How Physically Demanding is Tennis?
Tennis
Tennis is one of the most demanding sports in the world, requiring high levels of agility, endurance, and concentration. Much more than a game of skill, tennis is a sport of intermittent high-intensity bouts, and that’s why we’re here to help you ensure your body is up for the challenge. From preparing yourself before a match to fuelling your body throughout, OTE Sports has the knowledge you need to stay at the top of your game.
A SPORT OF ENDURANCE: WHAT TENNIS TAKES
Let’s begin by answering the big question: how physically demanding is tennis? The short answer is a lot, because it is a sport that demands constant motion and consistent strength and speed. Playing for one, two, or three hours at a time, tennis players have to fight for every point, moving laterally across the court to return balls and generating the power needed to try and catch their opponent out.
If we look at the finer details, 90-minute tennis matches can burn anywhere from 600 to nearly 1,000 calories (depending on intensity), draining muscle glycogen and testing both aerobic and anaerobic systems. The explosive movements that power serves and facilitate rallies demand a lot of energy and cause a lot of sweating. Needless to say, tennis takes it out of you!
UP FOR THE CHALLENGE: HOW TO PREPARE FOR A TENNIS MATCH
Given how demanding tennis is, it makes sense that players need to prepare as well as they can for matches. At OTE, we know better than anyone that even the most talented players need to take preparation seriously, so let’s take a look at the foundational prep work behind every top-class performance.
When Should Tennis Match Preparation Start?
When we talk about preparation, we’re looking at the 24- to 48-hour period before you walk onto the court. This is the golden period for preparation because it is close enough to the match to influence performance, yet far enough away to give the mind and body time to respond to preparation methods.
What Are the Pillars of Tennis Preparation?
Between 24 and 48 hours before a tennis match, there are a few key ways you can ensure your mind and body are ready to perform at their best. These include:
- Sleep: Getting a long, uninterrupted night's sleep before a tennis match ensures the body is optimally rested. A good night’s sleep also maximises mental clarity, helping you think just as quickly as your rested body can move in the moment.
- Hydration: Drinking plenty of fluids is pivotal to tennis match preparation. Sip water consistently through this golden period to keep the body adequately hydrated.
- Glycogen Stores: During your tennis match, every serve, return and rally will deplete the body’s glycogen stores. This valuable energy reserve is vital for maintaining speed and strength, so eating a high-carb meal the night before a match ensures glycogen stores are at their highest before the match begins.
- Gut Training: During preparation, it helps to prepare the gut for intense refuelling by replicating matchday nutrition during practice matches.
- Mental Preparation: Tennis is as much a psychological game as it is a physical one, so preparing the mind for a tennis match is equally important as preparing the body. You can’t control every aspect of your match, so it helps to condition your brain to accept that not everything will go to plan, the match can’t be won in a single game, and that it’s vital to trust your training when things get tough.
To learn more about acing your preparation before playing tennis, be sure to check out our tennis nutrition guide.
