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The Beijing Open and Tennis Injuries

Posted on August 24, 2018 by blogger

The tennis season is now coming to a close with but a few trophies left to fight for before the end of the year. This week sees the start of the Beijing Open at the China National Tennis Centre, with 17 courts stretching across almost 17 hectares. The Beijing Open has climbed the ranks in recent years, in 2009 becoming the top tennis event in Asia and this year will host the WTA Crown-Pearl Tournament and the ATP 500 event.

The season has been tough this year, with players experiencing many highs and lows. Andy Murray is a casing point in lifting the Wimbledon crown and ending 77 years of British disappointment, but at the same time he was unable to retain his US Open crown and has ended the season with back surgery.

How to manage sports injuries

Injuries are common among professionals, pushing themselves continually to achieve glory. Wimbledon this year saw the highest number of injuries in recent years, with many receiving sprains and strains from slipping on the court.

The road to recovery will be determined by the type of injury and its severity. The options however include rest, ice to manage inflammation, physiotherapy, light exercise, surgery and sports braces. In the immediate aftermath of an injury you should rest for a few days to see if the injury clears up. Ice can be used during this time to help manage any inflammation and reduce pain.

Sports Braces

We have seen an increased use of sports braces, with tennis not alone in professionals sporting braces for different conditions. Andy Murray is now sponsored by a manufacturer of ankle supports, though sponsorship aside ankle supports can offer greater protection to a player on the court either as a preventative measure or during recovery.

Sports braces are available for each area of the body to manage specific conditions. They are designed to enhance performance through breathable material and conforming to the skin or joint so that they are discreet and can be worn under clothing. The majority of braces also offer compression, which works to manage inflammation, reduce pain and maintain alignment of either the muscle or joint. By maintaining alignment of a joint or muscle it can help to reduce unnatural movements and with it the risk of injury.

Tennis Elbow Supports

Tennis elbow supports are used to manage tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis), a condition caused by overuse affecting the muscles and tendons which can affect the movement of your arm. Pain can also be centred on the outside of the arm.

The tennis elbow support is designed to specifically manage the affected area of the arm, offering compression in the form of either a band or support skin. The main aim of the brace is to compress the painful area, helping to manage inflammation and reduce pain and enhance mobility as a result.

Whilst tennis elbow is not necessarily as of a direct result of playing tennis the tennis elbow support caters for the injury regardless of where it was picked up, from violin playing to painting.

It is important to note that the tennis elbow support should be used in conjunction with other recovery methods. As the condition is self-limiting it should rectify itself in time, with more serious cases requiring surgery. The support should enhance your recovery to help enhance mobility and activity levels.

Ankle Supports

As mentioned, Andy Murray is now sponsored by an ankle supports manufacturer, increasing visibility of the product and awareness of its benefits. Ankle supports are designed to protect the ankle joint, with varying designs available depending on whether you are looking at preventative measures, post injury and the type of injury you wish to manage.

With an array of ankle supports on the market it is essential that you understand your condition before purchasing one, otherwise you may not receive the maximum set of benefits they can offer. There are ankle supports which are designed for simple ankle sprains and simply offer compression to manage inflammation during recovery. For more serious injuries there are options to cater for ankle ligament damage, using straps to mimic the ligaments and ensuring the ankle is stabilised without restricting movement.

Following ankle surgery a patient may opt for a rigid brace or stirrup as a means of protecting the ankle from any unnatural movement. Following surgery the ankle needs all the support you can give it and a rigid stirrup can still give you the confidence to stay mobile without fear of your ankle giving way.

In the aftermath of any injury failing to stop your chosen activity can result in doing more harm than good. A simple ankle sprain for instance can manifest itself into ankle ligament damage if you continue to stay active, as the joint will be weaker and more susceptible to rolling. If you are ever unsure about the severity of your injury you should seek a professional diagnosis. Whether you are looking to buy ankle supports or a tennis elbow support a clinician will be able to advise you on the best option for your condition.

