Defining flexibility
02/02/2011 | Written by: uspta
Click Video Highlight::
Defining flexibility
Description:
Flexibility, one of the physical subcomponents, is defined and explained in this video interview with Master Professional Rick Macci. He also offers a tip on what a player should do to improve his or her flexibility.
Flexibility is an important part of a player’s physical development and also one of the most overlooked. It is probably the least applied subcomponent for different reasons: Players don’t really like stretching because it doesn’t feel good, perhaps flexibility benefits are not obvious on the tennis court, or it could be that most players don’t understand the importance of flexibility nor have a guideline for how, why and when to stretch.
Tip:
We define flexibility as the range of motion of the joints and the degree to which the muscles, tendons and connective tissue around the joints can elongate and bend. There are many factors influencing flexibility, including heredity, neuromuscular components and tissue temperature. An important factor for a tennis player is tissue temperature. Heat increases the elongation and bending properties of soft tissue. Warming up before stretching by raising the body’s temperature or by breaking a light sweat will give you greater gains in flexibility with less microtrauma to the tissues you are stretching.
It is very important for tennis players to include stretching as part of their routine – a warm-up with dynamic stretching and a cool-down with static stretching at the end of every practice or match. Maintaining a good level of flexibility is important in order to get to those difficult balls and play tennis effectively.
Learn more about flexibility and its types at TennisResources.com. Simply enter the word “Flexibility” into the Quick Search field or do an Advanced Search by clicking “General Performance Components-Physical” and then “Flexibility.” You will find articles, video interviews and exercises that address the subject of flexibility and the important role it plays in a player’s training program.
New content is added to the site every week, so don’t miss out on the opportunity to access this valuable library of tennis education. Members who sign up for a premium membership have access to all of the exclusive materials found within the search engine. Visit www.tennisresources.com and register today!
