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Are Perfect Strokes Mandatory?

Posted on April 26, 2015 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s books Blunders and Cures and  The Tennis Parent’s Bible. Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

Blunders & Cures by Frank Giampaolo

BLUNDER: Thinking Perfect Strokes are Mandatory

“Nobody has perfect strokes; it’s what you do with what you’ve got that counts!”

-John McEnroe

The legendary Andre Agassi states in his book that he was still learning how to volley when he retired. Pete Sampras wasn’t thrilled with his topspin backhand. They simply competed with their secret weaknesses. The key is learning how to expose your strengths and hide your weaknesses!

Players, parents, and coaches who are waiting for every stroke to be perfect before they begin to compete are missing the boat. Every National Champion I’ve ever coached had holes in their game as they held up the gold ball.

SPECIALNOTE:  At the time of this print, my students have 72 National Titles.

The trick is learning how to compete with imperfections. Even if you did possess perfect strokes on the practice court, different strokes will occasionally break down at different stages of an event. Developing back up plans will help counteract such imperfections in your game.

CURE: While it is important to fix strokes that constantly break down in competitive situations, it is also essential to learn who you are on the battle field.

Ask Yourself?

What do you consider to be your A game plan(The style of play that you achieve your best results)? How about your B or C game plan? What are your best patterns of play? Do you have go-to patterns to run in serving or returning situations? Do you have favorite rally patterns? How about favorite short ball options or net rushing patterns? Do you continually expose the strengths of your game? Do you know how to hide weaknesses? What do you do when you begin to break down in a match? Do you have your pre-set ways to stop self-destructing? Can you develop the above patterns versus just rallying in future lessons?

Write down your Personal Action Plan:

 

 

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
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Primary and Secondary Stroke Evaluations

Posted on April 25, 2015 by in Championship Tennis, Customized Organizational Plan, Primary and Secondary Strokes

 

The following post is a excerpt from Championship Tennis and The Tennis Parent’s Bible. Thanks, Frank

Let’s say that we are sitting in my hometown of Laguna Beach, California. “Meet me at Tennis West Sports and Racquet Club in El Paso, Texas,” I say as I toss you the keys to my car. You have no maps and no instructions—just a car and a full tank of gas. The ride would take longer than it should, and the process would at times be maddening, but eventually you would probably still find the club. Now if the car has a navigation system with the address already plugged in, the trip would certainly be easier. And if the navigation system also reroutes for traffic jams and construction delays, the trip would be even faster, less stressful, and a more pleasurable experience. Well, think of this book’s evaluation chapters as a customized navigation system that maximizes potential at the quickest rate. Whatever the goal, having a detailed road map is the most efficient and effective way for a player to achieve it. The evaluations that follow will uncover each player’s confidence and ability levels in performing strokes as well as in executing tactics. These components are the foundations of competitive tennis.

To make these evaluations meaningful and effective, the components should be evaluated based on how they hold up under match conditions. In other words, hitting second serves from a hopper of balls on a relaxed practice court is not a good indicator of the dependability of the player’s second serve. The true barometer is whether the player’s second serve is reliable when the score is 5-6 in a tiebreaker.

The player may also want to consult a coach, parent, or playing partner to gain another perspective on his game. This second opinion can often be eye opening. Many players aren’t completely honest with themselves or don’t recognize their shortcomings. For instance, consider the three versions of a forehand: offensive, neutral, and defensive. A player may have a terrific offensive forehand, capable of crushing any ball bouncing short in the court. He may consider this his money shot. Yet a coach may reveal that the neutral and defensive characteristics of the player’s stroke are underdeveloped and unreliable under stress. In the player’s opinion, the forehand doesn’t need improvement, but in reality, it could use a lot of work.

Let’s review The Painter’s Analogy

To this day, we can all run to the store and pick up an intermediate paint set. These pre-packaged sets come with canvas or paper, a few brushes and a strip of colored paint. These “strips” are made up of the primary colors. As we dabble and enjoy the art of painting one thing becomes evident, if only primary colors (black, brown, red, green, yellow…etc.) are used, the paintings will continue to look “amateur.”

