Plyometrics and Tennis

I want to have some discourse today on the topic of plyometrics. You’ve probably heard the word before and may even know that it involves exercise, but may not know any details past that. I am in the gym at least three days a week and I can tell you that I rarely if ever see someone in the gym performing these exercises (besides me in the mirror). Most folks go in an get some work done on the vanity muscles: pectorals and arms for men, glutes and legs for women. This is all well and good if you want to look pretty (who doesn’t?), but if you are training for performance in a sport, you’ll need to work on other aspects of your fitness. This is where plyometrics can add some spring to your step – literally.

Before we get off and running and add the effectiveness of plyometrics into our fitness routine, we need to understand what plyometrics is, how to properly perform some of the exercises, and how it can benefit our tennis game. Let’s take a look into this mysterious body of exercises and answer some questions.

What is Plyometrics?

I’ll try and explain as simply as I can – plyometrics is a term used to describe exercises that use the muscles natural elasticity to create explosive reactive power through contractions of the muscle fiber. Sounds complicated, right? Not at all. Imagine your muscles as rubber bands – when you stretch a rubber band, you create stored energy. In plyometric exercises, the storing of energy in the muscles is known as the eccentric phase, and the rapid release of that stored energy is known as the concentric phase. Imagine yourself trying to jump and reach something well over your head; you would first bend your knees and your waist and then explode upwards – plyometrics at work. You first store the energy by creating tension in the muscles of the legs and then releasing that energy upwards as you jump. You can reach higher as a result of first storing the energy (lengthening the leg muscles) and then releasing it (contraction of the leg muscles). Plyometrics simply uses these properties of the muscle fibers by conditioning them to release the maximum amount of stored energy in the shortest distance.

Plyometric Training

Sounds great you say? Where do I sign up? Let’s take a look at some of this training and how it can benefit your on court performance. As we know from previous articles, tennis is very much an upper and lower body sport. It involves sprinting, jumping, rotating the core, loading and release of power in the shoulders and arms, and quick changes in direction. Can you see how being able to increase the amount of power you are able to produce in a shorter distance could benefit your tennis yet? It is important to note that there are both low and high intensity plyometric exercises, and you should have or develop a significant base of strength before attempting any of the higher intensity training with any weight approaching that of your body weight.

Lower Body Training

Tennis is a game of getting to the ball quickly- if you don’t execute that part of the game, the most perfect forehand form in the world won’t do you any good. Squat jumps, jumps to and from boxes, lateral box jumps, and ring/ladder drills are all excellent ways to improve your foot quickness. These exercises and more can be found here: http://www.sport-fitness-advisor.com/plyometricexercises.html. As noted in the linked article, these exercises will be more effective when paired with a good strength training program. The more muscle fibers that you have to make the contractions, the more power and speed you will be able to generate.

Upper Body Training

This is where we will need to really exercise caution in the intensity of training that we are performing. If you are not sufficiently strong, you can do more harm than good by using too heavy a weight or working at too high an intensity level. Please consult a qualified trainer or just start low and slow in order to avoid injury. That being said, for those who have developed a good base of strength, some of these challenging drills will be just what you need to reach the next level. The upper body work found here http://www.sport-fitness-advisor.com/plyometric-drills.html will make a great supplement to your fitness routine. The overhead and side throws will serve to increase racquet-head speed and stability through the impact zone. Squat throws and plyometric push ups will enable you to transfer power more easily from your legs and core to your chest, shoulders, and arms.

I hope that this article has served to enlighten you to the benefits of plyometric training as well as getting you excited about increasing your performance on the tennis court! I have been incorporating these types of exercises as well as some Olympic weight lifting into my training for the past few years, and I can tell you that I feel faster and stronger than I ever have. This type of training was built for sports like tennis, and studies have shown that even one or two types of low intensity plyometric training done one to three times a week can significantly improve motor performance. Talk about more bang for your workout buck. Now get out there and try some new training! Keeping your workout routine fresh and exciting is half the battle, and I hope I’ve given you some new ideas about what to do with your gym time.

Body Types Part 3

This week we’ll attempt to cover the remaining two body types, the endomorph and the mesomorph. We’ll look at each type’s training goals and how to reach better on court performance.

The Endomorph

On the opposite end of the spectrum from the ectomorph, we’ll find the endomorph. Generally larger boned with a higher relative percentage of body fat, the endomorph can be a naturally strong individual with a generous amount of muscle and a sturdy frame. The advantages of this body type are obvious: natural strength and power, better fast-twitch muscle capability, and strong joints. The main struggle of the endomorph will be weight management. If you look at most modern tennis players, you’ll see that there are not many endomorphs out there; Svetlana Kuznetsova and Serena Williams come to mind on the women’s side. While you may think the endomorph to be slow, these two prove that natural predisposition can be overcome through hard training.

The endomorph will need to manage body fat levels by participating in more cardiovascular activity as well as managing the fat and caloric intake. Activities such as cycling, elliptical training, or other low impact cardio should be a part of the normal training regimen. Strength training should be overlooked, as muscle supports a higher metabolic rate which in turn burns more calories. Care should be taken to temper the amount of high impact activity, including tennis, as the higher weight level of the endomorph can put more strain on the joints of the knees, hips, and ankles. Endurance training should be emphasized to increase metabolism and create longer cardiovascular performance.

