Tennis requiresstamina, speed, quick reaction time, agility, core body strength, strong arms and legs and flexibility. A tennis player must have the right combination of explosive force and speed. Resistance training helps to build the explosive force. Tennis exercises involving resistance training focus on muscle contraction against an external resistance, thereby building strength and increasing the muscle mass. The external resistance can be in the form of ones own body weight, dumbbells, rubber exercise tubing, bottles of water or bricks.
Components of ResistanceTraining in Tennis Exercises
There are two ways in which resistance training in tennis exercises can be categorized.
1.Categorization of resistance training exercises:
Aerobic endurance resistance training: A tennis player needs to maintain a high performance throughout a match, which could last for hours Did you know the longest tennis match ever was between John Isner and Nicolas Mahut? The match lasted 11 hours and 5 minutes of playing time, and required 183 games.
Anaerobic endurance resistance training: A tennis player needs to pack power into his/her game from the first set to the last.
2. Categorization based on body part:
Upper body resistance training exercises: These are designed to improve overall strength. In order to achieve muscular balance, dumbbells are used to ensure equal work on either side. These may include:
Dumbbell Shoulder Press
Dumbbell Row
Dumbbell Bench Press
Reverse Bicep Curl
Dumbbell Tricep Extension
Lower body resistance training exercises: These exercises add strength to the lower body:
Power Snatch
Power Clean
Squat
Side Lunge
Leg Curl
Balanced resistance training integrated into your workout helps to prevent injury. One can lower the risk of injuries like tennis elbow,shoulder impingement,rotator cuffand calf tears with proper resistance training and adequate rest.