Three Ways To Stay Fit When You’re Not Playing Tennis

by Bob Stockton

@BobStockton10

Playing tennis is a great way to stay in shape. Not only are you practicing regularly, but playing a match also requires that you be in decent shape in order to keep up with the pace of the game.

So when you’re not playing tennis anymore, be it due to weather, injury, or something else, it’s wise to keep yourself in good shape so you can get right back into the swing of things once you’re able to start playing again. To help you in doing this, here are three ways to stay fit when you’re not playing tennis. 

Find A Way To Keep Up Your Cardio

In many tennis matches, having good cardiovascular health can be the difference between staying ahead of your competitor getting slow and winded. Knowing this, you’ll likely want to keep up with your cardio when you’re not playing tennis.

To do this, Tennis Life Magazine shares that almost any form of cardio exercise will do the trick. Things like running, cycling, swimming, and even hiking or hunting can help you get your heart pump and your lungs working. As long as you’re doing this cardio workout for at least 30 to 60 minutes a few times per week, you should be able to stay close to the fitness you had when you were playing tennis regularly. 

Break Out Your Yoga Mat

Along with working out your muscles, you’ll also need to make sure that you’re treating those muscles right after your cardio workouts. 

One way you can do this is to break out your yoga mat and start doing some stretches. According to Hannah Irvine, a contributor to Tennis Pal, tennis players need to stretch their muscles a lot so as to improve their flexibility as well as prevent injuries from taking place. You’ll want to take special care of stretching out both your arms and your legs, as these muscles are used very heavily when playing tennis and can easily get tight or stained. 

Keep Your Diet Clean

While you might not be working out as hard as you were when you were actively and regularly playing tennis, this doesn’t mean that all your diet and exercise routines should go out the window all together. In fact, if you’re not getting as much exercise as you were when playing, you’ll want to take extra care with your diet.

According to Renee Bergere, a contributor to Tennis Express, you’ll have a much harder time getting back to playing at the same level you were before if you neglect your diet during your off season. So to avoid this, try your best to still eat clean during this time. 

If you’re taking a break from playing tennis regularly but don’t want to get out of shape, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you with this goal.