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Discuss Conflict Resolution and Fear of Confrontation

Posted on September 29, 2019 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, Preparing for Pressure

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s NEW Amazon #1 New Tennis Book Release, Preparing for Pressure.
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Discuss Conflict Resolution and Fear of Confrontation

 

“Solving problems begins by confronting problems.”

When athletes are expected to be the competitor, the score-keeper, the linesman, and the umpire conflicts will exist. “Being judged” can bring out the best and worst in all of us. Often opponents who believe that they don’t have the physical tools to win employ gamesmanship to sabotage their opponent’s level of play. There are many gamesmanship situations that athletes need to be aware of, and it is the job description of the coaching staff to address these scenarios. It is also important to teach them to look systematically beyond the incident.

Often, it is not the specific opponent’s gamesmanship tactic but your player’s response to the drama that causes the emotional break the opponent seeks. Preparing for pressure includes how an athlete responds to confrontational situations and whether or not they can remain focused on their performance goals and avoid unraveling.

Covert gamesmanship in tournament play is also applied when the crafty opponent spots the nonverbal clues found in our athletes’ fear of confrontation. If your athletes have a fear of confrontation, address why standing up for themselves versus enabling the “bully” is in their best interest. Nurturing timid athletes to stand up for themselves improves their confidence as they learn to solve problems.

In the intermediate levels, emotionally weak competitors assume that confrontation is bad. If they disagree, the opponent won’t like them and therefore not want to play with them in the future. This is a false assumption. In tennis, the opposite holds true. Opponents that can easily bully and beat your athlete don’t return their calls. Athletes that stand up to gamesmanship and triumph, not only earn respect, they also benefit by getting to choose their future practice match opponents and doubles partners.

 

Confidence is earned by standing up to conflicts.

Instruct How to Avoid Counterproductive Behaviors

Posted on September 27, 2019 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, Preparing for Pressure

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s NEW Amazon #1 New Tennis Book Release, Preparing for Pressure.
Click Here to Order

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Instruct How to Avoid Counterproductive Behaviors

 

“Your Academy’s culture is determined by how much counterproductive behavior the coaching staff
is willing to tolerate.”

Counterproductive thoughts and actions are behaviors that go against the interests of the athlete’s progress. Successfully preparing for pressure demands re-routing poor choices. Athletes and parents are often loyal to their counterproductive behaviors simply because they’ve been doing them for so long.

Basic counterproductive behaviors include tardiness, lack of effort, lack of a developmental plan, indifference, pessimistic dialog, anger outbursts, blaming, and accusing.

I’ve found that athletes who possess these unproductive traits are often facing difficulties away from tennis. In these situations, the dysfunctional behaviors should be referred to medical professionals.

 

Red flags are seen when an athlete’s words don’t match their actions.

Pursue Excellence Versus Perfection

Posted on September 25, 2019 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, Preparing for Pressure, Preparing for Pressure

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s NEW Amazon #1 New Tennis Book Release, Preparing for Pressure.
Click Here to Order

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Pursue Excellence Versus Perfection

 

“Excellence invigorates…Perfectionism demoralizes.”

Perfectionists are motivated over-achievers pushing themselves to the highest standards. They believe their extra attention to detail and long hours of hard work will produce the perfect athlete who can replicate perfection in every performance. These standards are impossible to meet, so these individuals often get caught in a toxic spiral of failure. Loyal to that nurtured perfectionistic view, they suffer needlessly.

To prepare for pressure, it is in these athletes’ best interest to allow a little wiggle room and shift their impossible goal of consistent perfection to consistent excellence. Excellent performance is attained when an athlete plays close to their current peak performance level throughout tournament play.

Striving for tennis perfection has many drawbacks, such as slow cognitive processing speed which leads to hesitation and tight muscle contractions.  This emotional state produces slow racket head speed and poor risk management due to the fear of failure.

 

Top ATP Professionals such as Federer and Nadal routinely win about 53% of the points they play annually. They make mistakes in each match. They don’t need to be perfect, and neither does your athlete.

 

SAMPLE Weekly/Daily Planners -Part 2

Posted on September 23, 2019 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, Preparing for Pressure

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s NEW Amazon #1 New Tennis Book Release, Preparing for Pressure.
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WEEKLY DEVELOPMENTAL PLAN

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WEEKLY DEVELOPMENTAL PLAN
(Hours Per Week)

  

Yours

  

Theirs
1. Off-Court Gym (Core/Upper body) 3
2. Off-Court Cardio (Speed/Stamina) 3
3. Primary Stroke Production 2
4. Secondary Stroke Development 2
5. Pattern Development 2
6. Complete Practice Matches 4
7. Video Analysis 1
8. Audio Tape Visualization (Neuro Priming) 1.5
9. Serving Basket 2
10. Tournament Play 4
                            TOTAL Hours Per Week

 

23.5

The Importance of Proper Breathing Techniques

Posted on September 20, 2019 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, Preparing for Pressure

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s NEW Amazon #1 New Tennis Book Release, Preparing for Pressure.
Click Here to Order

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The Importance of Proper Breathing Techniques

 

“Proper breathing boosts performance.”

