PREPARE FOR SPRING SPORTS

SPECIFICALLY TENNIS, GOLF AND BASEBALL

March is here and we see signs of Spring weather, though intermingled with the remnants of winter here in North Carolina. Spring has always been my favorite season, though Fall is a close second.

I was anxious to get back onto the tennis courts and later to golf courses. My first sport of interest was baseball, though I didn’t go past elementary school with baseball. I did play softball in college and have always been a baseball fan.

I found Spring weather especially invigorating and I still do.

Spring sports, like all sports, require a combination of strength, agility, coordination and endurance. Here are some of the pertinent exercises for these Spring sports:

Core stability and rotational exercises:

• Russian twists. Sit on the floor with knees bent and feet lifted off the ground. Hold a weight or medicine ball with both hands and rotate your torso from side to side. See image below.
• Plank rotations. From a plank position, rotate your body to lift one arm to the ceiling, opening your chest. Alternate sides.
• Medicine ball throws. Stand perpendicular to a wall, with a medicine ball in your hands. Rotate your torso and throw the ball against a wall, catching it on the rebound. This is to prepare for the rotational movements in golf or baseball swings.

Leg strength and power:

• Squats. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart. Squat down as if you are sitting back into a chair, keeping your chest up and your knees behind your toes.
• Lunges. Step forward with one leg and lower your body until both knees are bent at a 90 dgree angle. Push back up to the starting position and alternate with the other leg. Walking lunges are shown below.
• Plyometric exercises. Include exercises like box jumps and jump squats to improve explosiveness and agility.

Upper body strength and stability:

• Push-ups. Do standard push-ups to strengthen chest, triceps and shoulders.
• Pull-ups or lat pulldowns. Strengthen your back muscles by movements that work the latissimus dorsi. This is crucial for generating power for the golf swing or tennis serve.
• Rotator cuff exercises. Use resistance bands to perform internal and external rotation exercises to strengthen the muscles around your shoulder joint. This is important for tennis serves or overheads, as well as for throwing a baseball.

Cardiovascular endurance:

• Interval training. Incorporate high intensity interval training (HIIT) into your routine to improve cardiovascular fitness. Do outdoor sprints or sprint intervals on a treadmill, or indoor bike.
• Long distance running or cycling. Improve overall stamina for extended periods of play.

Flexibility and mobility:

• Static stretching. Do static stretches, but never until you are warmed up. Focus on the calves, quadriceps. hamstrings, hip flexors, shoulders and upper back to improve flexibility and reduce the risk of injury.
• Yoga or Pilates. Do these for core strength, body awareness and overall flexibility.

FOR TENNIS

Warm-up:

• Jog or skip for 5-10 minutes to increase heart rate and warm up mucles.
• Do arm circles, shoulder rolls, leg swings and dynamic stretches focusing on the lower body, core and shoulders.

Strength and power:

• Medicine ball throws. Perform overhead throws, chest passes and rotational throws to simulate tennis movements.
• Plyometric exercises. Do split jumps and box jumps to improve agility and explosiveness.
• Resistance band exercises. Incorporate exercises like lateral band walks, external rotations and rows to strengthen muscles involved in tennis strokes or movements.

Agility and footwork:

• Cone drills. Set up a series of cones and perform drills that focus on quick changes of direction and lateral movements,
• Ladder drills. Use an agility ladder for drills such as high knees, lateral shuffles and in/out drills to improve foot speed and coordination.
• Tennis-specific footwork drills. Practice split steps, forward sprints and recovery steps to simulate the intensity of tennis matches.
• Long distance running. Do this to build endurance for tournaments or long matches.

Flexibility and mobility:

• Static stretching. Do static stretches after warming up with dynamic stretches. Stretch legs, shoulders and upper back.
• Yoga or Pilates. For overall flexibility.

Roger Federer, shown below, had the most elegant tennis strokes in history, in my opinion. He won 20 Grand Slam events, including 8 Wimbledon championships.

Check a few of my prior posts on great tennis players and their fitness routines:

Carlos Alcaraz

Caroline Wozniacki

Roger Federer

Serena Williams

Chris Evert

Rafael Nadal

FOR GOLF

Warm-up:

• Jog or cycle for 5-10 minutes to increase blood flow and warm muscles
• Dynamic stretches – to engage shoulders, hamstrings, hips and core

Strength and stability:

• Core exercises. Do planks, Russian twists and medicine ball chops to strengthen core muscles for a stable golf swing
• Resistance training. Do squats, dead lifts and rows to build strength and stability
• Rotator cuff exercsies. Perform internal and external rotation exercises to strengthen the muscles around the shoulder joints and reduce the risk of injury

Flexibility and mobility:

• Golf – specific stretches. Perform stretches targeting the shoulders, torso, hips and hamstrings to improve range of motion in the golf swing
• Yoga for golfers. Incorporate yoga poses and stretches designed specifically to address common swing-related issues

Balance and coordination:

• Balance. Practice standing on one leg, balancing on a stability ball or using balance boards to improve stability so as to maintain posture and control throughout the golf swing
• Coordination. Do drills that encourage eye-hand coordination, such as juggling or reaction ball drills

Golf-specific practice:

• Practice swings. Perform slow and controlled practice swings, focusing on technique and rhythm to reinforce muscle memory and a consistent swing
• Short game practice. Practice chipping, pitching and putting. These are crucial to score well.

