Tag Archives: The Tennis Parents Bible

Secret to Maximizing Potential

Posted on March 11, 2015 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, The Tennis Parent's Bible

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

 

Ten Essential Skills to Maximizing Potential

In this decade, the standard in which every industry performs is doubling and tripling annually. The world of competitive sports is no different. The game’s standards are constantly rising. How does this affect the parent’s role? Due to the increasing numbers of competitors, parents are forced to become more involved in their child’s development. Even in a one-court shot gun shack tennis club in Russia, the competition is training more efficiently. The competition is bigger, faster, stronger and smarter than ever.

FUN FACT: Let’s look at the evolution of the average service speed of some of the #1 player on the ATP pro tour. In 1980: Connors served 84 mph; 1990: Becker served at 112 mph; 2000: Sampras served 128 mph; 2010: ATP professionals often hit the 140 mph range. Andy Roddick holds the current record with a 155 mph delivery! So, what’s the actual service speed your little “Joey” will need to serve on tour in the year 2020… 160 mph plus. That’s evolution baby.

The evolution of your child’s progress is a direct link to their new found training methods. Progress is not made while staying in one’s comfort zone. I suggest asking your youngster to step outside of their comfort zone as they enter into the learning zone. This is where advances actually take place. The Tennis Parent’s Bible’s has identified ten essential steps to accelerate your child’s performance. The following post addresses 3 out of 10 essential steps:

Brain Types and Body Types

Hopefully, you’ve taken some time to visit Braintypes.com and familiarize yourself with how you and your child are wired. Different brain types certainly excel at the physical sides of the game, while some types handle pressure and evaluate tendencies better. Tennis experts agree that a combination of motor skills, mental skills and emotional skills are required at the higher levels. Understanding your child’s preferences will assist you in building their weakest link. Other wonderful benefits of understanding brain types include: disagreement resolution, relationship building, academics and vocation.

Organize a Quarterly Schedule

Purchase a weekly planner and structure in the different areas of development. This includes tournaments, off-court gym, cardio work, hitters, lessons, practice sets, and video analysis to review game days

Nurture All Four Sides of a Complete Player

  1. Primary and Secondary Stroke Skills
    The four different forehands, four different backhands, three different serves and four different volleys need to be developed. Players possessing keen primary strokes and non-existent secondary strokes are usually come in second in a field of two. Your child’s game needs depth to go deep into the draw.
  2. Shot and Pattern Selection Skills
    Independently place your child in an offense, neutral or defensive position. Drill the movement and typical shot selections of that position. Secondly, assist your youngster in designing their proactive patterns. That is their serve patterns, return patterns, rally patterns and net rushing patterns.
  3. Movement and Fitness Skills
    Anticipatory speed is just as important as foot speed. A typical movement drill requires the coach to explain the sequence. The coach says, “Ok, forehand approach shot, forehand volley, backhand volley, overhead, let’s do it!”  I recommend training brain speed as well. So, I would say “Get to the net, I’ll give you 4-6 shots”. I would randomly mix in approach shots, swing volley approach shots, traditional volleys, half volleys and overheads.  Now, multitasking begins. In essence, practicing in the manner in which their expected to perform.
  4. Focus and Emotional Skills
    Emotions come into play during live ball, not drills. We call it dress rehearsal/stress rehearsal. In the session, start sets half way through and asks your child to close it out with role playing.

Here are a few valuable lessons to handle in simulated live ball drills:

  • If your child has trouble with cheaters, every ball your child hits on the line, the opponent gets to call it out. This rehearses emotional control, as well as the art of winning while keeping the balls away from the opponent’s lines.
  •  If your child has trouble closing out a lead; ask them to only focus on sticking to the exact game plan that got them the lead. A common focus flaw is getting bored with an easy set, then going for low percentage, exotic shots.
  • Another typical focus flaw is shifting from playing “to win” (AKA: Attacking) to simply pushing or “playing not to lose.” Many intermediate players get a lead against a top seed and then begin to push. Essentially hoping the top player will choke to them, and hand them the trophy. Guess what, top players didn’t reach the top by choking away matches to lesser players!
  •  If your child hates to play moonball/pushers, hire a college player to role play and be a pusher for the session. Ask your child to rehearse the side door/short angle pattern, the moonball approach shot to swing volley pattern and their drop shot to pass and lob patterns in actual dress rehearsals. I estimate it takes 100 hours of specific pattern rehearsals to perfect the skills needed to beat a top pusher.