Advanced artists and surely professionals have learned that to make a painting jump off the canvas, to become “life like” they need to use secondary colors as well. Now, instead of applying one shade of green, they have 12 versions of green! Advanced painters use both primary and secondary colors.

As parents, we have to encourage, educate and develop secondary stroke principles. The following are the primary and secondary strokes in a Champion tennis player’s tool belt:

The Four Different Types of Forehands and Backhands:

  1. Primary Drive
  2. High, Topspin Arch
  3. Short Angle or Side Door
  4. Slice or Drop Shot

 

The Three Types of Serves:

  1. Flat
  2. Kick
  3. Slice

 

The Four Types of Volleys:

  1. Traditional Punch Volley
  2. Drop Volley
  3. Swing Volley
  4. Half Volley

 

The Three Types of Lobs are:

  1. Topspin Lobs
  2. Slice Lob
  3. Re-Lob (lobbing and over-head smash)

 

The Two Types of Overheads to Develop are:

  1. The stationary “freeze” overhead
  2. The turn & run/scissor overhead

 

The 6 Types of Approach Shots are:

  1. Serve and Volley
  2. Chip and Charge
  3. Drive Approach
  4. Slice Approach
  5. Drop Shot Approach
  6. Moonball Approach

A goal is just a dream without a plan.  Build your full tool belt of primary and secondary strokes and you’ll have a room full of trophies!

Thanks for visiting, Frank

 

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
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Tennis Parent Post Match Etiquette

Posted on April 24, 2015 by in Championship Tennis, The Tennis Parent's Bible

The conversations (and body language) a parent/coach has with their player after a match should be constructive and positive- regardless of the performance. There is plenty of time to learn from the performance failures or successes.   The following post is an excerpt from CHAMPIONSHIP TENNIS.  Enjoy, FrankChampionship Tennis Cover

 

 

Post-Match Entourage Communication

After a match finishes, coaches and parents should always consider the player’s frustration tolerance and maturity level and should wait an appropriate amount of time before discussing the match.  A few minutes after a player suffers a heartbreaking loss is no time for performance analysis. That wound is too fresh and needs time to heal. Once a player is ready for constructive conversation—regardless of the score line—the coach should consistently replace “Did you win?” with “Did you hit your performance goals?” or “Did you execute the correct shots at the right times?”

If coaches or parents are solely fixated on the outcome, they will not be able to convince a player to be performance oriented. Remember, kids pick up every negative word, condescending tone of voice, upset facial expression, and defensive body posture. Therefore, a coach or parent should make a special effort to offer five positive critiques for every one negative criticism.

After each match, the coach or parent should also remind the player to complete a match log and an entry in the daily focus journal.

Thanks Frank

 

 

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
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Tennis Organizational Blunders

Posted on April 23, 2015 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential

 

The following post is an excerpt from The Tennis Parent’s Bible.  Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

Blunders & Cures by Frank Giampaolo

BLUNDER: Being an Unaccountable Player

Let’s look briefly at a typical open ranked junior player’s schedule:

There are 168 hours in a week. Sleeping takes up roughly 56 hours, school and homework take up roughly 60 hours, high performance tennis training takes up 15-20 hours, add on travel and meals, and the average player is still left with approximately 25 hours unaccounted for.

Unaccountable players believe they don’t have enough time to train. But, if you are an organized and accountable player, you will see there is actually plenty of time to train!

CURE: Document your personal weekly demands (school, homework, sleep, travel time, on-court training, off-court training, etc.) and then organize a weekly schedule. Follow your plan for one whole week. Identify strengths and weakness in your plan and adjust your plan accordingly.

How much time do you have left after accounting for all your personal weekly demands? Are all your demands essential?

Ask Yourself?

Have you ever heard this quote? “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” Are you scheduling training before and after school/work? Have you considered completing your off-court training before school/work? Top players find the time.

 

BLUNDER: Underestimating the Success Formula

Now that you have developed a weekly organized plan, let’s look long term: It is called the 10,000 hour rule.  For approximately ten years, you should be spending 20 hours per week in tennis related activities to become a world-class player. Of course, quality of practice trumps simple quantity. Used as a guideline, the 10,000 hour rule applies to all fields of expertise. Try to use a weekly planner to organize your personal blue print for success.