About the Author

Dave Regis discusses the use of orthotics for the management of sports injuries, reviewing injury rehabilitation through exercise and the use of bracing and supports. He frequently blogs and writes articles covering areas of interest, focussing on ankle supports in conjunction with other methods of rehabilitation.

Tennis Lessons- Know The Types

Posted on August 21, 2018 by blogger

Whether you are beginner or an adult looking to learn tennis, there are tennis lessons that are especially intended for you. Most tennis pro and trainers assist players to improve their full potential in playing tennis. The various types of tennis lesson are discussed below.
Tennis lesions for amateurs or beginners
A tennis coach would provide newbie tennis lesions for a beginner. If you are new into the world of tennis, then this type of tennis lesson is considered suitable for you. The beginner tennis lessons will help you to refresh your old moves and make you familiar with tennis serve, forehand stroke, volley, backhand stroke. Hence before you move forward to the next level, you have to achieve certain abilities. You should practice in a consistent manner. Once you are already to master this stage then moving to the very next level will an important step.
Intermediate tennis lessons
The intermediate tennis lessons are designed for adults. Also, it is the next level after the beginner course in tennis. The intermediate tennis lessons help to further improve the basic skills of the player. However, in addition, thorough practice is also essential. This primarily includes moderate tennis lessons in an attempt to further improve the standard accomplishments as gained from the beginner tennis course.
Advanced tennis lessons
The advanced lessons for adults are considered as the final level in tennis lesson. In this concluding stage, tennis pro or trainer expects the player to be much more skillful than never before. The advanced tennis moves including striking the ball, placing the ball with massive force are taught in this adult tennis lessons.
The development of every player are recorded and continuously monitored. The teaching techniques are also updated regularly in order to deliver much more high quality training strategies.
The other kinds of tennis lessons
There are some other tennis lessons for adults. In this regard, most tennis professionals, trainers and agencies provide a more personalized tennis lesson. In this kind of lesson, the player will have the advantage to get the full attention of the tennis trainer. Another advantage of this is that the trainer would be able to see the improper move of the player and can even correct it easily.
Apart from the above, there are some semi private tennis lessons to count on as well. These are almost same to that of training in the private tennis academies or getting private tennis lesson from tennis pro. The one and only difference that lies between the two is the total number of players or students taking the lesson. Such lessons are only applicable for group of friends who wish to take the lessons.
Semi private lessons and private lessons for the adult usually comprise of a combination of the following trainings like Skill drills, hitting the ball, Actual Play, Reflexes exercises etc.

Shopping For a Tennis Racquet String

Posted on August 19, 2018 by blogger

It is always important to check the various products that you put in your shopping basket. Shopping for a Tennis racquet should be a process that is guided by the tennis racquet string. This is because the strings are the ones that come into contact with the ball. Poor selection of a tennis racquet exposes you to various risks including personal injury. Other risk factors that can be avoided by the proper selection of the tennis racquet include poor performance in the game. A proper research should be carried out to get the required knowledge about the various types of tennis string materials.

Natural gut tennis racquet string is produced by drying fibres extracted from cow or sheep intestines. These fibres contain collagen which reduces stretching and contraction of the intestines. These fibres make the most resilient tennis strings. The various qualities of these fibres include better tension retention, durability, provides high energy return, and it is soft. The natural gut remains soft at high tensions enabling players to improve ball control without losing rebound power.

Nylon Tennis racquet string is the most popular tennis string material for amateur players. This is due to its low cost. Improvements in nylon tennis string elasticity are offered by adding multi-filament strings.

Frequent string breakers were recommended to use Polyester tennis strings. This is because it is a stiff and durable tennis racquet string material. Most of the polyester tennis racquet string have poor tension holding capabilities and therefore may lead to poor performance.