Josh, a witty student of mine said, “Come on Frank! It sounds a bit silly that you are reminding me to breathe.  What next? Reminding me to blink? Look, coach, no offense, but I’ve been breathing my whole life effortlessly!”

Without oxygen freely flowing to the muscles, lungs, and brains of our athlete’s, catastrophe is likely to strike. The following scenarios result when deep breathing routines and rituals are not implemented:

  • Fluid strokes stiffen
  • Athlete’s body tightens up and often cramps
  • Fatigue sets in prematurely
  • Core stability lessens
  • Anxiety levels increase
  • Concentration levels diminish
  • Problem-solving skills decrease

In match play, there are two phases of correct breathing techniques.

 

During Points Phase: Educate the athlete that inhaling begins while tracking the incoming ball and during the coiling phase of the stroke. This energizes the uncoiling links into impact. Exhaling at impact relaxes and loosens their “swoosh” swing, as it grounds the athlete and stabilizes their strike zone.

 

During the Between Points & Changeovers Phase: Educate the athlete to switch their focus on the benefits of applying calming, deep breathing techniques. By slowly breathing through their nose, the athlete will lower their heart rate as they take in greater amounts of oxygen into the bloodstream.

This, of course, provides physical, mental, and emotional benefits such as increased energy, sharper memory recall, relaxed muscle exertions, reduced anxieties, calmer nerves, improved judgment, and decision-making ability.

Breathing properly during match play has emotional benefits as well. Athletes focused on their breathing techniques ward off contaminating anxiety that can creep into an empty mind. Correct breathing significantly improves performance under pressure.

 

Ask your athletes to play a few practice sets while focusing their attention on their breathing techniques. By simply paying attention to correct breathing, they are sure to boosts performance under pressure.

Organize Customized Developmental Plans

Posted on September 18, 2019 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, Preparing for Pressure

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s NEW Amazon #1 New Tennis Book Release, Preparing for Pressure.
Click Here to Order

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Organize Customized Developmental Plans

 

 “A goal without a deliberate, customized plan …
is just a dream.”

Effective developmental plans are based on the athlete’s competency levels, efficiencies, and deficiencies, as well as long-term career goals.  Self-assessment is often inaccurate, so I recommend enlisting an experienced coach to provide feedback.

Athletes attending school routinely rotate from math to science to English – the school methodology. This structure produces well-rounded adults. Tennis training components are similar to school classes. Preparing for pressure requires the development of each component. Tennis instruction should consist of tennis-specific off-court/athleticism, primary & secondary stroke development, pattern repetition, sets, mental/emotional classroom sessions, match play video analysis, and tournament competition.

 

When a plan is in writing, you have the ability to track and measure the progress and hold the athlete and their entourage accountable for execution. Each plan should include goal dates to measure progress. Plan on revising the athlete’s development plan every 3-6 months.

MENTAL REHEARSALS TO ENHANCE PERFORMANCE

Posted on September 16, 2019 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, Preparing for Pressure

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s NEW Amazon #1 New Tennis Book Release, Preparing for Pressure.
Click Here to Order

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MENTAL REHEARSALS TO ENHANCE PERFORMANCE

 

 “Desensitize anxieties by applying mental rehearsals.”

One way athletes learn to respond with solutions is through visualization. The use of imagery recreates the positive experiences athletes need when seeking confidence. Overcoming the onslaught of stressors is much easier if the athlete is desensitized to the situation.

Successfully dealing with uncomfortable scenarios in a relaxed environment helps to prepare the warrior for the battle ahead. In the studies of performance psychology, mental rehearsals are proven to facilitate real-time match performance. Neuro Priming for Peak Performance is a dedicated workbook I wrote to assist athletes as they apply customized mental rehearsal scripts. These scripts are then recorded into the athlete’s cell phones and listened to nightly and before competition.

Prepare for pressure by visualizing clean stroke mechanics, millisecond decision making, shot sequencing patterns, and between point rituals, to name a few.

Pre-match visualization desensitizes anxieties and improves performance.

