Learn How To Pick Up A Rock Before You Pick Up Your Tennis Racket

Hi folks,

Many years ago I attempted to learn Chez Ollie, and I got close a few times after a year or so of trying. I got to feel, if only briefly, how you can put the force of your whole body into a punch over a distance of just a few centimeters. The process seemed to be all about optimal body coordination, timing, and considerable skill. It is apparent that there are many ways to carry out any action with your body, and some will be efficient and safe, whilst others are forced and prone to the induction of injury. I have played tennis (not well), racket ball (fairly well), table tennis (quite well), and golf (not too horrible) and found that the best interactions with the ball occurred for me when I felt that the racket or club and I were all of a piece, and the impact with the ball was barely perceptible if at all.

On the way to my latest Continuum lesson with Rebecca, I was wondering about all those strained wrists and forearms in amateur tennis players. Do they have weak arms? Do they grip their rackets too tightly, as suggested in a previous post on cycling and tennis? Or is there something inefficient with the manner in which they, their racket and the ball interact as they dance on the court with gravitational and kinetic forces? I mentioned this to Rebecca, who has helped my triathlon training in many ways. The video below reveals what my dance teacher had to say on the subject.

I suggest that you explore picking up a small rock in many ways, gain an improved sense of where you are picking it up from, your forearm or your entire body, and then carry that learning over to your tennis racket. Explore your biomechanics, and see if you can find the road to injury-free tennis. I am sure that for each of us there is an optimal way to handle the racket, and it is probably subtly different for each of us.

Enjoy and thank you Rebecca for another great Continuum lesson.

-k @FitOldDog