Sunday, July 26, 2009

Doubles Hand Signals


1. The first signal from the net player gives the direction of the serve: to the left, middle or right of the service box. The server acknowledges that she got the signal by saying "Yes." Or, the server says, "No" until she gets the signal she wants.




2. The second signal from the net player alerts the server to whether or not she will poach (the open hand indicates to the server to switch sides) or stay and fake (a fist). Again the server acknowledges she got the signal by saying, "yes or no."



Steps 1 and 2 are repeated before each serve.

Friday, July 17, 2009

How much tennis do I need to play to become a pro?

Wow, that's a great question. There's so many variables in that discussion. Let's start with some questions I know I can answer: What do I have to do to be able to play college tennis and be more than the water person?

First, take some lessons from a pro who has demonstrated the ability to develop talent. These pros have established a reputation for preparing juniors for competition. Personally, I believe that technical instruction is the most important because without a solid foundation, it's like going into battle with one arm tied behind your back. Of course each player should be allowed to develop their own style.

Secondly, play junior competitions and manage the calendar to fit your personal needs. If you desire to reach for a high rank you will have to play at least two tournaments per month and love to train a few days per week at considerable expense.
Parents will have to enjoy traveling all around your section. Hopefully you like "99" restaurants, meeting some interesting people, spending gas money, and renting hotel rooms at $100 per night if your lucky enough to win or have your parents allow you to stay over with the Muppopps's who met you last week in Canton Ct. Maybe your parent's can sleep over too. Ask if it's alright if they do before you tell them.
Sorry, just a little humor there. You don't want to build them up and thenm be disappointed. If this doesn't thrill you then you won't stand a snowballs chance in hell turning pro or even establishing a high ranking in your section of the USTA.

Thirdly, what if I want to just make a college team? Well, if that's the case, you still have to do what the above paragraph states if you want to compete for a solid team............they require ranking as a basis for establishing recruiting standards.

You can play college tennis for some division three and division two schools as well as junior colleges if you play high school tennis; so there there are opportunities, just to walk on a team and play. If you advanced in your section high school tournament in singles or doubles a few rounds, then you can play college tennis. I made it to the quarter finals of my section in doubles; I then walked on to UMass (a divsion one program) after convincing the coach not to cut me during the tryouts. In high school I played number one doubles............in college I played as high as 6 and 7 singles and worked into the doubles rotation once in a while. For me that was an accomplishment............but hey, that's another story.

Oh yuh, I did become a pro (a teaching pro and a coach). I've had the chance to play former pros and great college talent........That's enough for me.


If you love the game and love to play then just do it. It's a great life with tennis. If you love other sports more or about the same, then play seasonaly and enjoy spring tennis.

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Bag Check

Here's what I like to bring to a tournament--

Three 16 ounce bottles of gatoraid; each bottle 70% water 30% aid

A small bottle of IB's for pain if I'm sore

two more t-shirts, a pair of shorts, four more pair of socks (I double up when I wear socks........it feels better when I play), two sets of sports underwear.

Coppertone....Sport block if outside

Extra over wraps for my racquets........

Three practice balls...........

Three sports bars.............get the natural kind, the others taste like cardboard

Sports glasses and a hat...........

Wear a warm-up if it is cool.......

Two freshly strung racquets--hopefully both the same.....maybe one strung a little
looser for power and spin and one tighter for more control. If playing inside string 1-2 pounds tighter to suit the faster surface..........if playing on outside courts string a pound or two softer for more power......maybe 3 pounds if on slow clay (yuck!)

Bring book you like to read and don't play cards.........that's a waste of time and money! Some tennis schools actually promote gambling! I've seen it.


Oh............bring two towels......

You can get Wilson sport bags at my shop!
Days 10 - 14 of the tennis training program

Day 10

Repeat day 8; get skip'n and a jump'n


Day 11

Rest day- but not really

shuttle runs: means take short sprints and agilities (kick a soccer ball around)
for 25 minutes............then follow ab supersets from day 9..........oooouch

Day 12

Repeat day 8

Day 13

Repeat day 9

Day 14

Set up two stations about 15 feet apart and sprint between stations.......

Station 1

Resisted Squats X 20

Sprint to station 2

Overhead press X 20

Sprint to station 1

jump squats X 10

Sprint to Station 2

Ball crunch x 15

Sprint to Station 1

Repeat this as many times as you can for 5 minutes without a break..........then walk around for two minutes............repeat another four times...........with the two minute break every five minutes.............work hard, because you are really only working out fifteen minutes here...........when done do an ab superset form day 9.

