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The world of tennis, like many other sports, sometimes faces unexpected pauses. Whether you’re a professional player, coach or enthusiast, you may at some point need to continue your training from home. But how can you maintain your fitness and skills when you can’t access a court?
Here I offer you recommendations and exercises to continue your tennis training from the comfort of your home, ensuring you keep progressing in your game no matter the circumstances. We suggest organising your training into three key areas:
- Strength
- Speed
- Racquet
1 Strength
Take this time to strengthen both your core and legs. The only equipment you’ll need are resistance bands, which you probably already have at home, maybe for recovery work; and a medicine ball (if you have one, it’ll increase the level of difficulty).
Take note — here are some exercises you can do daily or two to three times a week:
- Step on the resistance band with both feet, a bit apart, grab each end with your hands and cross them. Then take steps to the right (10 to 15), as long as you have enough space at home or on your terrace; then repeat to the other side.
- Do a hip bridge, which is excellent for improving reaction speed during explosive movements on court: lie on your back with your arms resting on the floor. Bend your knees at 90° and lift your torso, leaving only your shoulders and feet on the ground. Repeat 10 to 15 times.
- This exercise originally uses a medicine ball to throw against a wall and catch the rebound. It helps strengthen the core, but since a medicine ball might be hard to find, you can swap it for a water jug or weighted backpack. Instead of throwing it at a wall (to protect your home), toss it upwards and catch it, or pass it back and forth with a partner.
- Other exercises you can include: lateral jumps, heel raises or rotations with dumbbells.
2 Speed
Here, we’ll adapt exercises tennis players usually practise on court or in the gym. Because as a tennis player, as we’ve seen, you need to take care of your body with a variety of movements — it’s not all about the racquet!
- Set two strategic points at home, one farther than the other. Run towards the first one and back at full speed. Then do the same for the second one. If you’re not doing this in a garage or on a terrace, make sure to move any objects or furniture that could trip you up. Repeat as many times as needed until you feel fatigued.
- For the second drill, grab tennis balls or similar objects. Place them around a wide space, mark a starting point, then run to each item as fast as possible, pick it up and return to the start. This exercise works on endurance, speed and flexibility.
- Lastly, for interval runs, you’ll need to replace standard distances like 100 or 200 metres (unlikely at home) with whatever space you have. Use your hallway, terrace or patio to run at a steady pace for 3 minutes. Then sprint the longest straight stretch you have available at max speed.
3 Racquet
It can be quite difficult to do some of the usual racquet drills in these circumstances, but a few you can do are:
- Racquet taps: In small spaces, practise bouncing the ball on your racquet without letting it drop. This exercise helps improve coordination and racquet control.
- Tip: If the tennis ball is too fast, start with a softer or foam ball.
- Reaction and reflexes: If you have access to a wall, practise gentle hits against it and return the ball. This will help maintain quick reflexes, even in a small space.
- Shadow drills: Practise your strokes in the air, as if you were playing a match. This helps keep your muscle memory and technique sharp.
Supplements to support tennis training
While home training may seem less intense than being on the court, keeping your performance high is still key to progress in tennis.
Whether it’s strength or speed, training needs proper nutritional support to ensure recovery and muscle development. Whey protein shakes, like Evowhey Protein by HSN, are ideal for keeping your muscles in shape after a tough session.
Evowhey Protein by SportSeries
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