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What the Experts are Saying…

Posted on November 10, 2015 by in The Tennis Parent's Bible

Coming Soon the Second Edition of the  The Tennis Parent’s Bible.  Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

Frank Giampaolo“The Tennis Parents Bible should be mandatory reading (with an annual rotating online quiz) that’s required for ALL PARENTS for their children to play in USTA events! Seriously. If parent training was required, it could change this sport in a powerful way for generations!”
Joe Dinoffer
President, Oncourt Offcourt, Ltd.
USPTA and PTR Master Professional

 

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
MaximizingTennisPotential.com
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What the Experts Are Saying

Posted on November 7, 2015 by in The Tennis Parent's Bible

The following post is an excerpt from The Tennis Parent’s Bible.  Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaoloblack_ebook_design2

 

“A first-class book from a first-class coach.

Frank is an encyclopedia of tennis knowledge, has extraordinary talents to share and is a model of professionalism. When all of these components come together, an excellent book such as the Tennis Parents Bible appears.

By educating yourself, your children will have better results.

This book is a must read for parents to understand how to educate themselves and to appreciate the extensive process they, their children and their coaches are undergoing while their children are developing their tennis skills.”

Shaul Zohar, Manager, Kiryat Shmona Israel Tennis Center

 

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
MaximizingTennisPotential.com
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Dealing with Tennis Cheaters

Posted on November 5, 2015 by in Cheating, Emotional Tennis, The Tennis Parent's Bible

The following post is an excerpt from the second edition of The Tennis Parent’s Bible coming soon!

black_ebook_design2

 

QUESTION: Why does my daughter become irrational when cheated?

 

Frank: The human brain simply can’t stand being treated unfairly. It’s that resentment of injustice which triggers the downward spiral. Youngsters feel they deserve a fair chance of any reward being offered and with that taken away … so goes their rational decision making abilities.

How to handle unjust situations is not a tennis issue, it’s a learned life skill. When a tennis opponent is repeatedly cheating and provoking your athlete, a full-blown meltdown is often the result. Biochemical reactions in the brain distort rational reasoning and the fight or flight syndrome overtakes the situation. That is, unless your athlete has been trained to insert the correct protocol- which is the solution to the problem.

Taking back control begins by understanding Channel Capacity- a term neuroscience has assigned to the brain’s inability to process multiple forms of important information at one time.  A common example of channel capacity is texting and driving.

“The human brain cannot solve two complicated tasks simultaneously.”

On-court, the creative line caller systematically pulls your athlete away from the present (performance state of mind) and into the past or future (outcome state of mind.) Understanding this phenomenon is key to salvaging seemingly catastrophic matches.

So instead of little Zack focusing on his performance goals such as “ I’m going to serve to the backhand, hit high and heavy ground-strokes and crush short balls.”, Zack finds himself stuck in the wrong thought process. He is thinking “This guy is such a punk!!! I can’t lose to such a cheater, what will my friends say? I can’t believe I lost the last set, he’s ranked 57 spots below me…” The creative line caller has now got Zack right where he wants him-mentally far away from his performance goals.

If your athlete has issues playing against cheaters, ignoring the issue and hoping it will go away is not in their best interest. I recommend practicing their pre-set protocol during practice sessions to reinforce their match tough confidence. Arrange a few practice matches each week with the opponent being allowed to call any close ball out. Learning to deal with adversity and staying on the correct side of your brain under duress is a skill set that must be rehearsed.

“Tennis, like life, is not fair…but remember, sometimes it’s not fair in your favor.”

 

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
MaximizingTennisPotential.com
Affiliate 

 

What the Experts Are Saying…

Posted on November 3, 2015 by in The Tennis Parent's Bible

The following is a quote from Shaul Zohar about the Second Edition Tennis Parent’s Bible- Coming Soon!

 

black_ebook_design2

“A first-class book from a first-class coach.

Frank is an encyclopedia of tennis knowledge, has extraordinary talents to share and a model of professionalism. When all of these components come together, an excellent book such as the Tennis Parents Bible appears.