CURE: Now that your new organizational weekly plan is complete, use your new weekly planner to map out your schedule for the next few months.

Ask Yourself?

How many hours are you dedicating to tennis each week? Is it close to the high performance level of 15-20 hours per week? Can your schedule be adjusted? Can you maintain this new schedule for a month?

Parents and coaches, check out Franks all new book: Raising Athletic Royalty.

 

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
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On Court Out-Bursts

Posted on April 22, 2015 by in The Tennis Parent's Bible

 

The following post is an excerpt from The Tennis Parent’s Bible.  Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

The Tennis Parent's Bible by Frank Giampaolo

The cure for on court negative behavior 

Guess who was an angry emotional train wreck as a junior competitor? If you said Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, then you’re right! Moral excellence is a maturing process. Everyone can compete in a relaxed, happy state, but not everyone wants to.

Negative behavior is often motor-programmed into a player’s routine. It is a comfortable, dirty, old habit. The development of character lies is the ability to first learn to be uncomfortable competing without the negative act. It’s like a stand-up comedian without his props to hide behind. The old props (anger outbursts) are comfortable.

Cure:

The solution lies in the understanding that you have a character choice. Somewhere in their late teens, Federer and Nadal were taught a wiser code of conduct and chose to apply it. Displaying anger outburst on court drains valuable energy on un-productive behavior.

Anger is actually a show of fear or lack of confidence- often shown when skills are is question. Showing out of control anger outbursts is a immature behavior that is unacceptable in all arenas of life- disrespecting yourself and others. If you work as hard as you can developing your game, on-court and off-court, your anger will be replaced with confidence. It is not to say you will win every match, but you will understand that showing negative out-of-control energy is unproductive and damaging behavior. Learning to accept and improve upon weaknesses will develop moral excellence- a valuable life skill.

To progress comfortably through the junior tennis wars, both game skills and life skills are essential. Begin early building your own positive navigational tools on and off the court. Start to build relationships with players, families, stringers and tournament directors.

Ask Yourself?

In my last tournament, did I show respect to myself, my opponent, fans and the tournament staff? In my next tournament, can I make a point to say Hi to the tournament staff? When was the last time you thanked your parents, coaches or even stringer? Have I ever thought about why I was showing anger outbursts?

Maturing is a life choice. The question is you ready to take the plunge?

 

 

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Flexible skills training

Posted on April 21, 2015 by in Championship Tennis

The following post is an excerpt from The Tennis Parent’s Bible.  Thanks for visiting, Frank GiampaoloChampionship Tennis Cover

 

Tennis: Flexible Skills Training

Static skills training, also called consistent skills training, are an elementary training method that is essential in the early development of motor programs. This is most commonly referred to as stroke development through repetition. A player is continually fed balls in his preferred strike zone in order to build proper stroke mechanics.

A sample half-hour lesson using consistent skills training may go something like this: “OK Arthur, let’s hit 50 forehands. . . . Nice job! Now 50 backhands. . . . OK, now come over and hit 50 serves. . . . Terrific! See you next week!”

However, after these skills are ingrained, in order for players to enhance their movement, they must practice in the manner in which they are expected to perform. Players who want to improve their anticipation, foot speed, and general court coverage should trade in their static skills training for flexible skills training.

A sample half-hour lesson using flexible skills training may sound like this: “OK Arthur, today we’re going to run service patterns for about 50 points. Hit your second serve into the backhand corner of the deuce box, and then I’ll quickly feed in two random groundstrokes; hit those to the opposing corner. Then we’ll shift to the advantage side.”

In both sample lessons, Arthur hit 50 forehands, 50 backhands, and 50 serves. Which session improves cognitive processing speed as well as foot speed? Which lesson also incorporates the additional benefit of presetting second-serve patterns? Advancing beyond static drills is a prime example of smarter training, which accelerates the learning curve.

For more information see: Championship Tennis on Amazon.

Thanks! Frank

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
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Winning Tennis Strategy

Posted on April 20, 2015 by in Championship Tennis, The Tennis Parent's Bible

The following post is an excerpt from Championship Tennis. For more information: The Tennis Parents’ Bible. Thanks for visiting, Frank

Strategics 

The first step in strategizing is being able to identify the four  styles of play, aggressive base-liner, retriever, net-rusher or finesse player.   A player can practice spotting these styles by visiting the courts and taking the time to observe every player there. While observing, the player should mentally categorize those players into their preferred approach to the game.

