This Page About Tennis and Health

Tennis and Health

A regular game of tennis is an excellent way to improve strength, flexibility, co-ordination and aerobic fitness - so why not join the 2.8 million aged four years and more who played tennis in the UK in 2001.

Tennis offers a balanced workout

There are three key elements to physical fitness. These are stamina, strength and flexibility:

• Stamina. Aerobic exercises increase your breathing and heart rate to improve the health of your heart, lungs and circulatory system. These exercises involve repeated contraction of large muscle groups but don't require excessive speed. The net result of aerobic exercise is increased stamina and endurance.
• Strength. Strength and balance exercises build stronger muscles to improve posture, balance and coordination. Strength training also increases your metabolism, increases lean muscle mass, supports joints, slows bone loss, cuts the risk of injury and makes you feel more energetic.
• Flexibility. Stretching exercises help to maintain the ideal range in which you can bend and stretch muscles around a joint. Maximising the motion about a joint helps to prevent joint and muscle pain and injury.

Certain sports are excellent for one or two of these aspects of fitness. For example, running is excellent for aerobic fitness and strength, but does little to enhance flexibility. Yoga is excellent for flexibility but does not increase aerobic fitness. An advantage of tennis is that it works on all three areas of fitness. For example, your range of motion and strength are increased by swinging the racket, while short bursts of running across court increase your anaerobic and aerobic fitness.

Tennis is a good mental workout

As well as improving your fitness levels, tennis is a mentally challenging game, where speed and accuracy of reaction are paramount. Playing tennis improves your generally ability to react to stimuli, and also helps to prevent a deterioration of reaction time that comes with ageing.

In a study of tennis players and sedentary people of varied age groups, active older men were shown to have superior reaction and movement times to sedentary men of the same age. Active older men also reacted to physical stimuli as quickly as young sedentary men, when tested as to how fast they could move their forearm over a 20-centimetre distance.

Tennis helps to prevent osteoporosis

According to the National Osteoporosis Society, taking part in weight-bearing exercise is one of the most important ways that people can prevent osteoporosis. This is because weight-bearing exercise exerts a force that stretches and contracts the muscles, stimulating the bones to which they are attached to strengthen. Tennis is an excellent exercise for your skeleton because it uses both the upper and lower body. Your serving arm in particular tends to benefit from the bone-building effects of high-impact exercise.

Tennis can help to improve your mood

Your mental health is another good reason to reach for the racket. Exercise of all kinds can improve mood and even help to combat depression.

In a study of 1000 exercisers by the mental health charity Mind, 59 per cent said exercise had helped them to maintain their mental health. In fact, 94 per cent of gym members surveyed said that they thought there were additional benefits to exercise apart from better physical health - including improved appearance and enhanced sex drive - all of which contributed to a higher 'feel good factor.'

Exercise can also help people who have more serious mood problems. A review of studies into depression and exercise found that 90 per cent of the research had found that exercise had antidepressant effects.

When it comes to choosing the best type of exercise for mental health, there are no hard-and-fast rules. What counts is choosing a sport that you enjoy. So, if tennis is your thing, then getting out onto the court will help to bring a smile to your face.

Who can play tennis?

Because tennis can be played at a range of different intensities, tennis is suitable for all age groups and there are no real barriers to learning. The United States Tennis Association holds matches for participants in their 90s - and plenty of players take part.

If you wish to play less intense games doubles tennis, for instance, is a good way to have a more relaxed game. However, gentler games of tennis tend to be less aerobic in nature than competitive play so it makes sense to supplement gentle tennis playing with walking, cycling, or another form of aerobic exercise in your weekly exercise plan to ensure that you get a balanced workout.

As with all forms of exercise, anyone with heart disease or other conditions affecting their health should consult their GP before starting to play.

Getting started

Tennis in England, Wales and Scotland is run by the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) who have over 2400 LTA-affiliated clubs. Alternatively, local authorities often provide tennis courts where you can learn the game.

Your best bet is to find a coach who can teach you the game and help you to develop the right techniques and not bad habits. A coach can also help you to find suitable people to play against. The cost of coaching varies but, according to the Lawn Tennis Association, one way of keeping costs down is to have shorter, half-hour coaching sessions or to opt for group sessions. Your coach can also provide you with a suitable warm-up and warm-down routine. In the initial coaching sessions your main priority will be to keep the ball in play. Once that has been mastered, you can start to work on good technique.

Preventing injury

Because tennis involves a lot of stop-and-start action, it can put strain on your joints and tendons. However, there are exercises and techniques you to use to make playing tennis less wearing:

• Always warm up before you play. Start with brisk walking or easy jogging to get your muscles warm, then stretch for several minutes. Warm muscles are much less prone to injury
• Some people say that racket sports are sports that you should 'get fit to play' rather than 'play to get fit.' It certainly makes sense to cross-train as well as just playing one game. For example, a stamina sport such as swimming or running will help you to achieve your weekly quota of aerobic exercise
• Calf muscles can get tight in tennis, so it is important to stretch these before, between and after matches
• Drink enough water to stay hydrated: before, during and after the match
• If you have an ongoing problem with sore feet or legs, you may have a mechanical foot imbalance. The best advice is to get this checked out by an expert, who may well be able to advise you on a corrective orthotic device.

The right equipment

Wearing the right clothes for tennis can help to prevent injury and to make your game as comfortable as possible. As with other high-impact sports, your most important purchase is probably your shoes. It is best to wear shoes specifically designed for tennis - do not wear running shoes as these are designed for specifically for running forwards. Also, worn-out shoes will no longer provide the same benefits and should always be replaced.

Finding the right racket for you will help to reduce your risk of injury as well as benefit for your play. A good test as to whether you have found a good racket is that our arm should not get tired from swinging it. Also mid-level string tension will help to absorb the shock of hitting the ball but still give good power to your shots.

Women should also invest in a good sports bra - breast ligaments can easily stretch when breasts are moved around during exercise, and even small-breasted women will benefit from a specialist bra during their tennis game. Continue to learn more about tennis, please visit BUPA.

Home | Golf | Tennis | Rowing | Skiing | Fishing | Cycling | Hunting | Swimming | Ice Hockey | Windsurfing