tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60708454328092486062024-03-08T00:28:12.618-08:00Pickleball StarsAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.comBlogger41125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-61504223433202791442014-07-16T09:25:00.000-07:002014-07-16T09:26:39.085-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #41Sorry it has been so long , but anita and i have been up in Maryland for the last 4 weeks. <br />
<br />
This
weeks tip is two fold. First what is one of the best ways to learn
quickly??? That would be to watch as many top players play on video
since most of us dont have these players local. Go to youtube and in the
search line enter " jeff shank pickleball". I have watched some of
these nationals matches 20 times or more.<br />
<br />
This does a couple of things for you. One is you see how YOU should
be playing. If the top players are playing a certain way, what makes
you think that YOUR way is better? I constantly watch top players and
try and emulate them. <br />
<br />
Second, you see what shots are possible. If others can make certain shots, with practice, you can also. <br />
<br />
Next,
you should be PRACTICING. Yes practicing, not just playing. Anita goes
to two practive groups a week and i attend one ( not one that i am in
charge of or started, but one another advanced player started and i
asked if i could come to.). If you dont know anyone that is currently
running practice groups, start your own. I would be glad to explain to
you some of the drills that we do, and you could use in your practice
group. <br />
<br />
Next, you should be attending current clinics that are out
there. Deb Harrison does one every friday and i do one the first
wednesday of the month. Both of ours are at Miona. You can call Miona
for more info. And the club has a clinic each Tuesday at Eisenhower in
conjunction with club open play. <br />
<br />
Lastly , the time to go on the Spain pickleball tour is coming
up. There tours are in Sept this year and are very reasonable. I know
that several villagers have already signed up. I encourage everyone to
check out the info site.....<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.vivapickleballtours.com/" target="_blank">www.vivapickleballtours.com</a><br />
<br />
jeff and anita shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-21782590134073244932014-07-16T09:23:00.002-07:002014-07-16T09:26:00.251-07:00Pickleball Tip Of Week #40<div>
Ok, </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Today we will have a tip and also will give some recommendations on court etiquette.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Tip. .......</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I
have discussed before about the Borg. The Borg were a race of people
on Star Trek The Next Generation. You could easily defeat them in the
short term. However they were great at closing and changing any weakness
that they had and from then on, what you used to overcome them, would
no longer work. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
This is what you need to do when you play. Adapt to
your opponents and overcome. Each time you go on the court, you MUST
change your game based on your opponents and to a lesser extent, your
partner. I see players come to Miona all the time. They do not realize
that what they used against intermediate and low advanced players will
get you killed against high advanced players. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
For example, hitting a hard shot from low to high
against 4.5 and 5.0 players will generally loose you the point as they
will just redirect it so quickly back to you that you cant react quick
enough. Yes, this same shot may win you points against lower skilled
opponents, but you MUST change your game based on your opponents and
what will work against them. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
When you step up your game and go to play with
higher skilled players than yourself, don't get into the mindset that
you are going to show the big boys ( girls ) all your tremendous skills.
You will just make too many mistakes by hitting balls out and not
having patience. Don't be afraid to be humble. When I play with Brian,
or Phil, or Robert or Tim etc, as my partner, I have NO EGO what so
ever. I have no problem letting them take as many shots as the want. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Secondly, if I am partnered with one of these top
players, our opponents are probably also going to be top advanced
players. Probably better skilled than I. Hence my job is to just keep
the ball low and in play and NOT make mistakes. I let my much better
partner hit the winners, as it is doubly difficult for me to hit a
winner against such highly skilled opponents. I am not going to try and
prove how I can hit incredible winners. That is not going to pan out. I
am just trying to prove that I can hang in there and not get us killed. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Some opponents I play against I can come out of the
soft game fairly early and smack a winner at or through them. These are
fairly few though. There are some opponents that have such good hand
skills that I pretty much have to have a downward hit right at their
feet before I will try it just because they will burn us with their
return if I smack at them prematurely. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
So what I am saying is vary your play according to
your opponents . Don't just play the same all the time. Observe what
works against certain players and keep that in your head as you play
them. Tim Nelson told me to observe how a new person plays in the first
point or so and then try and lump them into a category of other players
that you have seen in the past and then start playing against them as
you would the players you have lumped them into. Then adjust as each
point plays out. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Another thing Tim taught me is to praise highly your
opponent that makes the hero shot. The shot that they got lucky hitting
the winner against you. This will encourage them to keep hitting the
stupid hero shots that they will miss a great majority of the time. They
will miss three out of four shots, but will only remember the one shot
that went in and everyone gasped what a great shot. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Now for some court etiquette.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Don't leave your bag on the benches. These are for people, not bags. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Please throw your paper cups in the trash can.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Don't argue line calls your opponents make. It is their call, not yours. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Don't
make line calls while sitting on the bench, even if asked. I can tell
you that 40% of the time when I am sitting on a bench with another
player, we disagree on whether a ball was in or out. Players sitting on
the bench have NO better idea if a ball is in or not and it is against
the rules to consult the bench players.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Don't fight with the court next to you when their
ball comes onto your court and they want THAT ball back, not the one
that YOU have been playing with. Most 4.5 and 5.0 players want to
continue their game with the ball they started with. They get used to
the feel of that ball and they know it is not cracked or lopsided. </div>
<div>
Please move quickly across other courts that have stopped play for
you to pass. No you don't have to run, but you are interrupting that
game and moving across like a snail is poor form. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
thanks, jeff shank</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-13157517532559392032014-04-16T05:38:00.003-07:002014-04-16T05:50:09.785-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #39<div class="TitleContainer">
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For
those of you that may not be on Timothy Nelsons email list. He has not
come out with anything lately. But he came out with this two days ago.
