The secret to staying consistent

Kristianne Bontempo | Towpath Tennis Employee | Online Shop Manager 

Towpath's Alex Aleman demonstrating
how to warm up with consistency. 

There's always going to be those times when a short hiatus is unavoidable whether you're going on vacation, have an injury, or just haven't had the time to play. It's not uncommon to return to the court a little rusty, but with the right strategy in place you'll feel like you never left.
Play it slowww. Many times we return to the court with enough energy to smack that fuzzy yellow ball through the back fence, but hitting as hard as you can will not only keep you off balance, it also becomes a struggle to gauge any sort of rhythm. The key here is to play at a slow enough pace that will allow you to get back into ready position in time to anticipate the next shot.

Over-exaggerate your strokes. Maintaining optimum technique is a challenge after a break on the court, especially when the goal is to hit deep with good net clearance. To achieve this, try over-exaggerating the motion of your strokes as a pro would when demonstrating a shot. You'll settle back into your comfort zone in no time.

Stay on your toes. It's easy to tell any returning player to keep their feet moving at all times, but when you've been on a long enough hiatus-it ain't happening. The important thing to remember when your feet are dragging is to rock slightly onto your toes (or the balls of your feet) and keep them grounded as you swing. This will kick those feet into gear while still remaining balanced so you can focus on hitting at your strike zone. 

Have realistic expectations. Did you really expect to make a perfect cross-court approach shot right from the gate? Your game needs some fine tuning so be patient, keep practicing and give yourself some slack! 

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Getting vs. Taking

Dallas Aleman | Towpath Tennis Owner | Tennis Guru


Participants of Towpath's Game On weekend where
players committed to a series of clinics and play.

When it comes to tennis players who are bent on improving, there's a difference between how they motivate themselves during lessons and how they view the improvement process itself. We call this getting vs. taking.

There are players out there that spend some time and money to get lessons as the 'be all and end all' of improving. They come ready and willing for the pro to give them something of value to make their game better, and they wait for the pro to mark a course of improvement.

Then there are those players that take the best of any program or lesson available. They push more, ask more questions, explore opportunities, and invent new ways to work on their game. Basically they do more than the minimum. These players are eager to learn and take the time and do the work.

We commend everyone that takes the initiative in taking private lessons and programs to improve their game, however it is the player that takes the extra step that will see a leap of improvement in no time.

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