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Sometimes we have to go back and look at natural remedies that our parents and grandparents used and be given a reminder as to why they worked and why they used them. I think Epsom salt is a good example, inexpensive and has some amazing benefits. Epsom salt bath is best tennis training technique for recovery.

Epsom salt is a mineral compound comprised of magnesium and sulfate. It has been used for many many years as a natural remedy. Both magnesium and sulfate are minerals that are very important to tennis players. After strenuous tennis exercise, through your sweat Tennis players will lose essential electrolytes. (Especially magnesium and sulphate). One of the best ways to replenish the body of these essential minerals is through are largest organ, our skin. When Epsom salt is dissolved in warm water it is absorbed through the skin and can naturally replenish lost magnesium and sulphate. This will help increase your energy levels.

If you want to get tennis results from all your...

What do pro tennis players Nadal, Serena, Federrer and Sharapova all have in common? They possess an aura of invincibility that has been created through hours of dedication and focus. Work on these five positive attributes and you may find yourself walking around with more confidence and style.

1. Attitude - By far this is the number one attribute players should strive to achieve and maintain. Having a positive, competitive, hard working attitude will put any player in good stead. A healthy attitude will not only benefit a player’s tennis game, it will draw the attention of coaches and other players.

2. Persistence - Being persistent means, waking up every morning and following a plan, following it with passion, day in day, day out, no matter what the weather is like or how they are feeling, giving 100% in that moment. That’s how progress comes.

3. Discipline - Players need to learn how to control what they can control; discipline gives them more control over more things....

Its true, well a tennis coach should be the boss. However it seems there is a trend that has been developing for a while.... Parents, players and other influences who apparently know better are controlling what happens, on and off the court. In my opinion it is wrong. I can see the problem here coming from two areas.

1. The coach is not strong enough with their players and their support team or they run their business just for profits, not results or the benefit of players and the game (they don't care as they should) so they are happy to let things be.

2. Influences around the player stepping over the boundary and giving bad advice, undermining the players team and chopping and changing things around, which is confusing and causes instability for players.

As a tennis fitness trainer, I know my role and responsibility. When I deal with Tony Roche I ask him what he needs and what I can do. Then he leaves it with me and thats that, if things need to change we communicate it and move...

It’s about dedication, passion and just bloody hard work to succeed."Amanda Bran" is having a crack at becoming a top professional tennis player... Watch her power through a tennis strength training session.

Tennis is not an easy game to reach the top... It takes years of dedication, hard work and a good team that believe in you. It’s never too early to start and never too late to begin.
After many years away from the game, Amanda and her sister (Rebecca) have decided to push themselves and reach their maximum potential.

Check out this video and see her take ownership of this effective specific tennis strength session.


 

How good a spectator are you? We recently had our first book published "Building a tennis champion" and some of the topics in it relate to what we call "tennis parenting".

It's not easy being a tennis parent; you invest time, money and energy. Let's face it at times it can be frustrating to say the least, but the primary role of the parent is to support the child in their environment and be an example of how you want and expect them to act.... Let me tell you a story. I was watching a junior match a few years ago when I was working in Spain. I was there waiting for my team of kids to turn up, so I thought I would watch a match in the meantime, as you do. As well as me there was one set of parents (with one kid) and a very young coach (with the other kid). The match was in the second set when I started watching.

The boys were doing their thing, having a go and competing well. I could hear the father constantly in the ear of his son, literally every point and it definitely was not...

First of all don't be too worried about the future of men's tennis being dominated by 7 foot giants, pushing powerful serves past their opponents to win matches, I can't see this happening, read on and I will tell you why.

One of the great things about tennis is the physical diversity it has with its athletes. And this will always be there. Being a certain height is a benefit, but not a necessity if you want to play great tennis or make it to the top. Olivier Rochus at 5'6" has had a long and successful career on tour; David Ferrer at 5'9" is currently ranked 3 in the world. Then you have the tall boys, John Isner and Ivo Karlovic at 6'10". Matching any of these players up against each other would not mean the taller players would win or even out serve their shorter opponents. Read on to find out Why?

Did you know the average height for the ATP top 100 leading into the Australian open 2014 is 6'2½” Leading into the US open in 2013, 9 out of the top 32 players were 6'5...

“There are no shortcuts. Hard work and dedication is important. For me, I always train with a purpose and never just go through the motions. You have got be prepared to make sacrifices and discipline is a huge part of it as well.”
Lleyton Hewitt (ATP Pro player, former world number 1)

“Consistency day in and day out! Doing the right things with the right people around you. Commitment to want to improve. You need to enjoy the journey but be prepared to work extremely hard.”
Casey Dellacqua (WTA top 50 singles and top 5 doubles)

“To be a champion unfortunately there is no secrets. It takes years of sacrifices hard work and discipline. You have to have self-motivation and it has to be your passion, it can’t come from your coach, parents etc. it has to come from the individual”.
Peter Luczak (former ATP top 100 men’s player, Tennis Australia Coach)

“To reach the top 100 in tennis today you definitely need a positive and supportive...

If you need to be specific about footwear or you are injured/trying to prevent any tennis injury, it is always recommend to seek professional advice from your local Podiatrist before attempting to purchase your new tennis shoes. This can prevent wasted money, frustration and unnecessary travel to and from the shoe store. However there are some general pieces of advice or rules you may follow if you have no problems. These are simple:

1) Ensure the shoe has a firm heel counter. This is the bit at the back of the shoe where your heel sits. The top of it can be cushioned and soft but the part that connects to the shoe should be firm enough that you cant push it or bend it. It should be made of a firm plastic.

2) If you are running/walking only ensure the shoe bends at the toe level of the shoe. To do this pick the shoe up and bend it in your hands. It should bend where your toes bend. Also try to bend it in the middle – walking/running shoes should not bend through the midsection,...

Shoe choice is extremely important as it can play a significant role in not only performance during activity, but it also reduces the risk of injury whilst performing.

The most common thing heard is that a shoe is simply a shoe. The Dunlop Volley is just as good as the expensive athletic shoe – this quite frankly just isn’t true. All shoes are “specific” to activities. Neither should players play tennis in running shoes, nor do they run in tennis shoes. The shoe itself must be sports specific. The day of the “cross trainer” is simply over, if in fact it ever had its day in the first place!

What sport do I need the shoe for?
Possibly the single most important question you need to answer when buying a shoe. The force which goes through your lower limb when playing different activities changes – in saying this it is only logical that the shoe translating that force to the ground should also change. For example: RUNNING is a...

The most common question we get asked as tennis strength and conditioners is, "When can my daughter or son, start tennis strength training and what strength training should we do?"

One of the biggest misconceptions people make is to train young tennis players like they would an adult.

Tennis training for kids should be totally different than for adults.

This can be dangerous and often leads to tennis injuries. Players under the age of 16 should steer away from weights and heavy loading. Alternatively, they should use body weight exercises, resistance bands and medicine balls (5-10% of their body weight).

At ‘Martin Method Tennis Fitness’ we recommend all young players aged 16 and under start out by performing these 6 fundamental movement patterns- Lunge, Squat, Bend, Pull, Push and Rotation. When young players can consistently complete all the 6 movement patterns, with good form, only then should their tennis program progress.

Performing these basic fundamental...