YOU NEED to watch this. I have been fortunate to have had Timothy in our
home for about 30 days over the last three years. He comes again in
three days and will be with us for almost two weeks this time. I have
had the huge advantage of having sat thru 50 hours of watching Tim give
private lessons to our residents. </div>
I often talk at my class that i teach, that what i teach is
not stuff that i came up with..... 95% of what i teach is education i
received from watching and learning from Timothy. <br />
<br /></div>
In
my opinion Timothy Nelson is the best player in the world. Not only
because of the things he can do with his paddle and ball, but the
extreme intelligence he posses and the strategies that he must employ
with his partner because NO ONE wants to hit him the ball if they want
to win. </div>
I have played many hours against Tim. When you play against
him , you HAVE to turn off your subconscious mind because he
intentionally tells you things with his body and paddle position to make
you think he is about to do one thing, and then he does the exact
opposite. You have to just be ready for ANYTHING, NOT what he is trying
to tell you.<br />
<br />
</div>
I have heard Timothy say that the only difference between a
4.5 player and a 5.0 player is the way they THINK. There is SO much
brain power used at the highest level. We are very fortunate to be
having Timothy and the rest of the west coast top players visiting us
next week. The best thing that you will learn when you watch these top
players is that WHAT IS POSSIBLE. Once your mind sees certain shots, you
start to BELIEVE that you can do them. Until you see others do certain
things it is very hard to think that you can do them. You will see Erne
shots, Arizona pops, many around the post shots, shots that are dropped
softly into the kitchen when an opponent lobs over their head, etc. I
love to use the example of the back flip on a motorcycle. It was 70
years before someone was able to do a single back flip successfully.
Now riders are doing double back flips, just because the first person
did it and now the brain believes i can too.<br />
</div>
Here is the video......<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhuX7iU-V2w" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhuX7iU-V2w</a></div>
Watch it . It will put you into a new frame of mind. </div>
jeff shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-3722617893947092102014-04-16T05:37:00.000-07:002014-04-16T05:56:05.698-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #38<div>
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<div>
Ok, </div>
So we have gone over.....serve</div>
.......serve return</div>
Now
lets go over THE MOST IMPORTANT SHOT IN PB. The third shot. The third
shot is done by the serving team. The serving team is at a disadvantage
because of the two bounce rule. The serving team will be hitting the
third shot with both members of the serving team starting the third shot
both at or near the base line, while the receiving team will be at a
much more advantageous position.....at the NVZ line.<br />
<br /></div>
So the vast majority of the time, the third shot should be a
soft drop shot into the kitchen. Why???? Because a soft drop shot into
the kitchen, done correctly does a couple of things. One.... it gets the
serving team up to the net. This is a slow shot that takes time, hence
you can use this extra time to get both members of the serving team up
to the net and now at an even position on the court with their opponents
who have been waiting for them up at the net.<br />
<br />
</div>
Second, it does not allow the receiving team to do much with the ball other than dink it back. </div>
Now
the next part is really important and is not done well , even by many
better players. I am on the serving team, i see that the serve return
will be going to my partner. Now is one of the best times during the
game to call out "YOURS" OR "MINE". You dont want the ball to go
between you with neither of you taking it.<br />
<br />
Ok, so i see my partner will
be hitting the third shot from near the base line. I watch my partner as
i take about two steps into the court. By my second step , my partner
will have hit the third shot. IF it is a good third shot ( nice and low )
I will QUICKLY move up to the net. IF it is too high, i will
immediatley stop and split step and get low and get ready for a smash
near my feet. Because i am only two steps into the court, i will have a
good chance at getting it back.</div>
If i had just blindly gone up to the net , and my partner had
hit the third shot too high, i would have much less chance of returning a
smash near my feet.<br />
<br />
</div>
The serve return should be deep. If
it is NOT then you may want to smash the third shot at your opponents. A
third shot that is smashed from mid court DOES have a chance of
