Summer Sports Series: TENNIS

By Melissa Garcia, PT, DPT, CSCS

There’s greater opportunity for more outdoor activities as the sun shines longer through the summer. Tennis is a popular sport across all ages for a reason! I worked as a tennis coach and racquet specialist before becoming a physical therapist, and continue to share my knowledge with my patients in addition to their rehabilitation. Little do people know that structured physical therapy can not only reduce pain with injuries but also greatly improve performance.

Mobility

Tennis is a dynamic sport with movement occuring in all planes of motion. Take the serve as an example. The hip, lower back, and ankle need to function in sync during a serve in order to properly load the lower body. Additionally the thoracic spine, shoulder, and neck must be able to extend and laterally bend to reach and follow through the serve. If one of these sections of the body lacks the proper mobility to execute the serve, compensations occur in other areas. These compensations are not only inefficient movement patterns but can also lead to excessive stress on the tissues and injury.

Neuromuscular Control

The concept of neuromuscular control is ultimately trained and executed by your brain. The brain coordinates controlled, specific, and efficient movements in order to complete a complex motion. Especially post injury, neuromuscular control declines and it becomes difficult to coordinate once simple and small motions. On the other hand, you don’t need to be injured to have poor motor control. A tennis stroke requires coordinated sequencing of loading and releasing energy to the ball in a controlled manner. If your hips aren’t able to coordinate energy transfer to your trunk and shoulder, power output and control start to decline. Exercise programs for neuromuscular control look a little different than traditional strength training. They are necessary for the development of a well rounded athlete.

Stability and Strength

Muscle capacity, strength, and stability are important qualities when it comes to a technical sport like tennis. Tennis however is a combination of power, endurance, and strength, making it a very taxing sport on the body. When the demands of a sport exceed the capacity of the tissue, such as muscles or tendons, the athlete is at risk of overtraining and injury. At Bespoke Treatments, we offer testing of various metrics when it comes to performance such as VO2 max, strength, and power testing, allowing our athletes to set objective goals with a structured program.

Common Injuries

Many common injuries that we treat in the clinic include but are not limited to wrist pain, lateral epicondylitis (tennis elbow), shoulder impingement, neck pain, lower back pain, and patellar tendonitis. As discussed in the above sections, if one area of the body lacks the proper strength, mobility, or muscular control, it will depend on other, less efficient areas. For example, the player with lower back pain may lack the hip extension and rotational mobility to properly load for a stroke or serve. As a result, the lower back may compensate by overextending. With every stroke and serve, the player’s tissue tolerance to loaded extension may lead to complaints of pain. Similarly the lack of thoracic mobility will also affect the players ability to reach up for an overhead or rotate through a forehand, placing the shoulder under increased amounts of stress. A comprehensive evaluation of the player’s strength, mobility, and coordination, and swing by a physical therapist is the most optimal way to troubleshoot any deficiencies in your game!

Notes on Equipment

The racquet plays an important role in the development of consistent and controlled strokes and can really make or break a player’s game. Factors such as string selection and tension affect the way the compressive forces of the tennis ball are absorbed and redirected back into the court. The frame flexibility, weight, and size are all important factors in improving your game. Each individual’s swing and playing style are different, thus the equipment varies greatly depending on the person. 

Have Fun!

As complicated as tennis can seem, it’s a great sport for all levels of fitness. It’s important to enjoy the time you spend on the court as well as work towards whatever fitness or performance goals you have set. Set yourself up for long term success with a regular exercise and/or physical therapy program to improve your game!