 

 

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

 

Common Tennis Parent Personalities

Posted on March 10, 2015 by in New Zealand Summit YouTubes

The following post is an excerpt from Maximizing Tennis Potential.  Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

 

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

 

Only Playing Up Matches?

Posted on March 9, 2015 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, Primary and Secondary Strokes, The Tennis Parent's Bible

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

 

 

Should my child only play up matches?

Tennis skills must be practiced on the practice court and during practice matches. If your child is expected to win every practice match, they will most likely not practice new tennis skills for fear of losing the practice match.  Putting too much stress on winning a practice match can be very destructive in the development of  a high performance player.

Most junior tennis players and their parents fall into the trap of ONLY seeking “up” matches. Up matches or playing someone better is a terrific way for your child to rehearse their A game plan. It can provide a major confidence boost to hold your own or even take a set from a higher level player. It’s a prominent way to get pushed and stretched to the limit.

Two Pitfalls of ONLY Playing Up Matches:

  1. Your child will lose most of the time and that isn’t always the best way to motivate some brain types.
  2. Your child’s practice match victories may be a false victories! A false victory is achieved when the higher level opponent isn’t trying to win, but is using your child as a sparring partner to rehearse his or her B or C game plans, secondary strokes or patterns. I often ask my players to play lesser players and focus on only hitting slice backhands. They are not trying to win at all.

FUN FACT: Alexa Glatch was a great Southern California junior player. She went on to play on the WTA tours and played on the U.S. Federation Cup squad. All through her junior career we scheduled sparring matches. She would be absolutely okay with losing most of her practice matches, as she rehearsed her weaker proactive patterns or her secondary strokes that she didn’t quite own. Yet in tournament junior match play, she would bring her A game plan and beat most top juniors. Essentially giving her practice match opponents fits.

I suggest asking your child to spend an equal amount of time playing weaker players. This will assist in the development of their B and C game plans. We know that players need to master different styles of play in order to be a contender at the national level. Juniors, quite honestly, won’t even try to develop their B and C game in an up practice match. (They don’t want to lose at a faster rate. Can you blame them?) If they won’t rehearse those skills in an up practice match …and they do not want to play practice sets against weaker opponents…when will the skills be developed and rehearsed?

The interesting question is: Why won’t your child play players they speculate are worse? Usually it is a genuine fear of an ego whipping.

SPECIAL NOTE: Players that won’t play down practice matches can often blame their parent’s fragile ego. Uneducated parents unknowingly sabotage their child’s growth by not allowing them to play sets versus different styles and levels of opponents. Consider paying a college player or great adult club player to play practice matches?

At our workshops, we structure practice sets against different styles of opponents, not just different levels. If your child has issues beating a Moonball/Pusher… guess what we focus on? You guessed it, the tools required to beat a Moonball/Pusher! Also, we gladly assist players in finding a weekly up match as long as they agree to play a down match as well.

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

 

 

 

 

Whose Tennis Dream Is It?

Posted on March 8, 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

Maximizing Tennis Potential with Frank Giampaolo

Whose tennis dream is it?

Question: My husband wants it more than my son. Can you talk to him?

A few days after Kathy called me with her concerns, I noticed her husband Steve in the club’s gym riding the life cycle. I said, “Steve, can we talk about Jake’s tennis?”

“Kathy called you, didn’t she?”

“Yes”, I said.

He wiped the sweat off his brow and said. “Can I meet you in the lounge in a few minutes?”

Sure, I said. I put away my tennis gear and Steve was waiting for me in the corner booth with two iced teas.

“She’s upset by the way I push Jake. I know I ride him pretty damn good, but he’s got a real shot.”

“Steve, I agree, but what’s fueling you to push him so hard?”

Steve said, “What do you mean?”

I said, “What’s the spark that lit this tennis flame? Why is it such a life mission for you to see Jake at the top?”

Steve reaches over, shakes down two sweet-n-lows and looks down.

As a coach, I can tell he’s not quite sure how deep he’s willing to dig.

I sit in silence, giving him time and space as he drinks down half his tea. Then he says, “I never had a shot. I was good…real good. Man, I was better than the rich kids who were handed everything. Even back then, the kids that were ranked higher than me had one thing I didn’t…parents who were invested. I wasn’t born into this kind of life style. I was raised in Bloomington, Indiana. It wasn’t exactly the hotbed of the tennis world back in the 70’s. If you didn’t play football or basketball you got beat up. Besides that, my folks couldn’t be bothered. My parents weren’t into sports. In fact, they weren’t much into anything I did.