This is a must read for all parents, players and coaches to understand everything related to this sport we love.”

Shaul Zohar, Manager, Kiryat Shmona Israel Tennis Center

 

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
MaximizingTennisPotential.com
Affiliate 

 

OPPONENT PROFILING

Posted on October 27, 2015 by in The Tennis Parent's Bible

GREETINGS,

Just last week while watching 60 Minutes, I was reminded of how important pre-game preparation truly is for the high performance successful athlete.  The show interviewed Darrelle Revis, NFL’s highest-paid corner-back.  I was in awe of his incredible dedication to his physical, mental and emotional athletic skills. Not only did he work on his athletic skills, he spent hours and hours reviewing high speed videos of all the opposing teams’ wide receivers during actual game play. This excellence does not come by chance- it comes with resiliency, hard work, dedication and a growth mind set. Darrelle’s dedication to opponent profiling makes him one if the highest paid corner-backs in the NFL.  How is your child’s opponent profiling skills?

The following is an excerpt from the second edition of
THE TENNIS PARENT’S BIBLE COMING SOON!black_ebook_design2

OPPONENT PROFILING

Top competitors are continually seeking an advantage. One of the best strategic (mental) and calming (emotional) advantages comes from scouting an upcoming opponent. Casually observing is one thing, but profiling the opponent is a skill set. Each playing style has an inherent group of strengths and weaknesses. Opponent awareness is an important part of match day preparation. Player profiling involves looking past strokes.
NOTE:  Whenever possible, as I coach players from the 12’s to the ATP/WTA pros, I apply the below profiling topics.

Opponent Profiling:

  • Make an effort to scout an upcoming opponent beforehand.
  • Scout opponent’s primary style of play.
  • Scout opponent’s preferred serve patterns (especially on mega points).
  • Scout opponent’s preferred return of serve position and shot selection on both first and second serve returns.
  • Scout opponent’s favorite go-to rally pattern.
  • Scout opponent’s dominant short-ball option.
  • Scout opponent’s preferred net rushing pattern.
  • Scout opponent’s stroke strengths and weaknesses (Advanced players should also consider the strengths and limitations of strike zones.)
  • Scout opponent’s movement, agility and stamina efficiencies and deficiencies.
  • Scout opponent’s frustration tolerance, focus, and emotional stability.

Opponent profiling should continue from the pre-match phase, all the way through the actual match and into the post-match. Intelligent athletes even jot down notes regarding the opponent’s game on their post-match match logs. This is used as a reminder for the next time the two meet.

Looking Past Strokes:
During the warm up, the uneducated player/parents/coaches often think Player A has the match in the bag.  But what they do not realize is that Player B often wins because of their ability to identify and execute a game plan exposing their opponent’s weakness. Player A may have great looking fundamental strokes but “hidden” flawed mental and/or emotional components. Player B may have average looking strokes, but an incredible proficiency in their mental game. Hence, giving player B the edge due to his ability to isolate weaknesses or exert emotional intelligence at crunch time.  

Tournament Periodization

Posted on October 24, 2015 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, The Tennis Parent's Bible

The Second Edition of The Tennis Parent’s Bible is coming soon! Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

 

Frank Giampaolo

The Tournament Players Periodization Cycle

 

Scheduling requires the understanding of the Periodization process. Periodization training requires factoring in the following 10 essential stages to insure growth as well as optimal performance during competition. Educated coaches and parents not only know what to focus on, but even more importantly, when to focus on them. Uneducated parents and coaches often sabotage their player’s year in-year out by unknowingly choosing the incorrect time to dismantle a flawed stroke, begin a new regime or even engage in a confrontation … Let’s look at the cycle from a tournaments end all the way through to the next tournaments beginning.

 

Stage 1: Post Match Recovery
Insist your player completely detach from the sport. Allow them to recover and heal their physical body, emotional wounds and the pressure of cognitive processing under stress.

