A few ways in which Yoga improves your tennis game.
Wondering if Yoga improves your Tennis game? From its origins in India, Yoga has found its way into daily routines of peoples around the globe. With the constantly increasing popularity of yoga’s benefits, more and more professional athletes are incorporating yoga into their daily routines. And tennis players are no exception to this.
Tennis is a tough sport which demands strength, flexibility, and mental concentration. And many dedicated players, from the amateurs to the professionals, understand that incorporating yoga into their tennis practice can improve their game.
So, to save your time, I’ve put together a simple guide that explains everything you need to know about how yoga can help to enhance your tennis.
Can bring tennis players back into balance
Tennis is fundamentally a one-sided sport, tennis players use the same arm for forehand and backhand strokes, which induces imbalances in muscle development and as a result, one side of the body tends to be more developed than the other.
Unequal development of the body ultimately leads to muscular misalignment resulting in persistent pain in the back, hips, legs, and knees. Yoga can help to build balance and symmetry on both sides of the body making players stronger and less prone to injury.
Improves Flexibility
It’s no secret that yoga helps to make the body more flexible. Fostering flexibility in tennis is an excellent way to maximize the range of muscles and joints. With flexible body,
- You can improve your stride length and we know that stride length impacts running and jumping economy, thereby influencing the amount of energy required to move on the court or jump for a serve.
- Mid-back rotation, which is crucial for your backhand, becomes easier and faster.
Can increase core strength
Establishing a regular yoga practice can strengthen all of the core muscles as many yoga poses require you to support and balance the weight of your own body in different ways. Added strength, will enable you to add power to your strokes without losing your balance.
Helps to stay concentrated
Tennis is a game of tactics, being calm and centred is essential for success in any match. Yoga bestows a calming effect on the mind and helps us to be more focused and present at the moment, which improves the ability to block distraction and to select shot placement.
Improve Breathing = Increase Endurance
Breath training is an integral part of yoga and Pranayama (Yoga Breathing) is the foundation of any yoga exercise. Practising relaxed diaphragmatic breathing prepares us to use our lungs more efficiently, which lead to greater on-court endurance.
Deep breathing exercises improve the blood circulation and cardiovascular strength, which results in perfectly restored & revitalized energy.
And the list goes on…
Yoga can help a tennis player in so many ways that it is impossible to list out all here. The bottom line is- Yoga is something that a tennis player MUST incorporate in his/her daily exercise.
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