What kind of running exercises should i do to improve my tennis fitness ?

i would like to know what kind of running drills or exercises i could do to improve my reaction time and explosive sprinting towards a ball , basically tennis movement on court. i currently do some interval training , long distance running ( once a week for general fitness) and gym workouts with light weights and lots of reps, what should i change/add to my weekly workout ?What kind of running exercises should i do to improve my tennis fitness ?Tennis is a sport that requires dynamic movement and balance. To prepare properly for tennis, the player must train with dynamic movement. The days of running 6 miles to get in shape for tennis are gone. Sport Scientists are now recommending interval training. There are all sorts of workouts that can benefit the tennis player. Here are some recommendations:



TRX suspension training: You can find this product on the internet. I am currently using it and I notice a great difference in overall strength -- primarily in core and balance.

Kettle Bell Training: Start with 1 kettle bell that weighs 15 to 25 pounds and you can finds all sorts of swinging exercises on the internet. The swinging is dynamic movement and your core is constantly at struggle to keep you balanced.

There are several trainers published on youtube.com that are sharing their workout programs. Bodyrock.tv would be a great reference for the type workout tennis players needs. The dynamic, functioning movement of this type of workout will have you prepared for your physically challenging matches.

Jump rope intervals mixed with yoga poses are great for tennis. The coordination and quick stepping followed by poses that will benefit balance, strength, and flexibility guarantee an excellent tennis workout.





Running long distances does not benefit tennis greatly. Running short intervals, stopping, starting, and changing directions is really ideal. Intense training at 20 second intervals will train your body to work hard and fast, and recover quickly.



Anyone that plays tennis 3 or more times per week (especially singles) won't need to work out for more than 30 minutes at a time, or more than 3 or 4 times per week.



Good Lucki!What kind of running exercises should i do to improve my tennis fitness ?Tennis is all about short little sprints, as you surely know by now. We used to do simple shuttle runs from the baseline to the net. Put a racket full of balls on one end and an empty racket at the other. Have someone time you to see how long it takes you to transfer the entire racket full of, say, eight tennis balls, one at a time, from the full racket to the empty racket.



Another trick is to set up cones on the court in a triangle and see how long it takes you to weave in and out of the points of the triangle.



Another drill was called running W's. Start at one corner of the court, by the baseline. Go straight up to the net, then back to the center mark, up to the center net strap, back to the opposite corner at the baseline, then straight up the sideline to the net. Makes me tired thinking about it, lol.



Learn about stride pattern and starting your sprints with LITTLE steps that gradually get bigger until your reach full speed.



Learn about LEANING forward with your head in the direction you want to go. The 100 meter sprinters dont do this for nothing :-)



Learn about ANTICIPATION. You should know where your opponent is going to hit the ball before he hits it, because you've done your homework on him and know what he likes to do.



Long-distance running is vital, too, because you need aerobic endurance in addition to the explosive power of anaerobic strength in your legs, etc.



If your strokes are not as good as they ought to be, then don't spend all your time on conditioning. While it's true that working out feels good and does indeed make you stronger, unfortunately, it has no effect on your racket-handling skill.



Best of luck, hope you have some fun along the way :-)