Kevlar tennis racquet string is the stiffest, most durable synthetic tennis string available. Due to these qualities it is hard to break. Kevlar tennis string is often strung with nylon in order to combine both tennis string qualities thereby achieving a high standard tennis racquet. Some tennis string experts advocate using a very thin gauge Kevlar for increased comfort while using such tennis racquets

Tennis strings made from polyolefin have more durability and tension retention characteristics. Polyolefin is one of the softest synthetic tennis racquet string materials. Polyolefin tennis strings are generally used as cross strings in a hybrid tennis racquet string setup. Tennis racquets made from 100% polyolefin tennis strings material are mostly used by tennis players who do not break strings most often.

Metal wire Tennis racquet strings are not commonly used nowadays but were used in some historical racquets.

Other materials that are used to make tennis strings include Zyex which offers more rebound efficiency and Vectran Tennis racquet which has low stiffness and durability qualities. A nylon racquet string is the most popular string material for amateur players. It is therefore important to have the required knowledge that will help you make the best choice for the racquet string. Ensure that your supplier also has the required knowledge that will help you to get the desired Tennis racquet. Make the proper Tennis racquet shopping today and ensure that the tennis strings are according to your game standards. This will ensure you achieve the best from your game.

Physical Fitness And Tennis

Posted on August 16, 2018 by blogger

Regular hours of sleep, and regular, hearty food at regular hours are necessary to keep the body at its highest efficiency. Food is particularly important. Eat well, but do not over-eat, particularly immediately before playing. I believe in a large hearty breakfast on the day of a big match. This should be taken by nine-thirty. A moderate lunch at about one o’clock if playing at three. Do not eat very rich food at luncheon as it tends to slow you up on the court. Do not run the risk of indigestion, which is the worst enemy to dear eyesight. Rich, heavy food immediately before retiring is bad, as it is apt to make you “loggy” on the court the next day.

It is certain injury to touch alcoholic drink in any form during tournament play. Alcohol is a poison that affects the eye, the mind, and the wind three essentials in tennis. Tobacco in moderation does little harm, although it, too, hits eye and wind. A man who is facing a long season of tournament play should refrain from either alcohol or tobacco in any form. Excesses of any kind are bad for physical condition, and should not be chanced.

“Staleness” is the great enemy of players who play long seasons. It is a case of too much tennis. Staleness is seldom physical weariness. A player can always recover his strength by rest. Staleness is a mental fatigue due often to worry or too close attention to tennis, and not enough variety of thought. Its symptoms are a dislike for the tennis game and its surroundings, and a lack of interest in the match when you are on the court. I advocate a break in training at such a time. Go to the theatre or a concert, and get your mind completely off tennis. Do your worrying about tennis while you are playing it, and forget the unpleasantness of bad play once you are off the court. Always have some outside interest you can turn to for relaxation during a tournament; but never allow it to interfere with your tennis when you should be intent on your game. A nice balance is hard to achieve, but, once attained is a great aid to a tournament player.

The laws of training should be closely followed before and after a match. Do not get chilled before a match, as it makes you stiff and slow. Above all else do not stand around without a wrap after a match when you are hot or you will catch cold. Many a player has acquired a touch of rheumatism from wasting time at the close of his match instead of getting his shower while still warm. That slight stiffness the next day may mean defeat. A serious chill may mean severe illness. Do not take chances.

Change your wet clothes to dry ones between matches if you are to play twice in a day. It will make you feel better, and also avoid the risk of cold.
Tournament players must sacrifice some pleasures for the sake of success. Training will win many a match for a man if he sticks to it. Spasmodic training is useless, and should never be attempted. The condition a player is, in is apt to decide his mental viewpoint, and aid him in accustoming himself to the external conditions of play.

All match players should know a little about the phenomenon of crowd-psychology since, as in the case of the Church-Murray match I related some time back, the crowd may play an important part in the result. It seldom pays to get a crowd down on you. It always pays to win its sympathy. I do not mean play to the gallery, for that will have the opposite effect than the one desired.