When performing this exercise, I often ask students questions, such as, “OK Kelly, what did you notice about Zoe over on court 6?” This training exercise helps players begin to learn the process of opponent classification.

Opponent match-ups are fascinating. How can Michael easily beat Steve, but Steve handles Mark, yet Mark whip Michael? Like the childhood game of rock-paper-scissors, a particular style of play in tennis often matches up more favorably against a specific opposing style.

  • Just as rock is beaten by paper, an aggressive baseliner’s nemesis is the steady retriever.
  • Just as paper is destroyed by scissors, a steady retriever is overwhelmed by a solid net-rusher.
  • Just as scissors is defeated by rock, a net-rusher is often conquered by the aggressive base-liner.

A player who wins the first set handily should be on the lookout for a probable shift in the opponent’s style of play. If the opponent is well schooled, she will likely go to plan B. The best players are comfortable with the strategies and tactics needed to dismantle any of the four common opponents. Establishing a basic protocol for each style of play will deprive opponents of their favorite weapons, while strengthening your physical, mental, and emotional weapons.

Thanks! Frank

 

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Tennis Myths

Posted on April 19, 2015 by in Championship Tennis, The Tennis Parent's Bible

Thanks for visiting, Frank GiampaoloChampionship Tennis Cover

 

Unfortunately, tennis is full of “stock teaching methodologies” that should be banished. Well-intentioned catchy phrases that have become dated or worse yet, were never even correct to begin with. Here are a few of the bigger culprits concerning ground-strokes.

Roll over the ball for topspin

Teaching pros are still using this phrase, too. Players try to time the racket roll at contact, resulting in shots that spray all over the court.

Here are the facts: Depending on the type of shot, the ball is on the strings for about 2 to 4 milliseconds. It takes another 150 to 200 milliseconds for an electrical signal to travel from a player’s hand back to the brain. The brain then sends a new motor program back to the muscle group to begin the wrist roll. This takes an additional 150 to 200 milliseconds, by which time the ball is now 8 to 10 feet off the racket face toward the opponent’s side of the court. In other words, it’s impossible to roll over the ball for topspin. The spin comes from the brushing motion of a low-to-high swing path.

Watch the ball hit the strings

As mentioned earlier, the human eye cannot register a two-millisecond event. No one has ever seen a ball hit the strings. It’s simply a blur. Keeping the head down and still through contact is the best recipe for a steady racket path through the strike zone. Watch film of the best base-liners, and it’s easy to see how quiet they keep their head during their ground-strokes.

Skim the net

On television, it appears that professionals barely clear the net on their ground-strokes. This is rarely the case. The deception occurs because the television cameras at pro tour events are often placed high in the stadium. This angle offers a clear view of match play, but it distorts the trajectory of the ball flight.

In actuality, players use a variety of heights, generally dictated by their court positioning. This is often the result of managing the time between hits. When players are on the defensive, they generally hit higher to buy more time for recovery. Conversely, they move forward and hit harder and lower to take time away from a vulnerable opponent. At the club level, a ball that barely clears the net lands midcourt and bounces perfectly into an opponent’s primary strike zone; this is not recommended unless losing is the main objective. The net skimmer only becomes a smart choice when the opponent is transitioning to or established at the net and a passing shot is in order, or when an opponent is well behind the baseline and the player wants to bring her in, specifically if the opponent is weak at the net.

Stay down on ground strokes

A player’s center of gravity plays an important role in generating power and depth on groundstrokes. Three critical elements lift up on world-class strokes: the knees, the backside, and the racket face. Even on slice backhands, all three critical elements rise at completion of the stroke. If not, the resulting shot will lack pace and penetration. Players who prematurely lift their head before contact do indeed need to “keep their head down” through the shot. But it’s a fallacy to apply the principle to the entire body.

Keep your eye on the ball

This is correct . . . half the time. Vision control plays various functions over the course of a point that is critical for consistent ball striking and court coverage. Narrow vision is applied on an incoming ball: watching it leave the opponent’s racket, cross the net, and bounce up and into the strike zone. In this regard, a player should absolutely be keeping an eye on the ball.