Stage 2: Slowly Restart the Fitness Component
Re-introduce the athlete’s endurance, speed, agility and stretching requirements.

Stage 3: Begin Match Chart Reviews and Essential Match Play Video Analysis
Topics include: Performance assessments, opponent profiling- styles of play/shifts in styles, favorite go-to patterns ( Top 7), movement strengths & weaknesses, focus issues/lapses in concentration, anger/ emotional management, athletes problem solving skills, between point rituals /changeover rituals, fundamental and secondary stroke efficiencies and deficiencies.

Stage 4: Devise an Agreed upon Action Plan Based on Stage 3’s Findings
This includes on-court as well as off court physical, mental or emotional development. Seek weekly improvement versus the need to always win. Focus on improving -fixing weaknesses.

Stage 5: Re-Introduce On-Court Basic Stroke Production with Dead Ball “Feeding” Drills
This includes grooving existing strokes, strike zones and motor programming, while adding fundamental on-court movement, spacing and footwork essentials.

Stage 6: Incorporate Negative Scoring to Re-Introduce the Essential Emotional/ Focus Component
In a negative scoring drill, the athlete is asked to perform a stroke or shot sequencing pattern ten times throughout the drill, deducting a point for each error along the way. Mistake management is essential.  Error awareness in practice is a missing link in the art of developing the emotional muscle.

Stage 7: Introduce Secondary Strokes and Customized Offense, Neutral, Defense Patterns of Play
Shot sequencing patterns are selected with purpose and are essential pre-set protocols customized to each athlete.

Stage 8: Practice in the Manner They’re Expected to Perform
Introduce live ball serve games, return games, rally games and approach shot versus passing shot games.

Stage 9: Introduce the Essential Multi-Tasking Requirements Required in Match Play
Begin playing sets starting at 2-2. This adaptation allows the competitors to arrive at the important pressure packed “money” part of each set faster and more frequently. Playing only one set practice matches does not prepare you to win 2 out of 3 sets required in a real match. By starting at 2-2, athletes can rehearse closing out 3 sets instead of one set.

Stage: 10: Play Set-Tie Breakers (First to 7) and Championship Tie Breakers (First to 10)
Tie breaker repetition insures your athlete is comfortable with the process. Remind your athlete to mentally revisit the set before each tie breaker to identify tendencies/ strengths/ weakness.  Apply match charting to organize their game plan and opponent profiling to assess their probable strategic options.

Parents, please meet with your child’s coaches regarding this critical developmental cycle. High IQ Tennis Coaches will assist you in organizing your child’s blue-print.

 

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
MaximizingTennisPotential.com
Affiliate 

 

COMMON PIT FALLS OF TOURNAMENT PLAY

Posted on October 18, 2015 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, The Tennis Parent's Bible

Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

 

COMMON PIT FALLS OF TOURNAMENT PLAYThe Tennis Parent's Bible by Frank Giampaolo

 

As tournament play approaches, common stumbling blocks sabotage even the most talented athletes. Does your athlete apply the below winning habits? Often the difference between winning and losing isn’t their athletic ability, it’s their preparation for battle.

Complete Pre-Match Warm-Up

Warm up the primary and secondary strokes and patterns needed to beat any style of opponent. Every tool in the tool belt should be warmed up.

Maintain Match Focus

During the match, does your player keep their intensity and focus up until the match is complete. Often intermediate athletes have a comfortable 4-1 lead and tend to relax and lose focus, now thanks to them; it’s a 5-5 dog fight!

Adapt and Problem Solve

Worthy opponents change their losing game plans.  If an opponent switches to their plan “B”, it’s your child’s responsibility to spot the tactical change and adapt/problem solve. Does your player have a script to pull each style of opponent out of their comfort zone?

Spot and Control the Mega and Mini Mega Points

Remember, your player must take the match from a champion. Expecting opponents to fall apart and quit when it gets tough won’t happen against the top players. Controlling the “big” points is a critical factor. Does your player know the difference between a positive and a negative game point?

