Numerous tennis players in our community are beginning to notice the benefits of off-court training. By using sport-specific strength and conditioning principles, tennis athletes may increase their ability to play longer matches and extend memorable and/or injury-free careers. Stepping out onto the court before competition knowing that you are physically prepared is a distinct mental advantage. Putting in the time and effort to be physically fit gives you confidence and determination.

Many athletes believe that cardio training should include long, slow paced activities for an extended period of time in order to improve their endurance on the courts. While many people receive some cardio benefits from long, slow distance training, this type of training neglects the needs of a competitive tennis athlete. A competitive tennis point averages 4 changes of directions involving many movements: forward, backwards, lateral, and rotational movements. These movements involve acceleration and deceleration of the entire body through all planes of motion. All of these movements happen with short, quick, repetitive bursts. Points generally last 3-7 seconds with up to 25 seconds of rest in between.

In a competitive tennis match, an athlete's heart rate peaks and recovers many times due to these intervals of intense bursts of effort. Also, a larger amount of muscle mass is utilized to sprint and recover for each shot. The tennis athlete that trains with intervals of high intensity bouts of exercise interspersed with lower intensity rest intervals does more to improve their performance on the court than the athlete that simply trains with long slow distance. Conditioning the body to work at a high intensity and then recover in a short time period to sprint again mimics the energy demands of tennis. It is also important to work on recovery time (just as one catches their breathe and must attempt to think clearly in between points) in order to help the tennis player develop a sense of anticipation, tempo, and rhythm of the point(s). How a player handles the short recovery time between points and this interval training is greatly connected to the mental side of the sport.

In addition, studies have shown that high intensity interval training programs are more efficient for the decrease of body fat and the preservation of lean muscle mass than low intensity, steady state aerobic training. Thus, in order to use high intensity interval training to improve your performance on the court: train with 5-20 second bursts followed by 20-25 second rest periods and you will closely mimic the demands of the bodies energy system during a tennis match. Remember, "L.S.D. (long, slow distance) kills the speed and power athlete!" If you work hard enough off of the court, the on-court adversity will not be as difficult to overcome.

Examples of Interval Training:

• Complexes for Lower Body:
  (pick 4 exercises for 2-4 sets of 4-6 reps)
  Squats, step-ups, lunges, side lunges, angle lunges, step-ups, squat jumps, front squats.
   
• Complexes for Shoulders:
  (pick 4 exercises for 2-4 sets of 4-6 reps) Front raise, lateral raise, internal/external rotation, upright rows, empty cans, scarecrows.
   
• Interval Speed Drills:
  (pick 4 for 2-4 sets of 4-6 reps) Hill sprints, relays, side shuffle drills, tempo runs, sprint ladders, line hops, shuffle ladders.