the tennis ball on a flight path which matches the racquet-head speed, racquet-face bevel, desired net clearance, and intended landing depth.
2. STRING-TO-BALL POINT OF CONTACT (The string-to-ball point of contact is the most important part of any tennis stroke.)
A student must program the subconscious mind with functional patterns of footwork to allow the tennis racquet to be presented properly to the tennis ball:
A student must program the subconscious mind with functional patterns of footwork to allow the tennis racquet to be presented properly to the tennis ball:
- The bevel of the tennis racquet's string pattern is a match for the intended racquet head speed;
- Footwork turns the shoulders (left, right, or not at all) so the racquet strings contact the ball early, late, or on-time, according to an intended angular target.
3. DIRECTION AND LENGTH OF THE FOLLOW THROUGH
After the racquet bevel (at contact), the accuracy of ball flight angle, height, and court depth depends on the functional execution of an appropriate follow through.
After the racquet bevel (at contact), the accuracy of ball flight angle, height, and court depth depends on the functional execution of an appropriate follow through.
EXPECT TO MAKE MISTAKES
Mistake are necessary before improvement can happen.
ATTITUDE ABOUT MAKING MISTAKES IS IMPORTANT
I teach my students that their attitude toward their tennis errors is very important. As long as my students are not repeating the same type of error which was last made, I teach them to say, "Oh boy, there's a new mistake. The more mistakes I fix, the sooner I'm a better tennis player."
I teach my students that their attitude toward their tennis errors is very important. As long as my students are not repeating the same type of error which was last made, I teach them to say, "Oh boy, there's a new mistake. The more mistakes I fix, the sooner I'm a better tennis player."
CONSTRUCTIVE PRACTICE
Consistency requires that a tennis player use constructive practice methods to develop muscle memory for successful strokes or hits, according to the degree he or she wishes to master them. Practice does not make perfect, because it is possible to practice your mistakes. Only near perfect practice can come close to producing perfect results.To perfect any stroke or hit, first you must consider every isolated task in progressive order of occurrence and work through the consecutive tasks to fix the most obvious problems.
Enhancing visual skills, improving footwork skills, paying better attention, and maintaining regular breathing patterns are all critical to becoming a great tennis player.
ATTEMPT TO PARTIALLY BLAME VISION, BREATHING, AND FOOTWORK FOR MISTAKES
Before making any other adjustments to progressive parts of a stroke or hit, I always consider to what degree vision, footwork, and breathing can be blamed for tennis errors or imperfections.
Before making any other adjustments to progressive parts of a stroke or hit, I always consider to what degree vision, footwork, and breathing can be blamed for tennis errors or imperfections.
Fix your tennis from the ground up. Progressively work from preparation, execution, and recovery footwork, use of the knees to unhinge the legs and adjust the body according to the height of the tennis ball, rotation of the hips to advance ground force from the legs to the upper body, utilizing the hitting and non-hitting arm to accommodate shoulder turn for preparation and execution, functioning of the elbows and wrists, choosing a correct tennis racquet path and speed to accommodate a necessary racquet string bevel, calculating a proper string-to-ball contact point to achieve a desired angle of ball flight (early, on-time, or late), adjusting the follow through according to the speed and the degree of spin to be imparted to the ball, and recovering to a proper court position according to an anticipated response from an opponent.
NOTE:
If stroke and hit problems are not considered in progressive order, it is possible to worsen a stroke or hit by attempting a fix where there is no real problem, but rather a symptom of an earlier problem in the line of progressive parts of a stroke or hit.
If stroke and hit problems are not considered in progressive order, it is possible to worsen a stroke or hit by attempting a fix where there is no real problem, but rather a symptom of an earlier problem in the line of progressive parts of a stroke or hit.