Perform your Between Point Rituals

Controlling the tempo of the match, your heart rate, mistake management, anger management and problem solving takes place in between points. Often against weaker players, your athlete may be able to ignore between-point and change-over rituals. Though later when your child comes up against a real competitor and needs rituals to problem solve, they find themselves in unchartered territory- uncomfortable with their rituals and therefore unable applying them to problem solve. Has your child mastered between point rituals?

Apply the Laws of Offensive, Neutral and Defensive Shot Selection

Some players tend to go for glamorous offensive shots when they are in a neutral “building” situation. Others tend to get scared and fall back to simply hitting neutral shots when they have an offensive situation. Have you dedicated lesson time to focus on hitting the shot the moment demands?

Control the Energy Flow

The opponent wins 3 games in a row and your player just wanders aimlessly to the next point. Their head is slumped, with a “poor me”…or a “deer in the headlights” look on your face. They are the only one who can stop this energy flow. Does your player have a pre-set protocol to set in motion when they lose three games in a row?

Second Match Warm up Routines

Before the second match of the day intermediate athletes don’t bother to re-start their pre match rituals. They don’t bother with a short warm up or visualization with their next opponent’s game in mind. Heck, they don’t even go for a run before checking in. They’re sluggish, unfocused and often go down in flames. Does your player have a second match of the day warm up routine?

Read Notes As Needed

If your player is being outplayed and can’t find an answer to get into the match, he/she should have their patterns and plans written down and should review them during the changeover. For example, if your player is losing to a moonball pusher…reviewing their moonball/pusher notes will refresh the appropriate patterns needed to be employed. Are your player’s notes typed out, laminated and placed in a safe pocket of your racket bag?

Lastly to the Player…Gratitude

Does your player realize their family is 100% behind them? Players need to know that their team is assisting them with their life’s quest. Whether they are driving to lessons, hitting sessions, off-court workouts, practice matches and tournaments or organizing daily developmental essentials, they are sacrificing the hundreds of things they could be doing for themselves…because they believe in you! They spend their time and money on ….you because they want to help your achieve your goals. Yet, some athletes’ are all too often mad at their parents/coaches.

Players, you don’t have a chance without the support of your parents. Instead of the “attitude” try “gratitude.” Your parents and coaches are the best allies you’ll ever have. When was the last time you thanked your parents/coaches?

 

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
MaximizingTennisPotential.com
Affiliate 

 

Frank Giampaolo Talk Radio Show

Posted on October 14, 2015 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, Raising Athletic Royalty, The Tennis Parent's Bible

JOIN US
THIS THURSDAY!
OCTOBER 15, 2015 at 5:30 P.M. Eastern Time

ac47f7ae-9ba8-41b8-a438-ede80d644170_image

John L. Danise,

Executive Director of the Florida High School
Tennis Coaches Association
Interviews

Bestselling Author Frank Giampaolo
Discussing the process of
Raising Athletic Royalty.

To Listen Live Call: 714-583-6853 or
Connected to:
www.BlogTalkRadio/UR10Snetwork
(Or log on later to hear the recorded pod cast.)

Frank will be available to answer questions after the show!
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PRESENTS
The Tennis Parent/ Player/ Coaches Maximizing Tennis Potential Seminar

Join Us Live December 13, 2015 in Daytona Beach, Florida for a
Very Special One Day Workshop

Topics Will Include:

  1. Brain Typing & Body Typing Athletes
    2.Organizing Game Plans
    3.Why Life Skills Equals Results
    4. Pre Match Preparation -Morphing into an Athletic Warrior
    5.Primary versus Secondary Strokes
    6.The Mental Component: How to Preset Protocols
    7.The Emotional Component: How to Preset Protocols
    8.Time Management: The 168 Hour Rule
    9. Flexible Skills Training vs Consistent Skills Training
    10.Practice in the Manner You’re Expected to Perform
    11.The Top Tennis Parent Blunders & How to Avoid Them
    12.Parental Match Day Communication
    13.Why it Pays Tenfold to Educate the Parents
  2. Tennis Parent Job Descriptions
  3. Organizing the Athletes Customized Developmental Plan