Scottie Scheffler, shown below, has dominated professional golf for the past 2-3 years

Here are a few of my previous posts on the fitness habits of noted golfers:

Nelly Korda

Scottie Scheffler

Phil Mickelson

Greg Norman

Gary Player

Dustin Johnson

FOR BASEBALL

Warm-up:

• Jogging or jumping jacks for 5-10 minutes to raise heart rate and warm muscles
• Arm circles, shoulder rolls. leg swings and other dynamic stretches to engage upper body, lower body and core

Strength and power:

• Compound exercises – squats, bench presses and rows to build overall strength
• Medicine ball exercises. Overhead throws, chest passes and rotational throws for explosive power in hitting and throwing.
• Plyometric exercises. Box jumps, medicine ball slams and jump squats for power and agility.

Throwing and pitching mechanics:

• Long toss drills, To improve arm strength and throwing accuracy.
• Pitching drills. Focus on proper mechanics, balance and follow -through to improve velocity and control
• Resistance band exercises. Do band pull-aparts, external rotations and scapular retractions to strengthen the muscles involved in pitching or throwing

Speed and agility:

• Sprint intervals. Improve speed and acceleration on the base paths and in the outfield
• Agility drills. Use shuttle runs, ladder drills and cone drills for for better agility, quickness and change of direction skills.

Flexibility and mobility:

• Dynamic stretching. Focus on shoulders, hips, hamstrings and thoracic spine.
• Foam rolling. Release tight muscles and improve tissue quality in calves, quadriceps and thoracic spine.

Baseball-specific skill work:

• Batting practice. Spend time in the batting cage to work on mechanics, timing and pitch recognition.
• Fielding drills. Practice fielding ground balls, catching fly balls and making accurate throws
• Catching and throwing drills. Perfom partner drills focusing on quick exchanges, footwork and throwing accuracy – infielders, outfielders and catchers.

Shohei Ohtani, superstar Japanese hitter/pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers, is shown below. He may be only used this year for hitting, as he recovers from elbow surgery.

Check out these two prior posts on the fitness habits of two great baseball players:

Shohei Ohtani

Mike Trout

DICK’S SPORTING GOODS

I have been a customer of Dick’s Sporting Goods for several decades. The company has always provided me with friendly and competent service, as well as the highest quality sports equipment I could find. I was focused on tennis racquets, balls, shoes and accessories, golf clubs, bags, balls, shoes and accessories and fitness products – weights, resistance bands, etc. I also shopped for sportswear and workout clothing.

The community involvement and funding of young athletes by Dick’s Sporting Goods always made me proud to shop there.

I am now an associate of Dick’s Sporting Goods, which means that I am able to promote the company by keeping a permanent link at the side of my website. The link is updated automatically as specials are rolled out. I may earn from activity on the link. This is affiliate marketing. See my upper menu – BECOME AN AFFILIATE MARKETER – for information on the business opportunity.

Here are some recent current specials provided by Dick’s Sporting Goods. (I have found that I can keep up with these more easily Online than by visiting the stores).

• 40% off on NCAA clothing
• 40% off on cleats – Nike, Jordan, New Balance and others
• Up to 50% off on cardio equipment – Nordic Track, Horizon Fitness, SOLE
• Up to 50% off on select clothing and shoes – Nike, adidas, Under Armour
• Up to 30% off on select outdoor gear – bikes, paddles, camping/hiking
• Up to 50% off select DSG clothing for the family
• $100 and under select shoes – New Balance, Nike, adidas
• Up to $50 off select pro baseball and softball gloves
• Up to 40% off select NBA clothing and gear

Here are some used demo golf deals:

• Callaway Paradigm Ai Smoke Triple Diamond MAX Driver – was $440.99 now $379.99
• TaylorMade Qi10 LS Driver – was $440.99, now $379.99
• TaylorMade 2022 Stealth Driver – was $570.99, now $244.99

For more information:

• Click on the red Dick’s Sporting Goods link at the side
• You will see the question “What are you looking for?”
• Proceed from there

FINAL THOUGHTS

This is repetitive, but quite important. Many people still begin cold stretching as they come to a tennis court with no warm-up. DON’T DO THIS. This may cause injury. Do dynamic stretching, by jumping jacks, arm circles and high knees. Think of how Rafael Nadal would jump around before a tennis match. Save the joint stretching for post – match or well after the dynamic stretching.

Let’s enjoy the beauty of outdoor sports as the Spring weather comes upon us. This really is an awesome time of year.

Please leave me any comments or questions in the “Comments” section below.