overpowering to good players standing at the net. However i do NOT
recommend blasting a ground stroke at two good players standing at the
net from the BASE LINE. The players at the net have a lot more time
with a ball smashed all the way back at the base line and can easily
handle it and many times put it back anywhere they want.<br />
</div>
That is enough for today. Will continue on the third shot next time. </div>
jeff shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-680137494822201252014-04-16T05:36:00.000-07:002014-04-16T05:56:36.589-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #37<div>
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<div>
Ok,<br />
<br />
I
have been really busy this past month. I passed my real estate license
exam. I have been licensed in Maryland since 2001 ( so if you know
anyone looking to buy preowned here in TV, or in Maryland, pass my info
on to them :).<br />
<br />
</div>
As advised in last tip, we will continue on with the RETURN OF SERVE.</div>
Quick recap of last tip on return of serve: </div>
Get return deep</div>
Get return to a bangers backhand</div>
Hit return to a great poacher so he cant come up to net and poach</div>
Get your butt to the net after return<br />
<br />
</div>
This weeks NEW info on return of serve</div>
1)If
you are pretty good, and the server does not have a really fast serve,
try taking the return as a half volley. To do this , as soon as you see
the serve is not a great one, move into the court and hit the return
immediately after the ball has hit the ground. This is a more advanced
shot, but try it. This does two things to your advantage, it gets you to
the net REALLY quick and it throws off the timing of your opponents as
the ball is coming back at them quicker than they expect.<br />
<br />
</div>
2) If your forehand is much stronger, try and situate yourself
on the court so that you can usually hit the return with your forehand.
This is not hard to do as long as the server does not have a great
serve. This is one of the few times i am a proponent of running around
the backhand.<br />
<br />
</div>
3) If the server pulls you off the court from the right hand
side with a strong angled serve, make sure you try and hit that return
diagonally back into the court corner that the serve came from. The
reason for this is that the server was able to get you off the court and
out of position. Going back deep diagonally takes time for the ball to
get there. This extra time give YOU extra time to get back into
position.<br />
<br />
</div>
4) If the server has an overpowering fast serve to
you......concentrate 100% on the ball as it is coming toward you. If you
focus on this concentration the ball does seem to come at you slower. </div>
Next week.......3rd shotAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-77128689778353267742014-04-16T05:33:00.001-07:002014-04-16T05:33:36.306-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #36Now for the Tip of the Week<br /><br />Last week we went over the serve in detail. Today we will discuss the serve return in depth. <br />
<br />The
number one important thing in the serve return is to get it DEEP. It is
more important to get it deep, than it is to get it back hard or to the
backhand or anything else. People ask me all the time......How do i
handle bangers. Well this is where you start. It is very hard for even a
good banger to be able to hit the ball hard and low enough to overpower
you at the net if they have to hit their shot from the baseline. The
same is NOT true if they can whack the ball at you from mid court. <br /><br />Secondly,
if bangers are overpowering you, you have to do one of two things with
the serve return. Either hit it to the bangers backhand....or hit it to
the banger that is the weaker banger. In either case, you still have to
get it deep. What i mean by deep is within three feet of the baseline.
Again, you cant let a banger hit the third shot with their forehand from
mid court. <br /><br />Now if your opponents banging their third shot
is not an issue for you.....Here are the options (still wanting to hit
it deep ). Go right down the middle a little closer to the opponent
standing to the left side (start service box ) . This assumes that both
players are right handed. What you are doing is going down the middle on
the serve return, but going closer to the opponent that would have to
hit it with a backhand. You are trying to establish confusion. It is
closer to the backhand player, but the middle is usually taken by the
forehand player so each may think the other is taking it. <br /><br /><br />Next
if i am playing against opponents and one of them is really a strong
poacher, i want to hit the return to the poacher. In the video i sent
out a couple of months ago with me playing with Brian against Brians son
and Rob Elliot, they usually hit the serve return to Brian. Why????