You did it! Stretch out............nice job

Saturday, July 11, 2009

Day 9

5 minute warm-up

alternate 1 minute of running as hard as you can with one minute of walking; repeat this 10 times and then take 5 minutes to cool down, then;

perfrom the Alphabet once, then 15 reps of the Ball Cobra: 30 sec rest

15 reverse crunches, then hold the plank for 30: 30 sec rest

perform two sets of the Oblique ball crunches, 10 per side, then 15 medicne ball sit-ups with twists

look at the eailier workouts for exercise descriptions or go to www.telegraph.co and look up get-beach-fit-in14-days if you need more description for the workouts.

Friday, July 10, 2009

Day 8

resistance circuit

resisted squat X 20 reps use your stretch band, raise your hands to your shoulders
keep good form, just like knee bends with resistance; if you don't have a band, hold light weights

overhead press X 20; press hands above your head; use light weights if you don't have bands

Skip rope for 60 seconds

jump squats X 10 : just do a knee bend and explode your arms up and reach, also called kangaroos, use a medicine ball

Ball crunch with a twist, one to the left and one to the right is a rep. ; do 15

do two circuits of this and then give yourself a 60 second break...............repeat the circuit four times w/ a 60 second break after each circuit..................total of six circuits.

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Day Three Tennis Training

Day 3

Time for Cardio..............you'll need outdoors!

Take five minutes to warm-up with a gentle jog, then alternate running hard for one minute and walking for one minute as recovery.............do this 10 times...........that's right............run hard 10 times for one minute with one minute rest in between..............then take five to cool down.

Now that is a quality workout!

Day 4

repeat Day 1


Day 5

repeat Day 2


Day 6

a day off


Day 7


Repeat routine from Day 1

Day 8 to come from Wimbledon shortly; I'll check the Londay Daily Telegraph for the next section..........enjoy!


Stay the course!

KP

Saturday, July 4, 2009

Day 2; just do it.

I didn't forget. Here's day two.

The body works at a higher intensity for longer with regular short rests. Tennis has about 20 seconds for rest between points. Lets train hard!

Forget counting reps! Have your watch on or a clock within sight.

If you're not in great shape yet--work exercise for 20 seconds and then rest for 15 seconds. If you're in pretty good shape then just give yourself 10 seconds rest between sets.

First exercise...........

Body Weight Squats (feet are hip wide apart....bend your knees as if you were going to sit on a chair.....until your thighs are parallel to the floor........keep your back straight.....head up....chin in.....keep the weight back in the mid to back of feet) Hey, this in my day, we called a "knee bend."

Now do eight sets of those...................and rest for a minute......

Wow, that's different, I feel like I have no legs.

Second exercise............

Press-ups (On your toes, face the floor...hands beneath the shoulders, slowly lower yourself until your elbows reach 90 degrees, pause at the botton and return) In my day we called these "push-ups." If the exercise is too tough, do it on your knees (use a pad to keep the knees comfortable. In my day we called those "girl push-ups."
Hey, I have to do some girl push-ups to get through this thing.....the're for guys too. Now give me eight sets, right now!

Ok, now I have no legs and no arms............throw me in the water and call me Bob.

rest one minute.........no more.

Third exercise...............

The Lunge (From a standing position, hands on hips, take a long step foward with your right foot, drop your back knee almost to the ground, keep good balance and posture, push back off the right foot and return to the standing position, then repeat with the left leg) In my day we called this the lunge too.

Now give me eight sets as described above--20 sec do and 10 to 15 sec rest!
Use a wall or chair if you have balance issues, remember quality over quantity....that's a hard lesson in a lot of areas of tennis and life!

rest a minute......and get mean!

Fourth exercise...........

Standing rows.............

get a power band and stick it behind a shut door!

tuck in your gut....and pull the band back with two hands (you need handles on your band)....works triceps..and a little upper arm.......if you have weights--pick two dumbbells.....and put them straight up above your head and bend your forearms back and down behind your head.....you could also us a barbell with a light weight for this.........great for the serve!

Ok......give me eight sets...

geeeeees......take one minute to check your daily astrology reading and notice that those things could apply to anyone......check the weather report instead.


Fifth exercise................the cobra

hey, we did this one on day one......that's right......give me eight sets you stud...right now.....consider buying the exercise ball.....you can always play catch with it if you don't want to use it as an ab ball and you quit exercising.....great for people with coordination issues.

you did it! Wasn't that fun......about thirty minutes.....right! Do this early in the morning; this is your time......put on some eagles, boston, MJ, or listen to talk radio, or put in Rocky One after he eats the raw eggs and runs up the steps....whatever motivates you and makes it a little more fun!