Broad vision, on the other hand, is used to spot the dozens of visual clues after the ball leaves the racket toward the opponent’s side of the court. Such clues include an opponent’s court position, body language, strike zones, swing speed, and swing length. Broad vision is a crucial component of anticipatory speed. The best movers know how to assimilate the information from their broad vision and instinctively adjust their positioning accordingly.

Thanks! Frank

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Selecting a Coach

Posted on April 18, 2015 by in Championship Tennis, The Tennis Parent's Bible

The following post is an excerpt from The Tennis Parent’s Bible   and  CHAMPIONSHIP TENNIS.  Thanks for visiting, Frank GiampaoloChampionship Tennis Cover

The right coach can save you thousands of wasted dollars, hours and tears as well as emotional, mental and physical conflict.

Here are some tips to consider when selecting a coach:

  • Realize that only a handful of coaches actually teach the top players. What should be of interest is not whom the coach says he has coached, but whom the coach has trained under.
  • Look for coaches who love what they do. This kind of attitude is contagious. Players can’t help but be further drawn into the sport when they train with coaches who are passionate.
  • Seek out pros that are so busy that they don’t need more business. As the old saying goes, there’s safety in numbers. These coaches must be doing something right if their court time is continually booked.
  • Remember that being a master coach is a learned experience. Just as it takes thousands of hours of practice for athletes to hone their skills, the same is true for teachers.
  • Seek out a pro who understands genetic predisposition. One-size-fits all approach should be unacceptable. A coach has to embrace the unique brain and body type of each individual in order to customize the lessons.
  • Contact tournament directors in your area. These people know which coaches are producing champions. Contacting these people is an important step for players who have the goal of winning tournaments and achieving a high ranking.
  • Observe the coach. Ask coaches if you can see them in action. This provides a much better way to understand their style. A player could also pay coaches to watch and chart one of his matches and then devise a game plan for improvement. This helps the player evaluate how much knowledge the coaches have and their eye for the game, as well as determine if the player’s and coaches’ developmental plans match.
  • Realize that being a great player doesn’t always translate into being a great coach. Just because someone enjoyed success as a player at a top college, in the challenger circuit, or even on the pro tours doesn’t mean that the person knows how to coach. Some of the game’s most accomplished coaches were marginal players.
  • Avoid coaches who discourage working with other coaches, hitters, or trainers. This shows a lack of confidence and a lack of interest in the growth of their students. Coaches should encourage independent, not dependent, thinking from their students.

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Tennis Strength Training

Posted on April 17, 2015 by in Customized Organizational Plan, Tennis Specific Training, The Tennis Parent's Bible

Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

Championship Tennis by Frank Giampaolo

STRENGTH TRAINING FOR TENNIS

The following excerpt is from my book Championship Tennis. For more information see The Tennis Parent’s Bible and/or Championship Tennis.

Although equipment and improved technique can help increase the power of strokes, the greatest gains are brought about by physical improvements.  Resistance training is an excellent training method for tennis players because the sport of tennis forces players to control their body through space, just as an athlete would during competition. This is not to say that free weights such as dumbbells, barbells, and kettlebells have no value. Far from it.- they are great for building strong muscles and developing power.

Tennis players need their fitness to mirror what they need on the court (once again, practicing in the manner in which they are expected to perform). For this reason, the most practical and valuable tool for developing massive power for tennis-specific movements is the weighted medicine ball. Medicine ball exercises work the five regions necessary for massive power: the core, legs, chest, arms, and shoulders.

Special Note: Indian Well Tennis Garden in California has a large grassy area near the tennis courts that the professional use to off-court train while playing the Indian Wells BNP Paribas Open.  The public can watch the pros off court training with their coaches- It is a great learning tool for your player to watch the players train on the lawn- you will see the Pros perform medicine ball and resistance band drills as well as speed and agility exercises on the lawn.

Be sure your player includes the medicine ball inn their tennis development.  Your player has an off court training regime- right? Fitness is essential to a successful tennis career!

Frank

See Championship Tennis for tennis specific medicine ball workouts

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