December 2005 -- In the past 10 to 15 years, Americans have rushed into fitness facilities in order to stay in shape, control their weight and get their cardio workout. After extensive research and recognizing the need for tennis to be part of the fitness trend, the Tennis Industry Association created a fantastic packaged program called “Cardio Tennis.”
Cardio Tennis is a fun group activity that helps tennis compete with the fitness industry through an exciting workout, the use of music and heart rate monitors. This nonstop tennis program includes a five- to 10-minute warm-up, a 40- to-50-minute workout at 65 percent to 85 percent of the players’ maximum heart rate, and finishes with an easy cool-down phase.
The key to this fun group program is you, the tennis professional, and your personality and feeding skills. The social atmosphere, the intensity of the workout, and the ability to adapt to different skill-level players depend on the professional delivering the program.
The ideal personality of a Cardio Tennis professional is upbeat, fired up, and bursting with intensity and enthusiasm. When you set up your Cardio Tennis program, pick the pros who best fit this description. People are looking for opportunities to work out. They are even considering the elliptical machines or treadmills at the gym. How boring! People want to have fun. As tennis professionals we can provide fun and intensity at the same time! Be prepared. Have your stations ready on court before your students show up – sideline activities, fitness ladders and cones, as well as tons of balls, your music box and heart rate monitors. Get started with an upbeat warm-up. Use a cheerful and encouraging tone of voice. Offer a variety of activities. Show that big smile on your face and how excited you are that for this hour of the day, you get to liberate the game of tennis, play music and have a blast!
Feeding is going to be just as critical as your upbeat personality. If you have eight people on one court you need to be able to double feed, triple feed, dodge balls and pay attention to student safety at the same time.
Here are a few tips to help tennis professionals become great feeders:
- Use proper equipment, including a full cart that is at the right height for you, and a light racquet that is easy to maneuver and less tiring for your arm.
- Position the cart on your left side (if you are right-handed), slightly in front of you. Keep your eyes up to the players and balls coming your way.
- Develop a rhythm in your feeding. Always try to have two balls in your hand for nonstop action!
- Use a grip that is comfortable for you, but stay away from western and semiwestern grips. A hammer grip or even eastern backhand should work well. You can even choke up on the racquet to make the feed easier.
- Learn double and triple feeds for the drill-based part of your Cardio Tennis program. Keep your players moving.
- Set up your rotations. Lateral drills – start from one corner of the court and move all the way across; use a double or triple feed. Let the players rotate through a sideline activity such as a fitness ladder. Linear drills – usually with two lines moving forward and players exiting on the outside. Use a double feed.
- Adapt your feed to the fitness and tennis level of each player.
– For beginner players who are in good shape, use a fast frequency with a soft feed. For the more out-of-shape, advanced players, use a slow frequency with a fast feed.
- Accuracy – you need to feed fast but with accuracy. Your feeds need to be challenging. Keep in mind the key to a great Cardio Tennis workout will be accurate feeds that challenge both a person’s fitness level and playing ability.
If you want to fine-tune some of these skills, refer to the Cardio Tennis DVD which has specific short segments on feeding and motivation. You can receive the DVD and other exciting marketing tools free of charge through our partners’ Web site by becoming an official Cardio Tennis site. You can also learn more about feeding and personality approaches on the www.Partners.CardioTennis.com Web site. Finally, if there is a Cardio Tennis Workshop in your area, try to attend. Usually there are specific sessions on feeding approaches.
In a nutshell, you are the key to an exciting Cardio Tennis program. Your smiling face, encouraging words, and upbeat body language, together with well-trained feeding skills adapted to the level of the student, are the key ingredients to a successful Cardio Tennis program. With these qualities, you can capitalize on the huge potential to increase revenues and participation in your area through this fun, new fitness activity!