Because Brian is an excellent poacher. If they hit the return to me,
Brian can come up and hurt them with a poach. If they hit the return to
Brian, he has to stay back and let the ball bounce due to the two bounce
rule, so he can't come up immediately and poach. So there are instances
that you want to play the better player. <br /><br />ONE THING I SEE
OVER AND OVER IS THE SERVE RETURNER NOT MAKING A GREAT ENOUGH EFFORT TO
GET TO THE NET AFTER THEY HIT THE SERVE RETURN. I cannot stress how
important this is. When you are standing there waiting for the serve to
come to you, you need to be thinking two things<br /><br />deep return<br />follow your return up to the net. Move up immediately. <br /><br />I am going to go ahead and stop here as i still have quite a bit of info on the serve return which we will get out next week. <br />
<br />jeff shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-60018264233712485592014-04-16T05:32:00.000-07:002014-04-16T05:54:42.120-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #35<div>
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<div>
Ok, the plan is to go over
the first three shots, in depth, that you should be making in your game.
This will be comprehensive, so we will take three tips to cover
everything.<br />
<br />
</div>
First Shot.......Serve</div>
If any of
the first three shots are not hit correctly, you will be at a huge
disadvantage. Each shot leads to the next, so you want to give yourself
the highest chance of staying in and winning the point. </div>
Lets
say i am serving from the even ( right ) side of the court. I am right
handed. Before i serve i look at two things, which way is the wind
blowing and are all the players on the court right handed. I will
mention to my partner, " wind behind us, Jim is left handed", just to
make sure he/she knows before we start the game.<br />
<br />
</div>
I will
usually stand on the left hand side of the service area if the opponent i
am serving to is right handed. This gives me the highest chance of
hitting his backhand, my goal 80% of the time. If my opponent is LEFT
handed, it is easier for me to hit his backhand if i serve from the
right side of the even court. If i do stand on the right side trying to
serve to a left handers backhand, i will immediately move back to my
left, after i serve, so if my opponent returns the serve back to me, i
dont have to hit it with MY backhand.<br />
<br />
</div>
After i serve, i
want to move myself just behind the baseline (NOT INSIDE THE COURT) and
to the left side of my responsible area so that i have the highest
chance of hitting the third shot with my forehand.<br />
<br />
</div>
If my
partner is serving, I want to stand in the area that gives me the
highest chance of doing the third shot with my forehand, and also BEHIND
THE BASELINE. Not being behind the baseline for hitting the third shot
is one area that i see SO many players messing up on. It is VERY hard
to hit a competent third shot if you are standing inside the baseline
and your opponents hit the third shot as they should.......DEEP. Now you
are trying to hit the third shot with the ball bouncing at your feet,
which is VERY hard to control.<br />
<br />
</div>
Finally, when i serve i
want to put the ball DEEP. The deeper the better. The deeper i put the
serve, the harder i make it for my opponent to do a great serve return. I
will occasionally however, try and hit a short serve on opponents that
like to crank hard on the serve return. They now come running up toward
the net to hit the return, still intent on hitting the ball hard and
will many times hit the ball out long. <br />
<br />
</div>
That is it for now. Next week we will go over the serve return. </div>
jeff shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-50391993869406237992014-04-16T05:31:00.002-07:002014-04-16T05:57:36.302-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #34<div>
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Hope everyone had a happy and safe
holiday season. Anita and i were without PB for two weeks. One on a
cruise and the other visiting family in Maryland.<br />
<br />
</div>
Todays tip will be on stroking NOT pokeing the ball. </div>
Many
of my tips come from my observations while playing or more likely while
sitting on the bench watching others play. I was lucky enough to play a
couple of games this morning with National Doubles Champion..... Brian
Staub. After playing with him as my partner i took a break and watched
from the side lines.<br />
<br />
</div>
Brian is one of the sports TOP
players. He also has a text book swing at the ball. For those of you
that havent watched it ....go to ....<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhkjNsEA9_w" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhkjNsEA9_w</a> <br />
<br />
.......
