How much time should you take for practice? I'm not sure that there is any statistical data that can proof x time produces y result. Common sense would tell me that practice too little and you won't improve. Practice too much and you'll burn out. So the answer lies in between. Still, where is it?
How much time should you spend? I think short fun practice beats the rest.
If you are immersed in what you are doing then you will have a better chance of making gains. It's been proven that our minds like diversity and new presentation. Having one thing to work on as a topic gives you the best chance of succeeding. Each day you practice on one thing.Your goal is to improve. How do you do that? What is the arrangement of practice? I have to tell you that I enjoy rallying a ball with my practice partner with no other goal then to keep it going. After a few minutes of reflex volley and mini-tennis I try to establish rhythm and timing from the baseline. During this time I may hit some shots on one foot, front foot, back foot, slice, heavy, etc. In between rallies I may do a few dynamic stretches and shoulder exercises to loosen up. Then I'm ready to practice on that one thing. Be specific with it. There's so many different shots and strategies in the game that one shot in one situation is best. It could mean hitting forehand volleys to an open court from an offensive volley position with the shot coming from the volley player's left to right with topspin, and then with slice. It could then be practiced from right to left. Then ball could be fed from straight on, close, back deep, high or low, fast, slow, with spin and floaters. Of course one could practice hitting floaters from an offensive position that go to either side of the player. These "specific shot" practices can be designed in a variety of patterns and positions. Tennis fitness training can also be linked to this program as well. A pro can drop feed short balls to a player who has little time to react to the feed. This feed could have been dropped at the service line by the coach to a player positioned at the center baseline or a player positioned at the net and has to run back and retrieve it.
The point here is that "specific shot training" needs to be outlined in a program with the developing player. If all you do is practice forehands and backhands from the baseline then the player will be limited to those type of experiences on the court. That being said, there are some great three chord rock bands out there that did quite well on three chords, Tom Petty for one. I'll take three good chords hit on time any day but if you want to develop your game and get around the whole court comfortably you'll need to practice specialty shots such as topspin lobs, defensive lobs, drop volleys, chip approaches, et cetera, et cetera. The key is to get the most you can out of a workout session. After you've warmed up for about twenty minutes (I like a solid warm-up in my practice sessions with the major shots) start your topic and go hard for a least ten minutes with it. Your partner may need another ten for their shot. After that I like to play some tie breaks, a set or two if I have time, and then hit down. This whole process can take anywhere from one hour to two hours depending on the day and my schedule. If I don't have time to play on a day I still try to hit on a back board or hit a few serves. I don't like to stay away from hitting. I think you have to keep the feel and timing for the ball. That is something you have to keep in your back pocket. Always be ready if called into action. It's a bit obsessive but you wouldn't be reading this if you didn't want to improve your game. After your practice session you can hit the gym, run hills, bike, go to the track, or read a book. The thing to remember here is to keep a record of what you are doing (log on your smart phone) and have a plan.
Any plan is better than none. Any amount of work is better than none. The key is to take small steps at first in regard to your training and then build from there. This keeps practice truly fun and you'll get better. Workouts are always fresh and are only limited by your imagination in terms of how you put them together. Your priorities are set by you on your schedule and by how your body feels. You can have a workout plan that can fit in a Twitter message if you know what your doing. Keep it simple, with variety, and fun. But go hard the whole time.
How much time should you spend? I think short fun practice beats the rest.
If you are immersed in what you are doing then you will have a better chance of making gains. It's been proven that our minds like diversity and new presentation. Having one thing to work on as a topic gives you the best chance of succeeding. Each day you practice on one thing.Your goal is to improve. How do you do that? What is the arrangement of practice? I have to tell you that I enjoy rallying a ball with my practice partner with no other goal then to keep it going. After a few minutes of reflex volley and mini-tennis I try to establish rhythm and timing from the baseline. During this time I may hit some shots on one foot, front foot, back foot, slice, heavy, etc. In between rallies I may do a few dynamic stretches and shoulder exercises to loosen up. Then I'm ready to practice on that one thing. Be specific with it. There's so many different shots and strategies in the game that one shot in one situation is best. It could mean hitting forehand volleys to an open court from an offensive volley position with the shot coming from the volley player's left to right with topspin, and then with slice. It could then be practiced from right to left. Then ball could be fed from straight on, close, back deep, high or low, fast, slow, with spin and floaters. Of course one could practice hitting floaters from an offensive position that go to either side of the player. These "specific shot" practices can be designed in a variety of patterns and positions. Tennis fitness training can also be linked to this program as well. A pro can drop feed short balls to a player who has little time to react to the feed. This feed could have been dropped at the service line by the coach to a player positioned at the center baseline or a player positioned at the net and has to run back and retrieve it.
The point here is that "specific shot training" needs to be outlined in a program with the developing player. If all you do is practice forehands and backhands from the baseline then the player will be limited to those type of experiences on the court. That being said, there are some great three chord rock bands out there that did quite well on three chords, Tom Petty for one. I'll take three good chords hit on time any day but if you want to develop your game and get around the whole court comfortably you'll need to practice specialty shots such as topspin lobs, defensive lobs, drop volleys, chip approaches, et cetera, et cetera. The key is to get the most you can out of a workout session. After you've warmed up for about twenty minutes (I like a solid warm-up in my practice sessions with the major shots) start your topic and go hard for a least ten minutes with it. Your partner may need another ten for their shot. After that I like to play some tie breaks, a set or two if I have time, and then hit down. This whole process can take anywhere from one hour to two hours depending on the day and my schedule. If I don't have time to play on a day I still try to hit on a back board or hit a few serves. I don't like to stay away from hitting. I think you have to keep the feel and timing for the ball. That is something you have to keep in your back pocket. Always be ready if called into action. It's a bit obsessive but you wouldn't be reading this if you didn't want to improve your game. After your practice session you can hit the gym, run hills, bike, go to the track, or read a book. The thing to remember here is to keep a record of what you are doing (log on your smart phone) and have a plan.
Any plan is better than none. Any amount of work is better than none. The key is to take small steps at first in regard to your training and then build from there. This keeps practice truly fun and you'll get better. Workouts are always fresh and are only limited by your imagination in terms of how you put them together. Your priorities are set by you on your schedule and by how your body feels. You can have a workout plan that can fit in a Twitter message if you know what your doing. Keep it simple, with variety, and fun. But go hard the whole time.
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