Tennis Tip
Presented by Chris Young, Camp Director
The Importance of a Dynamic Warmup and Cool Down for Tennis Players
Nike Tennis Camps caught up with Camp Director and Oklahoma State University Head Women’s Tennis Coach, Chris Young and he provided some great insight on the importance of proper preparation before and after a tennis match or practice.
Young states that one of the most overlooked steps to playing tennis is the preparation. “It is so important that you give the warmup and even the post-match or practice cool down the proper attention. To avoid injury and just to allow your body to perform each time at its highest level, it is imperative that you have a very dynamic warmup to prepare the body and have an appropriate cool down,” says Young.
Below, Coach Young describes why dynamic warmups and cool downs are so valuable and how they benefit the body.
The Dynamic Warmup
This is an essential part of preparing each day, whether it is for practice or a match. The dynamic warmup incorporates stretching with movement and does five very important things for a tennis athlete.
- Increases body temperature allowing muscles to work more efficiently
- Primes the cardiovascular system and gets the heart and lungs ready for vigorous activity.
- Stretches muscles actively, preparing them for the forces of experiences during tennis.
- Engrains proper movement patterns and the coordination needed in tennis
- Wakes up the nervous system and gets the brain talking with the muscles.
Following Practice or Matches
A proper cool down will aid in your physical recovery, and it is essential. The benefits that come with performing the proper cool down exercises are:
- Slows the body’s systems down in a controlled manner, from the high-performance levels needed during the practice or match
- Helps to “flush out” metabolic waste products that can impair muscle function and performance if they are not removed from the body
- Maintains the flexibility and range of motion of various components of the musculoskeletal system.
The main takeaway is to never walk onto the court to play without performing an acceptable warmup or leave the court without cooling down properly. Make sure you think about these key points when building your pre- and post-match or practice routines!
For more tips and instruction like this, join Chris Young and his expert coaching staff at the Nike Tennis Camp at Oklahoma State this summer.