Does Tennis Charting and Analytics Matter? -Part 2

Posted on September 15, 2019 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, Preparing for Pressure

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s NEW Amazon #1 New Tennis Book Release, Preparing for Pressure.
Click Here to Order

Does Tennis Charting and Analytics Matter? 

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COURT POSITIONING MATCH CHART:

This chart will differentiate whether playing “reactive” tennis from behind the baseline earns the best winning percentages or whether playing “proactive” tennis from inside the court increases winning percentages. Note: The court position your athlete prefers to play may not be the position that wins them the most points.

MEGA POINT CHART:

Mega points are the game-winning points. This chart is especially important in competitive tennis because it highlights the game-winning points. Tipping a close match in your favor requires spotting a big point before it’s actually played, paying attention to match details and running the smartest patterns.

SERVING PERCENTAGE CHART:

This chart discriminates between the different essential factors required to hold serve, serve consistency, serve location, and first and second serve win-loss percentages. Ask your player to let go of the “speed” of the serve and begin to focus their attention on the above components. Note: On the WTA tour, second serve win-loss percentages are the most critical factor in deciding the outcome of the match.

Note: While applying analytical data, keep in mind exceptions shadow every rule in life, so customization is key.

(The Match Chart Collection by Frank Giampaolo is found at www.maximizingtennispotential.com )

 

Solid analytics through match charting can assist in spotting winning trends as well as
reoccurring nightmares.

Does Tennis Charting and Analytics Matter? -Part 1

Posted on September 13, 2019 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, Preparing for Pressure

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s NEW Amazon #1 New Tennis Book Release, Preparing for Pressure.
Click Here to Order

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 Does Tennis charting and analytics matter?

“Solid analytics spot winning trends and reoccurring nightmares.”

 

Statistics in tennis is currently in vogue, but it isn’t necessarily new. While teaching at The Vic Braden Tennis College/Coto Research Center back in the 1980s, I was involved in multiple statistical chart studies. Computennis was a tennis-based analytics group that also did wonderful work in this field 40 years ago. These research projects looked deeply into “quantifying data” in various levels of play. We uncovered basic stats that still hold true today. One is the average length of points in singles (3.8 hits) and doubles (2.9 hits). Another vintage stat identifies the most missed shot in the game: Return of serve (which is also still the least practiced shot in the game). A third old school stat that still holds true 40 years later is that approximately 70% of errors are located in the net.

Although analytics don’t tell the whole picture, they have greatly affected my students’ lesson plans since the 1980s.  I’ve designed specific match charts to assist in preparing serious athletes for competition. These simple to use analytics provide more in-depth data than the typical phone apps and guarantee to improve your athlete’s win-loss record. Samples Include:

FIRST STRIKE WINNING PERCENTAGE:

The First Strike is the very first shot your athlete hits- serve or return of serve. Identifying the winning percentage of the location of your player’s serve and return of serve (First Strike) is shot selection awareness which benefits strategical play.

BETWEEN POINT RITUALS CHART:

This chart identifies the player’s ability to stay focused and execute their critical between point rituals. Players who do not keep their brain focused on the task at hand have to defeat two opponents-the opposition and their own wandering mind.

 

CAUSE OF ERROR CHART:

Tennis is a game of errors. The first most critical step in error reduction is to spot the actual cause of the error. This chart will require you to identify the cause of the error. This information leads to the customization of future lessons. Note: the four leading causes of errors are poor technique, poor movement, reckless shot selection, and negative emotions/focus.

Pressure Reveals Character

Posted on September 4, 2019 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, Preparing for Pressure

The following post is an excerpt from Frank’s NEW Amazon #1 New Tennis Book Release, Preparing for Pressure.
Click Here to Order

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Pressure Reveals Character

 

“Be the alpha predator…not the prey.”

All predators can smell fear and uncertainty. They sense the timid and weak, and they prey on them. The predator could be a lion on the plains of Africa, the hoodlums on the subway in NYC or the experienced tennis competitor.

Alpha competitors can be physically, mentally, and/or emotionally imposing. Mark Twain once said, “It’s not the size of the dog in the fight …it’s the size of the fight in the dog.”

The key mental/emotional characteristics of tennis predators include:

  • The ability to hit the shot the moment demands.
  • The unwavering belief that they are the best.
  • A strong demeanor, assertiveness, and dominance.
  • Calmness and supreme confidence in the moment.
  • Resiliency, perseverance, and grit at crunch time.

Learning to read fear and taking proper advantage of the situation is one of the hidden mental/emotional differences that separates the consistent winners from the pack. Walking into a clubhouse before the match, victors and victims may look similar but possess polar opposite mentalities.

Teach your athletes not to be afraid of the storm
but to be the storm.