10 Tennis Warm Ups (Ranked Best To Worst)

[@nail3692]

Mini tennis is A. If you are warming up for a match I don't know about you guys but where i'm from you always play mini tennis. Its iconic

[@TheinesViD]

I understand why you criticized service box rallies, but im my opinion you still underrated it. I think it's nice for getting your swing timed correctly, which is why I would always play it for a few minutes before switching to touch.

[@TheTennisMentor]

Very fair comment!

[@jaquevius]

@@TheTennisMentor I agree with Theines that the service box rally can be extremely helpful if done with purpose. Also it’s the most practical for most people over 45 because as you age you’ll realize that the line between warmed up/ loose and fatigued gets closer. It’s hard enough to get your opponent to hit smooth easy balls to actually serve its purpose at the 4.0 level, and below that it’s almost useless because they just don’t have the skill believe it or not. If you ask them to even attempt these other warm ups they’ll think you’re crazy at my age of 54. Therefore I do someone of these other drills during a practice session but NEVER prior to a match. Sometimes I can get someone to do these after a friendly match as a finisher but NEVER before a competitive match. I suspect this video is geared towards younger people still near their athletic prime if done prior to a match, or maybe you just mean warming up before a practice session idk. I do them as fun drills at times during practice though so I see the value of them. Love your content btw.

[@bigbrain6966]

I agree but I think service boxes should go after touch

[@sergiosimbula]

Love and use all of them with my students! The box rally can be made more fun, challenging and physically harder if you add some progressions of course. Like simple putting cones to aim on. First down the middle. Then I tell them to hit one forehand and then one backhand everytime. Great for warmup and spacing. You can go cross court short angles. The shorter the more challenging and fun. To really make it hard I go one player hits everything cross court, the other goes down the line. So you use all service boxes and make a butterfly pattern. Great warmup and pretty hard for beginners to intermediate players.

[@TheTennisMentor]

Love your service box rally variations, definitely a great way to add decision making and challenge to the exercise! 🙏

[@cks2020693]

you can make service box warm up pretty intense if you do it right. If there is only a single warm up I can do before a match, I'd pick service box. 1. It loosens and warms up your shoulders for proper striking 2. It loosens and warms up your legs for proper footwork 3. You always have the option to move in and volley 4. You can easily turn it into a slice rally 5. You can easily run around the ball it make it forehand or backhand only warm up 6. You can turn up the intensity and try to hit the ball as hard as you can without it going outside of the service box to fine tune your control/precision and feel for the racket 7. You can choose to hit volleys back and forth to each other for quick reaction/reflex warm up The biggest advtange for me is the footwork, because the ball is not super fast, and you can technically run around the ball anywhere, there is no excuse but to have perfect footwork

[@LauncherSpiderMk7]

Yup. It's only a bad warm-up if the participants are being lazy.

[@shamilkhusnullin3363]

So much true. I didn’t even dare to watch the full video after he put the service box a rating of D. Cuz for me service box practice is for people who love and understand tennis. Because you CAN GET INTENSE during this play, and it gives you a good feel of tennis

[@marvinko6610]

Really like the idea of doing these lists. I try to rotate warm-ups as much as possible to keep trainings fresh or stop players from just "going through the motions". Switching on your brain and game sense is as important as warming up and stretching your muscles. So I'm stoked that you took that into account, because it's not really measurable like your pulse getting up or something like that

[@TheTennisMentor]

Glad you approve! Let me know if there are any other ‘tennis lists’ you’d like me to cover?

[@marvinko6610]

@@TheTennisMentor Anything basically =D. It would be nice to have the same criteria and rankings for drills, games or exercises without a coach. I encourage my groups to play amonst themselves outside of their training with me at least once a week and it would be nice to have your insight on what you would suggest to your groups/players

[@BenQ10]

I find service-box rallies surprisingly difficult. However, out of all the warmups here they are the one I never want to miss out. Without them, sometimes, my stroke mechanics can feel off for the whole session. Plus, they afford time for a bit of a catch-up chat!

[@TheTennisMentor]

Yes, they definitely give you time for a chat and for some that’s an important part of the session!

[@caioscofield]

you can also do a coop version of volley game in which both are trying to keep the ball going the longest without bouncing

[@lyndseyandandrew5771]

I'd love a ranking video of ways to practice serve+1 patterns. You've shared a few ways in past videos but would especially love more creative alternative solo practice approaches.

[@tennisteuton]

I find the service box rallies at 2:05 extremely boring, and also not really representative of real tennis - if I get a short ball in the service box in a match, I am not massaging it into the opposite box, I am looking to put it away. That being said, if you can't get 10+ in a row in that service box warmup, you might want to look into your stroke mechanics. So. You gotta earn the right to move on to the other games!

