An Introduction to Tennis


Is tennis good for you?

Absolutely - tennis is a gentle way of exercising for beginners, and for more advanced players is a very thorough workout. Physical activity increases energy and also helps you to stay healthy, fending off germs and infections. Playing one set of tennis would give you thirty minutes moderate physical activity, not to mention plenty of fresh air!

How old do I have to be to start?

Obviously you have to be able to hold a tennis racket, but there are plenty of opportunities for youngsters. Mini Tennis is an excellent game for starting off young players under eight. Played with a scaled down racket, foam balls and a small court the game is a fun introduction to the full game.

How much will it cost?

Prices for coaching vary from club to club, but we always recommend keeping your lessons to half an hour or an hour, and to have group coaching. How can I develop my game?

One way is to go for an intensive week of tennis, or a break where you can play tennis at your leisure, there are tennis holiday companies offering holidays both in the US and abroad. You can see a list of these in Clubs and Camps.

Once you have found a court to play on and you start to play tennis with your friends, family or other players, you will naturally start to get a feel for the game. A way to develop your hand-eye co-ordination is to practice throwing and catching the ball either against a wall or with a partner. Your tennis coach will have many other games and exercises to help develop the correct movement, co-ordination and dexterity for tennis.

If the full court seems too big at first, play a scaled-down version of the game in the four service boxes of the court. As you start to become more confident you will start to use tactics. Hitting a ball that comes near to you is easier than running to hit a ball - therefore you'll soon realise that one aim is to try to make your opponent move in order to hit the ball. You will be better placed to hit each ball if you maintain a good position on the court before and after each shot, and you'll begin to understand the importance of good positioning. Don't get caught out of position to one side of the court or stuck half way between the baseline and the net.

Once you have mastered these basic principles, try to play to the weakness of your opponent. This might be their forehand, backhand, volley, smash, or perhaps running to the ball. Exploiting your opponent's weaknesses will help you to start controlling the game. Also, remember to use your own strengths as much as possible. You may enjoy serving, have a strong cross-court backhand, love to volley and play from the net - try to do more of what you enjoy!

And keep at it! The world's best players spend many hours training and improving their game. Success may not come immediately, so don't get downhearted if you don't always play at your best.

'Tennis is a battle of minds, just as much as it is a battle of playing ability. Trying to expose your opponent's weaknesses is one of the most vital and fascinating facets of tennis'