and watch the mens open doubles finals from last month. Notice how
Brian and ALL the top players are very relaxed and smooth in their
stokes. They anticipate where and how their opponents will be hitting
the ball. They move to that point and get their paddle back early and
smoothly without rushing... hit the ball.<br />
<br />
</div>
</div>
This is in
contrast to what i see lower level players doing...which is NOT
anticipating, NOT moving to where the ball will be coming to and NOT
swinging smoothly and without rushing the shot. These lower level
players seem to wait until the last moment and then POKE at the ball
which gives them MUCH less control on the shot.<br />
<br />
</div>
If you
want to improve and play like a top player, then you want to do the
things that the top players do. You should spend time each week watching
videos of top players doing what they do best. Great PB> </div>
jeff shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-6431741051574422992014-04-16T05:30:00.001-07:002014-04-16T05:30:12.223-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #33<div>
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Ok, so i have been slacking the last month on the tips :(. HOwever this tip contains a LOT OF INFO> <br /></div>
Today lets talk about THINKING.<br />
</div>
If
you just want to go out and be in the fresh air and get some exercise,
there is no need to think and have a game plan and adjust that game plan
as the match progresses. But if you want to IMPROVE and win more games
it takes more work, expecially brain work. <br /></div>
I once saw
Timothy Nelson put in writing that the ONLY difference between a 4.5 and
a 5.0 is how they think. I would say that 60% of skill comes from
thinking and the rest comes from ability to hit shots. To put it another
way, it is more important to know which shot to hit, than it is to have
the physical ability to hit a great shot. <br /></div>
Thinking starts
before the game. I am mentally thinking what my opponents skills are.
What they do well and what they do not as well. If someone is extremely
agile and tall, lobbing is not a good shot to hit against them. If they
have super quick hands then i know that if i am going to try and
overpower them, i better be hitting down at their feet. If they are a
great dinker, maybe dinking to their partner or in the middle is the
best option. I am trying to put the odds in my favor as to which kind of
shot will give me the best reward. <br /></div>
Shot One. I am
serving. I am trying to decide where is the best serve to hit. Maybe go
for their backhand. If they are giving me a lot of room to hit to their
backhand, they usually WANT me to serve to their backhand. If they like
to crush my serve back, maybe I will try and hit a serve short, just
past the NVZ. Many times they will come running up to the net and still
try and hit it hard and it will go out long. Ninety five percent of the
time i want to make sure above all else that the serve is deep though. <br /></div>
Shot
Two. I return serve. I am thinking BEFORE they serve where i want to
hit the serve return. Down the middle and hope they fight over it. Is
one player giving me a chance to hit to their backhand , even though
their backhand is weak. Does one player have a hard time hitting the
third shot so i want to go to them. Is one player slow on their feet, so
if i hit my return to them, it is hard for them to come up to the net
afterwards. Ninety fiver percent of the time i want to make sure the
return of serve is deep though. <br /></div>
Third shot. Most important
shot in PB. Ninety percent of the time this is soft into the kitchen.
Do i want to hit this shot soft into the middle and hope they fight over
it? Do i want to go to my right side to that players backhand as most
players are not as good with their backhand. <br /></div>
The first
three shots are the easiest to think ahead of time as to what type of
shot you will do. After that you still want to try and hit shots that
take advantage of your opponents weaknesses. <br /></div>
I am a firm
believer that if you have two equally skilled right handed players
together, the player on the left takes balls down the middle as that is
the forehand. If i am playing with a much better partner ( Phil Bagley,
Tim Nelson, Brian Staub, etc) against two top players, my only goal is
to keep the ball low and in play. I let them poach as much as they want .