The Mesomorph

Probably the most aptly structured body type for tennis, the mesomorph seemingly has the best attributes of the other two types: the natural muscle and athletic ability of the endomorph coupled with the higher metabolism and endurance of the ectomorph. The mesomorph will be naturally muscular with a blend of fast and slow twitch muscle fibers, which predisposes this type to the constant stop and go action on the tennis court. There should be a good blend of cardiovascular and strength based exercises to maximize the potential of this body type. Diet should never be neglected, though the mesomorph has a little more leeway than the ectomorph and endomorph in this aspect of fitness. Smaller , protein rich meals eaten 5-6 times daily will supplement muscle growth just fine.

Mesomorphs need to maintain a healthy body weight in order to stay at top on court performance levels. Andy Roddick recently changed his fitness regimen in order to be able to compete at tennis’ top level, dropping some 15 pounds of body weight. The modern game of tennis, at the elite level, is as much about mobility as it is power these days, and the sports top athletes are breaking new ground physically in order to remain competitive.

Does this have any application for you and me? Obviously we won’t find ourselves on Center Court at the US Open anytime soon, but we still want to be at our personal best when we step on the court, right? I believe that we need to identify where we are starting in order to design and take steps toward where our bodies will allow us to go. Every body type that we have discussed has attributes that will allow then to excel naturally, but we need to shore up those areas where each of us is lacking. Tennis, fortunately is a great sport for any body type, and with some effort on your part, you can play the game better than you ever have before. Get out there and challenge yourself, get in the gym or begin a good home workout plan, eat right, and you will find that you will have a lot more fun playing the game if you are in maximum ‘tennis shape’. Now get to work!

Body Types Part 2

Today we want to begin looking at the specific body types that we defined in last week’s article and address the strengths and weaknesses of each one and how it relates to on court performance. If you’ll recall, we discussed three distinct body types: the ectom0rph, the endomorph, and the mesomorph. As noted, most people may not be clearly segregated in to only one category, but may bear characteristics of several. We can still generalize, and as we discuss how to improve fitness levels of each you’ll have to determine which category fits you best. Since we are addressing each from the perspective of playing tennis and improving athletic attributes toward that end, keep in mind that we need to start with the assumption of a general level of fitness, i.e. decent cardiovascular and muscular conditioning and a relatively low percentage of bodyfat. The average man today carries between 13-17%, while the average woman carries 20-27%. Very low bodyfat levels are 7-10% for men and 14-17% for women.

The Ectomorph

As you’ll recall, the ectomorph is slim with low muscle mass and bodyfat levels and has a higher percentage of slow-twitch muscle fibers. The disadvantages that the  ectomorph faces come from the high demand in tennis for fast changes of direction, quick powerful movements, and the blend of aerobic and anaerobic nature of the game (more on this later). Basically, the mesomorph is suited more to endurance based exercises such as long distance running. The challenge is developing the musculature required and quick cutting ability required to play today’s tennis. In our modern game, we need strong shoulders to be able to move the racquet with stability and quickness through the ball. The shoulder also needs to compensate for the tremendous forces that a serve or huge forehand place on the joint. We need strong legs that are conditioned not only for endurance but for quick changes in direction and explosive movement to the ball.

So how does the ectomorph supplement his program to account for these additional needs? Sprints are great for developing the fast twitch fibers in the legs, and also delve into the anaerobic (oxygen exhausting) realm that we find ourselves in late in matches. Jumping rope is a fantastic way to improve calf strength and footwork. General strength training exercises such as shoulder presses, lunges, deadlifts, bench presses, and leg presses with moderate weight will yield gains in all-important muscle mass that will not only strengthen but also protect the joints.

Aerobic vs. Anaerobic

The ectomorph has a great advantage in that they are naturally geared for endurance exercises. Tennis is one of those sports that involve both aerobic and anaerobic activity. In aerobic activities, the muscles of the body gain energy from oxygen. In anaerobic activity, oxygen levels in the blood are depleted and the muscles have to get their energy from other sources, mainly the chemical nucleotide ATP (adenosine-triphposphate). When we play tennis, we are not only running and sprinting, but also using our legs to generate power, our core to stabilize our upper and lower bodies, and our arms and shoulders to actually hit the ball. That’s a lot of muscle activity! Think about simply running from sideline to sideline ten times; not too tough, eh? Now think about running from sideline to sideline and each time having to squat low, pick up a weight, and throw it across the net. Becomes a lot harder right? In the first example, we are simply running and our our breathing may increase, increasing the flow of oxygen to our blood and muscles. In the second, we are still running, but now the demand on the lungs and muscles is much higher and the oxygen is used up much faster, forcing the muscles to find another source of energy. This is why tennis is both aerobic and anaerobic, and this demands that we train in both realms to achieve top performance on the court.

Hope all that wasn’t too technical, but I wanted to give you an idea of what’s involved in reaching the next level of fitness for you.  Next week we’ll discuss the remaining two body types and more about cross-training to achieve better performance on the court!