Gavin Dye Author and Webmaster at http://www.tennis-supply.com

MORE RESOURCES:
RELATED ARTICLES
Strength Training FAQs
Do you need some beginner's strength training 'how to' information? I know you must have tons of questions. I will try my best to cover most of the beginner questions with this article.
Core Strength Limits Arm and Leg Power
Core training has become such a hot topic in the exercise field recently and rightly so. Ask just about anyone what they understand about the body's core and you're likely to get an answer as it being the abdominal muscles.
Arthritis Exercise - One Way to Relieve Pain & Stiffness in Your Joints (part 2)
Even when you cannot make it out to walk or to an aquatics or yoga class, there are exercises you can do daily to improve flexibility, strength and conditioning when you suffer from arthritis. You can flex your legs while sitting in a chair facing forward, simply by moving your leg outward while keeping your foot on the floor and holding it there for a few seconds, then retracting it until your foot is behind you, then alternating to the other leg.
Complete Physical Transformation Using The Purposefully Primitive Fitness Methodology
The Purposeful Primitive approach to the art and science of physical renovation is deceptively simplistic. By using a few basic tools and food purchased from the grocery store, you can radically alter the way you look while simultaneously improving health, vitality and energy levels.
Core-Principles: The Function of Functional Training
Okay?okay?okay! Enough already!!! It seems like with every new term, every new invention or just about anything that is seemingly not "Everyday" that we all become flustered and assume we know nothing, which is both a testament to our lack of faith in ourselves and also a reflection of our ever-growing dependence on externals to give us a little reassurance where our natural instincts should be in high gear.My intention with this article is not to offend anyone especially those that whom, without their continual support I would surely be seeking a new line of work, and yes I am referring to my clients, so please don't feel like I'm bashing "you" if I ever refer to any particular individuals or events, no names will be mentioned though.
The History of Pilates - It All Began With One Sickly Child
A look into the history of Pilates helps you understand the tremendous power that this form of exercise has to help strengthen and transform your body. Unlike yoga, which has a tradition that goes back thousands of years, one individual developed the Pilates Method at the beginning of the twentieth century.
How to Supercharge Your Energy Levels through Exercise
Your energy levels will depend on several factors, including genetics, nutrition, sleep habits, and emotional stress. Some of these you have no control over But there is one VERY important factor that you do have control over and that is your ability to take part in physical exercise.
Mixing Things Up
To say that the human body is an amazing machine is an understatement, especially when it comes to diet and exercise. Our bodies are constantly trying to achieve a state of homeostasis.
Top 10 Exercise Mistakes and How To Fix Them
This is a list of ten common mistakes made during exercise. Quite often the exerciser and even the personal trainer or coach is unaware of these mistakes, decreasing the effectiveness of the exercise and even risking injury.
Exercise and Heart Health: A Life Giving Marriage
Most people get their health out of a bottle these days, be it a bottle of vitamins or pharmaceuticals. However, with a little effort and dedication you really can get a hold on your life, turn it round and live it to the full!If you've been diagnosed with heart disease or are at risk of developing heart disease regular exercise is essential for the health of your heart, body and mind.
The Great Forgotten Exercise -- Parallel Bar Dips
When it comes to building lower pectorals, triceps and frontal deltoids, dips are without doubt one the best exercises I've ever used. They are seldom used nowadays and the reasons are plain to see: you have to be able to handle your own bodyweight for reps - unless you have access to one of those fancy-dan machines that allow you to dip (or chin) with less than body weight.
Stretching and the Warm up - Are You Confused?
Lately, I've been receiving a lot of questions referring to the latest studies and research findings, and one question that I receive most queries about concerns the role that stretching plays as part of the warm up.Currently, there seems to be a lot of confusion about how and when stretching should be used as part of the warm up, and some people are under the impression that stretching should be avoided altogether.
The Abs... More Important Than You Think
What comes to your mind when I say the word "abs"? Do you think of the infomercials advertising "6 second abs" or the latest Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue? Most people focus on training their abs to look thinner or sexier. But, do you realize the importance of your abs in everyday activities? Most yoga instructors do.
Anywhere and Anytime Exercises
These type of Exercises generally makes your body strong and firm. No matter, you are Exercising or Muscle Building or Body Building, these exercises are quite handy and help a lot.
How to Pick a Good Personal Trainer
One of the major benefits of the YourBestBodyNOW Program and several other programs like it is that you can lose weight and meet your fitness and weight loss goals even if you have neither the time nor money to get a personal trainer.At the same time, if you do ultimately decide to hire trainer at some point, I want to make sure that you are going about it in a way that will bring you the absolute maximum benefit.
Banish Your Lower Back Pain Permanently Without Drugs or Surgery
It is estimated that about 80 percent of the population will suffer from low back pain at some point in their lives. The condition accounts for millions of dollars in medical expenses and lost work time and is often a perpetual misery for the sufferer.
How To Overcome Workout Plateaus
Humans are habitual. They strive on routine and rituals.
Weight Loss and Exercise in Tough Environmental Conditions
Working out is working out, right?Wrong.Depending on the environmental conditions where youlive, there may be extra precautions that you'll want to consider when trying to lose weight by following a healthy diet and weight loss program.
5 Mistakes People Makes When Doing a Workout Program
When you start out with a workout program - whether the purpose is weight loss exercise or another - you have started a training process that hopefully is going to last for a while. It is important that you are aware of some factors that can decrease your motivation for the exercising or even damage your health - while you are executing your training program.
Thirty Minutes of Exercise a Day Keeps the Doctor Away
"Exercise is good for you!" If you had a dollar for every time you heard this statement uttered, you'd be rich by now, right? Well, proponents of everyday physical activity aren't just blowing smoke when they repeat this mantra. Medical research has uncovered resounding evidence to back up this "good for you" claim.