[@Sladovsky1]

You can't always put away a short ball. If a short ball is high, then yes you can put it away, but if a short ball is low, below the net and you get to it late or at the very last minute, you won't be able to put it away. Massaging it into the opposite box would be a good option.

[@alexgoico]

This is great. Can you post some fun games to play with 3 or 4 players?

[@raytrace2014]

Good video, thanks. Here's an idea for another one. How to practice properly with a ball machine. I've noticed if you do a lot of reps (e.g. 72 balls) your form gets worse after a while and that can't be good practice. Maybe good for cardio but not technique. How to structure practice to avoid this?

[@TheTennisMentor]

I’ve made a few videos using a ball machine, maybe this one will be useful if you’ve not seen it yet… Mic’d Up Tennis Practice kzbin.info/www/bejne/oXzOlYSBnq96obM

[@transklutz]

With lots of machine reps my form gets better, because my body gets warmed up and while I get to focus and correct my timing.

[@hartspot7418]

One warmup that I was thought at a tennis camp was the touch game, but you weren’t allowed to volley so it was more footwork intense. Another warmup game that I learned at the camp was basically mini tennis but all slice and before you hit the ball over the net, you had to hit the ball back on your side and then over the net. (Sorry if that last explanation wasn’t clear. It’s hard to explain what we did accurately.)Edit: I just finished the video. The second warmup game is the Wawrinka game but with rackets and a ball.

[@TheTennisMentor]

Nice! Thanks for sharing, there are so many variations of the games, I like to make games up too!😁

[@Sladovsky1]

The other one is more like like Djokovic warm-up, not Wawrinka.

[@juliuscho6343]

great warm up drills

[@TheTennisMentor]

Thanks Julius

[@Luke-yd4il]

hi Ashley just wondering if you might come to the ao next year

[@TheTennisMentor]

Hey Luke, I would love to! I very nearly did this year but plans fell through… let’s see!

[@LukeDesmond-iq4wb]

Thanks for replying didn’t think u would

[@transklutz]

Haha.. my brother and I made up catch-match on an empty court while bored and waiting for what to do after watching a senior pro tour match.

[@TheTennisMentor]

It’s actually a great game!

[@OokeditseRamosweu]

I don't think service box rallies could be campared to the other warmups bc it's specifically targeted at warming up the groundstrokes

[@madcrazytw]

謝謝！

[@TheTennisMentor]

🙏 your support is appreciated!!

[@raschafuenfund30]

The jules marie merch coming through

[@lindsaynewby1618]

anyone notice the court in the background with the massive puddle in it, but they're still using it?

[@TheTennisMentor]

It’s been a wet winter in the uk!

[@transklutz]

On Touch, why can't you hit a nice topspin stroke? It goes up, then down.

[@Sladovsky1]

The space is tight as you only use the service boxes - small area, but you can hit a nice topspin stroke if you're able to. However, it's a quick service box game that aims at working on your touch and reflexes.

[@TheTennisMentor]

You can play however you choose. I tend to play with open racket face as a rule but you don’t have to!

[@peterahern4967]

I think that you should not have put service box rallying at the bottom of the list because it is just so very important and valuable for INJURY PREVENTION. Older players who have issues with their bodies should certainly spend quite a fair bit of their time on service box rallying at the beginning of a session. Great video by the way. You really have a deep and holistic view of tennis..You''re a way better coach than I am.

[@TheTennisMentor]

Thanks Peter, I definitely think that service box rallies have a place, I use them often. I do however feel that warming up your brain and your movement is just as important as your timing. As I mentioned, I would always do these games after a physical warm up so that the body is fully prepared. I see lots of players however, using service box rallies as their only warm up and then wonder why they get injured! Thanks for sharing your thoughts, it is appreciated.

[@pencilcheck]

the catch match you will be surprised how many people don't know how to throw, and catch while running for the ball. esp on hard court. you showed it on clay where you and your partner slides a lot, imagine on a hard court. No, I give that a F.

[@alastairtheduke]

fun

[@samchandler3666]

First!

[@lynyrdskynyrd9742]

Football tennis. American. That's not football. Rating F

[@TheTennisMentor]

I actually added (soccer) for you if you look at the video!😉

[@punns643]

It is football you use your foot

[@transklutz]

So the main goal of American Football is to kick the ball between the uprights, is that it?

[@Sladovsky1]

In the uk and all over the world it's called football. In America it's called soccer. Personally, I think "football" is more logical and represents what you do in this game, namely you kick a ball with your foot, hence it's called football ;)