The repetitive nature of tennis
puts your body under severe stresses, which can result in overuse
injuries. The most common sites for
these injuries are the knees, ankles, lower back, elbows, and shoulders. A tennis strength and conditioning program
focuses on decreasing the possibility of injuries in these areas and improving
and perfecting tennis biomechanics.
Shoulder injuries
are especially common because the muscles surrounding the shoulder are
relatively small and under constant repetitive stresses. Due to the large range of motion in the
shoulder, the ligaments alone cannot provide enough stability through all
planes of movement. In a healthy shoulder,
stabilization is provided by the rotator cuff muscles. In tennis, and most of our daily lives, the
internal rotators are overused and therefore very tight. The external rotators are often underused and
very weak. Strengthening the external
rotators will help decrease shoulder injuries and improve your tennis game.
Because the
external rotators are very small muscles, I recommend using no weight or very
little weight for these shoulder exercises.
These three exercises are progressions of the same exercise. Start by
only working on the Ts. After those
become easy, work on the Ys, and later, on the Is. All three exercises are done lying face down
on a bench or on the floor.
Ts: Lying face down, position your arms at a 90-degree
angle to your body, so that you look like a T when viewed from above. Rotate your shoulders so that thumbs are
pointing up towards the ceiling. Squeeze
your shoulder blades in towards your spine, and, while keeping your arms
straight, raise your arms up towards the ceiling. Let your arms drop, and then repeat. Perform 2-3 sets of 10-15 reps.
Ys: Lying face down, position your arms so that
you look like a Y when viewed from above.
Rotate your shoulders so that your thumbs are pointing up towards the
ceiling. Squeeze your shoulder blades in
and downward towards your mid back spine, and, while keeping your arms
straight, raise your arms up towards the ceiling. Let your arms drop, and then repeat. Perform 2-3 sets of 10-15 reps.
Is: Lying face down, position your arms so that
you look like an I when viewed from above.
Rotate your shoulders so that your thumbs are pointing up towards the
ceiling. Squeeze your shoulder blades in
and downward towards your mid back spine, and, while keeping your arms
straight, raise your arms up towards the ceiling. Let your arms drop, and then repeat. Perform 2-3 sets of 10-15 reps.
Incorporating
these exercises two to three times weekly is the first step to improving your
tennis game. Developing and implementing
a strength and conditioning program 2-3 times weekly is tantamount to
continuing to play tennis as you get older with less interruptions for
injuries.
Viktoria Brautigam
MS, CSCS is a personal trainer with 12 years of experience preventing and
post-rehabing injuries, improving performance on and off the court, and weight
management. Contact viktoria@fitathletic.com for more
information.
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