Hey, have a great fourth!

KP

Friday, July 3, 2009

Tennis Training/ Beach Training

I just got back from Praha and London and discovered this training regime in London's Daily telegraph. I'll get to that a little later. First, I've had many people, particularly parents of juniors and juniors ask me: what can I do to get in shape for tennis? Hey, I've read Nick's training guide and asked him for tickets to Wimbledon but both of those things just didn't fit for me plus I hate the gym and counting reps. I get bored counting sheep. One common thread I've found in training is that you need to push yourself anaerobically (kind of like needing air when you swim under water) for tennis and you must have stamina (strength over time). Nick would say that you must have priorities in regard to playing competitive tennis: first, learn the fundamentals of solid technique and strategy (by the way, we do that extremely well at KPSOT)), two, then work strength and flexibility (one without the other is a real problem--I could write a chapter on that alone), third, is speed and four, is endurance and stamina. Interesting, isn't it?

Hey Kev, that all sounds great, but I just don't have time for all that. What's the shortest route to get better playing this game without quitting my day job?

O.K., truth be told.............play at least two competitive matches per week or competitive drill games with other players two times per week. I've been playing Joe just about every day and my game is getting better and I know we both are improving...........we try new shots out, joke around a little till it gets near the end of the set and then its gets a little more serious. Here it is, the gem of the blog:

Give yourself fourteen days for this program...........start today! I mean it!
You'll look great at the beach too!

Day 1

Shuttle runs and jog warm-up for ten minutes......or kick a soccer ball around....run and shoot baskets.....whatever.....make it fun and gamy....I hate just running....... after that

Super Set 1

we hit the floor......sorry, got to work the core..........without a good one, you can forget about a 100mph serve......it'll never happen.

Lie down on your back, arms down and feet down, then lift your feet (together) about two feet off the ground and "draw" the letters of the alphabet in the air with your toes......ouch. Make it Russian if you get bored.......


Then 15 reps of the Cobra......... That's when you lie down, face down and have your arms out a little pointing ahead of you...........and then lift your arms and legs up a little at the same time! That feels a little strange.........great for the back! Another name for this is the superman..........because your flying just like superman.......substitute any super hero you feel comfortable to model....my dog Cassi likes wonder dog the best.

rest 30 seconds...........it will be the quickest 30 of your life!

then do....

Super Set Two

15 reverse crunches........

Lie down on your back......hands down.......lift legs a little off the floor (six inches....they can be a little bent) we're going to hit the lower abs.....lift legs together straight up and hold.......slowly let down to the start and hold........


Now assume the plank position for 30 seconds.................geeees, that seems a little long.......I know that's why it's so good for you.

The plank is simply facing down, balancing on your forearms and toes while keeping your body straight.........if that's too tough.......use your knees......or a mixture of both......with all this stuff.....modify.....you will get better.....also, if your unsure....google the exercise to see what it looks like or ask someone (like me) and you'll find out....and you won't have to pay $65 to have someone hold your hand while you exercise and shout...."you can do it"


rest 30 seconds..............I know, I'm really starting to get you annoyed.
hey that's about what you get between points in tennis........right! Your opponent is going to get you annoyed......so get use to it.

Super Set Three

Perform two sets of Oblique Ball Crunches........ten per side
If you don't have one of those balls then, think of this as doing sit-ups, a little tilted on your side.........gees, those hurt.............no kidding.....these are my personal least favorite.......They just don't go down like a nice cold Coca Cola.

So you can do these without the ball.......but use a ball if you can.

Then do 15 medicine ball twists.

Lie on your back.....knees a little bent and feet flat on the floor....hold the ball behind your head.......hey use a bag of dog food if you don't own one....but be careful about your dog when using the dog food.......Cassi tries to participate.....and that makes me laugh so hard I have to blow off this ridiculously hard exercise..........hold the ball or weight above your head and bring yourself into a sit-up slow, controlled move, and rotate your upper body slightly to touch the outside of your left hip with the weight or ball then go back to center start slowly and repeat to the right side......alternate each side till you hit 30 (fifteen each side) or pass out.

That's day one.......day two is next.....come back and see!

Good job.......you can it......your core thanks you......


30 minutes....................done........now play some tennis!


Your pro in the trenches,

Kevin Pease