You see, I loved this sport with a passion. So much that I mowed lawns in the summer and shoveled snow in the winter to buy rackets, strings, and tennis shoes. I paid my own way into any tournament I could get to. At Christmas I would ask for tennis clothes or tennis shoes or even for my folks to take me to an out of town tournament.

Hey, do you remember shoe Goo? Man, I had such big holes in the toes of my tennis shoes that I had to re-apply that stuff nightly just so I wouldn’t tear through all my socks. I would play until my toes bled.

These kids now-a-days have it so easy. See, my folks didn’t care. It was all about them. You know how some people are givers and some are takers? Mine were takers. The only thing I remember them giving me consistently was chores!  I remember deciding back when I was a teen that when I have kids I was going to be different. I was going to give them every opportunity that I never got.”

I grabbed my straw, spun the ice, drank a sip and said, “Steve, I’m sorry you didn’t get your shot, I really am. But the fact is most of us didn’t. Maybe that’s what makes guys like you and me better parents and better coaches.” I looked at him and said, “I read once that scars are there to remind us of the past, there not here to destroy the future.”

Steve finished his tea, signaled the waitress for two more and said, “What do you recommend?”

For the next hour or so, Steve and I devised a way for him to share his story with Jake. I thought it was meaningful for Jake to know where is father was coming from. Second, I asked Steve to let Jake share his opinion. Allow him to be the leader. Just listen with an open heart. Third, I explained that Jake’s brain type is ENFP (Extrovert, Intuitive, Feeler and Perceiver). The command and control style of military leadership that Steve grew up with doesn’t work for that type. I asked Steve to let go of some of the control.

SPECIAL NOTE: When Steve was talking so openly about his parents, he didn’t have a lot of positive things to say about their parenting skills, yet he adapted his father’s exact parenting style.

We talked until the club closed about trying more of an inspirational leadership approach versus the drill sergeant approach. Lastly, we agreed that Steve would begin to focus on nurturing Jake’s leadership skills and slowly start to teach himself reliance. Steve agreed that it’s time for Jake to begin to play the game for all the right reasons.

FUN FACT: Two weeks later Kathy called me and said “Thank you so much, I don’t know what you guys talked about but something clicked.” Steve and Jake have a better appreciation for each other. They seem to have the same agenda but now they laugh and joke around much more. She said that Jake is actually scheduling his own practice sets, stringing his own rackets and going to the gym on his own. Steve is like a different person.

 

 

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

 

 

 

SHOULD MY CHILD ONLY PLAY UP MATCHES? 3/7/2015

The following post is from The Tennis Parent’s Bible. Enjoy, Frank

Tennis skills must be practiced on the practice court and during practice matches. If your child is expected to win every practice match, they will most likely not practice new tennis skills for fear of losing the practice match.  Putting too much stress on winning a practice match can be very destructive in the development of  a high performance player.

Most junior tennis players and their parents fall into the trap of ONLY seeking “up” matches. Up matches or playing someone better is a terrific way for your child to rehearse their A game plan. It can provide a major confidence boost to hold your own or even take a set from a higher level player. It’s a prominent way to get pushed and stretched to the limit.

Beware of two pitfalls:

The first is that your child will lose most of the time and that isn’t always the best way to motivate some brain types.

The second, be aware that it may be a false victory! A false victory is achieved when the higher level opponent isn’t trying to win, but is using your child as a sparring partner to rehearse his or her B or C game plans, secondary strokes or patterns. I often ask my players to play lesser players and focus on only hitting slice backhands. They are not trying to win at all.

Alexa Glatch is a great Southern California junior player. She is highly ranked on the WTA tours and has played on the U.S. Federation Cup squad. All through her junior career we scheduled sparring matches. She would be absolutely ok with losing most of the practice matches as she rehearsed her weaker proactive patterns or her secondary strokes that she didn’t quite own. The other top 10 nationally ranked juniors wouldn’t dare rehearse their weaker patterns and plays because they were obsessed with having to win on the practice court.

FUN FACT: Each player that beat Alexa on the practice court played division 1 college ball, while Alexa enjoyed life traveling the world on the on the WTA pro tour.

I suggest asking your child to spend an equal amount of time playing weaker players. This will assist in the development of their B and C game plans. We know that players need to master different styles of play in order to be a contender at the national level.

Juniors, quite honestly, won’t even try to develop their B and C game in an up practice match. (They don’t want to lose at a faster rate. Can you blame them?) If they won’t rehearse those skills in an up practice match …and they do not want to play practice sets against weaker opponents…when will the skills be developed and rehearsed?