Important Note from the FHSTCA Conference:

  1. Frank’s Seminar-Tennis Parent/Coaches Workshop is an added bonus for us. It is not included in the HS Coaches Conference but an optional addition to it.
  2. Frank’s seminar is for the parents and coaches of serious HS players. The athlete is encouraged to attend.
  3. To Register Go To:
    maximizetennispotential.com/shop/ and
    select FHSTCA Seminar.
    Space is limited for this intimate classroom event.
  4. Coaches and parents can receive more information regarding the workshop by contacting Frank at FGSA@earthlink.net

 

Plan for Success

Posted on October 7, 2015 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, Raising Athletic Royalty, The Tennis Parent's Bible

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

 

The Formula for Achieving Results

All too often, competitive parents and athletes have dreams they mistake for goals. The disconnect starts with confusing dreams with goals. A dream is only a goal if it has an organized plan. For example, when I ask naturally talented athletes about their goals, they most often answer with uncontrollable outcome dreams. Such as: being ranked top in the nation, winning the state championship, receiving a NCAA D-1 athletic scholarship or playing pro ball.

These are nice dreams but remember:

“A goal without a deliberate customized developmental plan is actually a dream in disguise.”

Although elite athletes may also have the above dreams, the difference is that they realize their success is a result of quantifiable performance orientated process goals. It isn’t always the most naturally gifted athletes that are successful, it is the athletes with strong work ethics and a plan.

 

 

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
MaximizingTennisPotential.com
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Losing versus Getting Beat

Posted on September 29, 2015 by in The Tennis Parent's Bible

The following post is an excerpt from THE SECOND EDITION of The Tennis Parent’s Bible– COMING SOON!!!  Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

 

 

Losing versus Getting Beat

For every 64 talented juniors that enter a six round tournament draw- all 64 have the same outcome goal: “I want to win!” Unfortunately 63 of those players go home losers. Although the nature of the draw format dictates only one champion, not all 63 lose- some of them get beat. There’s a big difference between getting beat and losing a match. Being defeated should be viewed from a new perspective.

 

“Attempting to never make a bad shot stops your athlete’s flow of great shots. Great winners and correct errors come from the same relaxed  free zone.”

 

Let’s look deeper into the cause of the loss:

In my book, being outplayed by someone is getting beat. It is absolutely fine to get beat by someone who is:

  • Executing their best style of play.
  • Performing their best strategies & tactics.
  • Working harder.
  • Controlling the mega points.
  • Choosing to utilize the rituals they’ve developed.

 

In the above situation, the opponent may actually deserved the victory. On the other side of getting beat, is losing. It is much more painful to lose a match when:

  • Your child is more talented but their opponent is a harder worker.
  • Your child chooses not to employ their best style of play or falls into their opponent’s style of play.
  • Your child makes too many reckless, unforced errors.
  • Your child is too passive to compete at crunch time.
  • Your child doesn’t bother to spot and attack the opponent’s weaknesses.

Making your opponent beat you while applying your best style of play is actually a win-win situation. It’s what I call a mental and emotional commitment. When your player is confident and committed to playing their patterns and tactics, they often beat even the top seeds. But even if they don’t win the match, they’ll have no regrets. They will have attempted their best systems and that is all that can be expected.

Parents, please promote that learning to win or lose by confidently playing their best style of play is learning to ‘fail’ correctly.

 

“There is a difference between missing the actual shot the moment demands and missing random, reckless shots.”

 

“Parents and coaches must acknowledge that by taking the risk to compete, your child will likely lose in almost every high level tennis tournament. Parents must reinforce that losing the correct way, playing the game systems they have been trained, is their best shot at beating the best players.”

 

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
MaximizingTennisPotential.com
Affiliate