Doc's Tip of the Day -- Strength/Conditioning

If you only had time to do one strength exercise or could choose one exercise for helping your tennis, I would strongly recommend the back squat or deadlift. You could use dumbbells for the deadlift or of course the bar. This exercise strengthens your entire body especially your core, back, and shoulders. I would recommend starting with a rep count of 12 or over. Always, remember to warm up properly and stretch prior to lifting. And keep in mind the technique for the squat must be learned correctly or you can hurt yourself. I also mentioned the deadlift as an option as it is an exercise that may be easier on some body types. goy

Doc's Tip of the Evening -- Serve

Did you know that 40% of the power in the Serve is produced from the internal rotation of the shoulder? Yes, that is correct.
The remaining 60% comes from the leg drive, trunk/hip rotation and vertical force the body produces from the loaded position to contact point. ay

DOC'S TIP OF THE EVENING -- SERVE

Did you know that the hard first serves the pros are hitting on TV at the US Open are really slice serves? Yep, they sure are. Almost 100% of the serves are contacted on the right side of the ball with a continental or in some instances an eastern grip. (Left side of ball if you are left handed).
So, if you want to learn how to hit an impressive hard serve, first learn how to hit a proper slice serve. goy.

DOC'S TIP OF THE NIGHT -- HEAD/EYES

WHEN WATCHING THE BALL COMING TO YOUR SIDE OF THE COURT, TRACK IT WITH YOUR EYES.
AND WHEN YOU CONTACT THE BALL KEEP YOUR HEAD STILL AS A STATUE AND YOUR EYES GLUED TO THE BALL AND CONTACT POINT. EVEN AFTER CONTACTING THE BALL KEEP YOUR EYES GLUED TO THE CONTACT POINT WHICH SHOULD HELP IN KEEPING YOUR HEAD STILL.
SO IF YOU MISHIT A LOT OF BALLS, YOU MAY BE MOVING YOUR HEAD TOO MUCH OR YOU MIGHT NEED GLASSES.
goy

DOC'S TIP OF THE EVENING -- BH (one handed)

If you want a great deep ball and have a one handed backhand, concentrate on extending your shoulder and dominant arm after you hit the ball and follow through.
Also, you can extend your non dominant arm straight back behind you as well after contact.
When following through extend your dominant arm straight out behind the contact point of the ball, keep your head still and eyes focused on the contact point AND extend your shoulder where you can feel the inside of your shoulder stretched. GDM

Doc's Tip of the Evening -- Footwook/Movement to Ball

Tennis is a game of movement which of course means you must move your feet. First and foremost you must make sure you are split stepping when your opponent strikes the ball so when you land you will be on your toes and on balance and will be able to react quickly to the area the ball is going to.
The two absolute facts in movement are running or sprinting to get to the ball then adjusting your feet once you have arrived into the vicinity of the ball. Sometimes, you may need to ONLY adjust your feet to the ball and other times you will need to sprint to the ball then adjust.
And sometimes you will just run to the ball and hit it back with NO adjustment steps because there is no time.
First, when you run to any ball, you would sprint just like you would in a race (very short race) and when you adjust, you stop running, but you are still bouncing on your toes either around, up to, or back to establish balance for effective body loading to hit the shot. goy

DOC'S TIP OF THE EVENING -- BACKHAND VOLLEY

I believe there is a misconception that one must always step into the volley. So, let's take the backhand volley as an example. The first movement you want to make once you have moved to the ball and are on balance from the split step, is to turn your dominant arm's SHOULDER before doing any forward step to hit the volley. You must maintain your upper body balance and initiate a sufficient turn of the shoulder as you reach across your body in preparation. Then you can step into the ball to hit it. But remember, balance and shoulder turn are key. AY