The interesting question is: Why won’t your child play players they speculate are worse? Usually it is a genuine fear of an ego whipping.

SPECIAL NOTE: Players that won’t play down practice matches can often blame their parent’s fragile ego. Uneducated parents unknowingly sabotage their child’s growth by not allowing them to play sets versus different styles and levels of opponents.

At our workshops, we structure practice sets against different styles of opponents, not just different levels. If your child has issues beating a Moonball/Pusher… guess what we focus on? You guessed it, the tools required to beat a Moonball/Pusher! Also, we gladly assist players in finding a weekly up match as long as they agree to play a down match as well.

Thanks, Frank Giampaolo

 

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

Parental Sabotage

Posted on March 7, 2015 by in Emotional Tennis, New Zealand Summit YouTubes, Parent Player Communication

 

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

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

Chances of Going Pro?

Posted on March 5, 2015 by in Parent Player Communication, The Tennis Parent's Bible

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

 

 

What are my child’s chances of going Pro?

 

What are my child’s chances of going pro? is a question I am asked over and over again by parents. To answer this question, I have designed another fun “Pop Quiz” as a guide. Take the quiz and you will formulate your own opinion as to what your child’s chances are of becoming a Professional.

Let’s assume that your child wants to play at a top Division 1 University or on the Professional Tour. They already possess keen strokes and a solid physical foundation. The real issue is: Do their words match their actions? Simply answer each question Yes or No. Then check your child’s score at the end.

Attitude

  1. Does your child posses a genuine love for the game of tennis? Yes/No
  2. Is your child being trained to be self-reliant? Yes/No

Commitment

  1. Does your child work on-court training an average of 20 hours a week? Yes/No
  2. Does your child accept that they cannot be a Champion and be a normal teenager? (They have to pick one.)Yes/No

Fitness

  1. Does your child work off -court an average of 6 hours per week on their speed, strength, flexibly, and core stability? Yes/No
  2. Does your child do exercises designed to prevent common injuries? Yes/No

Competitiveness

  1. Does your child work on how to handle frustration? Yes/No
  2. Does your child LOVE the pressure of competitive tennis? Yes/No

Confidence

  1. Is your child comfortable in stressful situations? Yes/No
  2. Does your child spend time after tournaments discovering and overcoming re-occurring nightmares? Yes/No

Problem Solving

  1. Is your child willing to overcome hardships and adversity? Yes/No
  2. Is your child able to handle the many unfair barriers of our sport? Yes/No

Focus

  1. Does your child use proper pre-match, between points, and changeover rituals? Yes/No
  2. Does your child control nervousness and distractions? Yes/No

Tactical Knowledge

  1. Does your child have well-rehearsed plans to beat the different styles of opponents? Yes/No
  2. Has your child developed two meaningful weapons? Yes/No

A Full Time Tennis Parent

  1. Is there a primary tennis parent willing to accept the responsibility, time commitment, and finances of managing a junior tennis champion’s career? Yes/No
  2. Do you chart and/or video tape matches then review them with your child? Yes/No

Mental and Emotional Skills

  1. Have you begun to focus on building your child’s “Tool Belt” with hundreds of mental and emotional tools that they will need to compete at the highest level? Yes/No
  2. Do you have a detailed long and short term goal list and the time management skills required to meet those goals? Yes/No

Scoring the Test

0-2 Yes Answers – Relax and enjoy your normal kid
3-5 Yes Answers – You will need a Miracle
6-10 Yes Answers – Major changes have to be made
11-14 Yes Answers – Your child has a serious shot at Greatness!
15-20 Yes Answers – Pack your bags for Wimbledon!

 

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

Cultivating Proactive Patterns

Posted on March 2, 2015 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, Primary and Secondary Strokes, Tennis Parent Education

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

Cultivating Proactive Patterns

As athletes in every sport progress from recreational players to competitive players they shift from playing reactive ball to proactive ball. Think about organized soccer, basketball and American football. Do they run plays? You bet!

In tennis, your child should shift from playing “catch” (hitting back and forth with their coach) to playing “keep away!”

Many talented tennis players spend their developmental years hitting back and forth from the base line.  You know the drills- down the line, cross court, up the middle etc. But to accelerate your child’s tennis game, be sure their practice includes pattern play and random ball drills.

Can your child list their favorite serving patterns, return of service patterns, rally patterns and net rushing patterns?  If your child hasn’t established these protocols, they are just playing reactive tennis.  Champions play proactive tennis.