The gallery is always for the weaker player. It is a case of helping the “under-dog.” If you are a consistent winner you must accustom yourself to having the gallery show partiality for your opponent. It is no personal dislike of you. It is merely a natural reaction in favour of the loser. Sometimes a bad decision to one play will win the crowd’s sympathy for him. Galleries are eminently just in their desires, even though at times their emotions run away with them.

Quite aside from the effect on the gallery, I wish to state here that when you are the favoured one in a decision that you know is wrong, strive to equalize it if possible by unostentatiously losing the next point. Do not hit the ball over the back stop or into the bottom of the net with a jaunty air of “Here you are.” Just hit it slightly out or in the net, and go on about your business in the regular way. Your opponent always knows when you extend him this justice, and he appreciates it, even though he does not expect it. Never do it for effect. It is extremely bad taste. Only do it when your sense of justice tells you you should.

The crowd objects, and justly so, to a display of real temper on the court. A player who loses his head must expect a poor reception from the gallery. Questioned decisions by a player only put him in a bad light with the crowd and cannot alter the point. You may know the call was wrong, but grin at it, and the crowd will join you. These things are the essence of good sportsmanship, and good sportsmanship will win any gallery. The most unattractive player in the world will win the respect and admiration of a crowd by a display of real sportsmanship at the time of test. Any player who really enjoys a match for the game’s sake will always be a fine sportsman, for there is no amusement to a match that does not give your opponent his every right. A player who plays for the joy of the game wins the crowd the first time he steps on the court. All the world loves an optimist.

Tennis And the Ugly Parent Syndrome

Posted on August 13, 2018 by blogger

There’s a syndrome in tennis circles that has come to be widely known as “The Ugly Parent Syndrome.”

It is one in which teenaged players, or even those in their pre-teens, are placed under enormous pressure by over-zealous parents determined to see their children scale the heights of tennis greatness.

The pressure these parents exert can come in many forms — from subtle psychological techniques that play one child off against another (“How come Johnny’s forehand is much better than yours? — Don’t you think you should practise more often?”) to threatening a child with a loss of some value if he doesn’t perform (“Forget about that new racquet if you don’t beat Johnny”).

It can involve becoming deaf to their child’s concerns if those concerns conflict with what the parent has determined to be in the child’s “best interests”. (“I know you’d rather spend some more time with your friends, but I know what’s best, and what’s best is that you spend two more hours practising forehands.”)

And in some extreme cases, the pressure can even take the form of actual physical abuse.

On an international scale, the most (in)famous “ugly parent” of all is Jim Pierce, whose daughter, Mary, has been for a number of years one of the game’s top women players.

In the early 1990’s, Jim Pierce’s behaviour became so threatening to his daughter that she hired bodyguards and took out restraining orders to protect herself from him.

In 1993, he was banned by the Women’s Tennis Association from attending tournaments, although that ban was lifted a few years later.

There have been many other documented instances of what can only be described as child abuse leading, in most cases, to premature retirement and the destruction of the parent/child relationship.

Bearing in mind that it is only those instances where the child reaches an international level of play that any publicity is brought to bear on an abusive parent, consider how much of this sort of thing goes on at the lower levels.

When I look at some of the tennis parents today — in contrast to 20 or 25 years ago, when most parents were able to draw the distinction between a supportive influence and an overbearing, constraining one — I can’t help but observe the same sort of unhealthy obsession with their child’s performance that characterises the more notorious of tennis’ ugly parents.

Forgetting that the most important thing for a child to develop is a love of the game, these parents all but guarantee their child’s involvement with the sport will be short-lived.

As anyone who has competed at a high level of sport knows, there is nothing worse than having to deal with the added burden of unwanted pressure, particularly from a parent (or coach) who has zero understanding of what the game is about — but who thinks they do.

Living vicariously through their child, or attempting to impress other parents with their child’s ability, or secretly hoping to one day live off their child’s earnings, the ugly parent is driven by a compulsive desire to control every single aspect of his or her child’s career, often based on a groundless assumption that their child is destined for tennis stardom.