The Tennis Parent’s Bible offers hundreds of hours of instruction/ direction for less than the cost of a half hour lesson.

Thanks for visiting, Frank

 

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

Daily Focus Journal

Posted on February 28, 2015 by in Customized Organizational Plan, Maximizing Tennis Potential, 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

What is a Daily Focus Journal?

A daily focus journal is a written schedule or goal.  It may include specific achievements, progress and necessary actions needed. The serious contenders I know, who are finding the success they deserve are completing a daily focus journal. Every night they are listing three to five things they did that day to progress their tennis career.

The key words are “Every Night.” Success is not a random act. It comes from a preconceived set of circumstances. It’s planned.  If our child needs to gain confidence, help them by  tackling their organizational skills.

FUN FACT: Choices Equals Consequences

Examples of daily activities that could be listed in a Daily Focus Journal include:

  • Playing a match
  • Fixing a stroke
  • Stringing their racquets
  • Watching tennis on TV
  • Working on between point rituals
  • Working on how to beat a pusher
  • Finding a new doubles partner
  • Finding practice matches
  • Doing 200 push ups
  • Doing sprints

FUN FACT: When real preparation meets opportunity, success will follow.

 

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

Tennis and the Pain Principle

Posted on February 26, 2015 by in Tennis Parent Education, The Tennis Parent's Bible

 

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

The Pain Principle

Overlooking the pain principle as it relates to tennis growth is a very common mistake.

Remember the old saying? “If you keep on doing what you’ve always done, you’ll keep on getting what you’ve always got.” Players hit common walls in their development. One of those walls is resisting change.

If your child views change, as more painful than losing, they’ll continue in the same losing path. It’s so painful for some to change a flawed grip, stroke or stance; they’d rather accept the pain of losing than deal with changing.

Great things begin to happen when the pain of losing starts to be more powerful than the pain of changing. Once they accept the fact that a change has to be made, they are on their way to the next level.  This is where great parenting comes in.

The cycle of change is a three step process:

  1. Step one is accepting change.
  2. Step two is uncomfortable because they have left their old strokes and their new strokes are not fully formed.
  3. Step three is a 4-6 week developmental cycle. During this phase, their new motor programs become personalized and over-ride the old motor programs.

NOTE: At stage 2, the pain of being uncomfortable often pulls them back to their old strokes.

Placing your youngster into a competitive situation before the three phases are complete may destroy their new motor program and the old strokes will surely return.  The result is wasted time, energy and money. As a parent, be sure your player and coach are on the same page with the necessary changes. Thanks for visiting, Frank

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

Another Holiday Spend on Court

Posted on February 22, 2015 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential

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

Another Holiday Spent on the Tennis Court? 

How many times have you had to defend not being at a holiday celebration because of a tennis tournament?

Many non –high performance family members and/or friends do not get it? And that is okay, but when parents put regular social life events first, their child’s tennis progress can be delayed.  It is very important for the family to decide on their comfortable level of commitment to tennis.

It is not fair to expect the child to perform at peak performance if the parents are not making a 100% commitment.  For example: sending your child to the Spring Nationals the week after returning from a family vacation, away from homework, tennis and work, and expecting success.

High level tennis requires proper preparation. There is a time and place for tennis breaks.  It should be joint decision. Preparing for a tennis tournament is twofold.

  • First, your child should consistently train properly a month or so before a big event.
  • Secondly, they should have a pre-game set of rituals to assist them in their match preparation.

Hours before a match, Nadal morphs into a different personality. Chris Evert said she wouldn’t even call a friend before a match in fear that it may break her concentration. Before each concert, Tom Petty sits quietly alone with his acoustic guitar visualizing and preparing for that night’s concert. Michael Phelps even swam on Christmas Day-practice always came first.

Preparing mind, body and soul before a match is a learned behavior. Allowing your son to go wrestle in the grass with the other kids before a big match isn’t in his best interest. Allowing your daughter to text 39 friends then fight with her boyfriend hours before a big match isn’t in her best interest.

Knowing how and when to turn on the competitor within is critical. Assist your child in finding their own unique game day rituals. After the match is complete, your child can leave it all behind with no regrets.

SPECIAL NOTE: Attending tennis tournaments can be very memorable.  I would always make a special effort to travel and visit local tourist sites or plan special dinners when my daughter was on the tennis trail.  To this day, my family has very fond memories of our tennis travels.  Many of our tennis memories will outlast another holiday sit down dinner.  Enjoy the journey!

 

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