I am always looking out of the corner of their eye to see if they are
coming over to take "MY Shot". I have no ego problem letting the much
better player take as many shots as they want. This is just smart PB>
<br /></div>
Try and use your brain power, not just your athletic abilities as your brain is more important. <br /></div>
jeff shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-72620208717249780912014-04-16T05:29:00.000-07:002014-04-16T05:58:07.319-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #32<div>
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<div>
Ok, this tip is how to tell the future.<br />
<br />
</div>
I
was asked a question today by a player that i had just played with for
the first time. Several times during most points i will usually call
"mine" or "yours" as to who should be hitting the ball coming back at
us. He wanted to know how i was able to say "mine" or "yours" BEFORE the
opponent actually hit the ball.<br />
<br />
</div>
I told him that i was processing 4 things in my mind in the split second before our opponent hit the ball:</div>
1) which way was his body showing</div>
2) which way was his paddle showing</div>
3) how had he hit the ball in the past</div>
4) where was the best place for him to hit the ball<br />
<br />
</div>
Players
that use a lot of "miss direct" shots , you cant use 1 and 2. But most
players dont use miss direct shots. So try and get your conscious and
subconscious mind working and you should be able to already be moving to
where the ball will be coming to. This is a big factor in playing,as it
is much better to already be at the ball and swing in a smooth
controlled fashion to most effectively return a ball. Rather than pock
at a ball that you have to quickly be moving to. </div>
jeff shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-61942413316796772402014-04-16T05:27:00.003-07:002014-04-16T05:27:29.860-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #31<div class="readMsgBody">
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Hey all, <br /></div>
I got this from Pickleball Inc. , one of the top paddle makers. <br /></div>
Jeff Shank<br /><br /><h1>
Easy protein snacks for tournament days</h1>
<div class="">
Posted On October 28, 2013 </div>
I have received four different inquires about snacks and what
tops players pack for long tournament days... So here are some healthy
ideas I've gathered along the way:<br />
Many say that protein helps repair damaged muscles and tissues and by
choosing omega-3-rich protein sources you'll help counter inflammation
that can build up in tendons, joints and tissues after a hard game of
pickleball. While protein powders and energy bars seem like the easiest
choice to snack on after play, there are several more wholesome protein
picks that are just as quick and easy.<br />
Traditional hummus is made with chickpeas, olive oil, tahini, garlic
and spices. Packed with fiber, protein, vitamins and heart-healthy fat,
hummus can be enjoyed on the go in small packs bought at the grocery
store, or you can make your own. Dip pita chips or raw veggies in hummus
to boost your carb, fiber and antioxidant intake.<br />
Now packed in convenient pouches, tuna fish can be tossed in your bag
before you dash out to the court. The packs come in various flavors, so
you can enjoy a wholesome protein source straight out of the bag while
also reaping the benefits of this anti-inflammatory omega-3 source.<br />
Protein-packed nuts are one of my favorites. Best picks include raw
or lightly salted almonds, walnuts, peanuts and pistachios. To get your
nut and chocolate fix try Costco's trail mix with those m&ms.<br />
You can find bags of single-serve edamame in grocery stores now, or
simply fill a cup of shelled or unshelled pods in a re-sealable bag.
Roasted soy nuts also offer a crunchy, low-maintenance snack when hunger
strikes.<br />
Nonfat plain Greek yogurt is also good because in just a single
serving you can get about 20g of protein. The single-serve packs are
great for an easy, on-the-go snack. Adding fresh berries and even some
high-fiber cereal makes it that much better.<br />
And, don't forget chocolate milk.<br />
Keep the fuel in your body and the fire in your play :-)</div>
</div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-20372302254921962672014-04-16T05:26:00.001-07:002014-04-16T05:58:52.202-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #30<div>
Ok, this week we will talk a little about major and minor poaching. <br />
<br />
In
major poaching, you totally commit to taking the ball from your
partners side of the court. You usually do this for one of two reasons.
First, because your partner is way out of position . Second , because
you believe you can surprise your opponents and hit a winner against
them. In this type of poach, the non poaching partner needs to grasp
quickly what is happening and cover the now vacant side of the court
that the poacher has left open. <br />
<br />
In minor poaching , one
player comes slightly over onto the partners side of the court to take
the ball. There are several reasons for this. One is that the poacher
may be a superior player. Two, the poacher is taking a forehand on their
partners side of the court and feels that is prudent. Three, the non
poacher is slightly out of position ( the non poacher was the receiver
and just returned the serve and is moving up to the net and the poacher
just has to take a slight step to the middle to take the shot).<br />
<br />
No
matter what the situation, the non poacher has to be on their toes. If i
am the minor poacher and move past the middle of the court to take the
shot, i must then move back to my side of the court after i hit the
ball. Again, this is not a full commitment poach. I have no thought of
staying on my partners side of the court. I just moved over TEMPORARILY
. And now i have to move back to my side of the court which is open.
Hence my momentum is away from the center of the court so my partner
must realize this and COVER THE CENTER of the court that i have just
vacated.</div>
jeff shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-9154789255532792122014-04-16T05:25:00.003-07:002014-04-16T06:01:10.073-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #29<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
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<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
I am currently taking a
couple of days off of play to rest my aging body. I went yesterday to
watch mainly 3.0 to 4.0 players. This weeks tip is geared toward those
players who are intermediate to low advanced ( 3.0 to 4.0 ).<br />
<br />
</div>
It
is VERY frustrating as an instructor to watch these players play. If
they would just make a few slight changes they would play SO much
better. I feel sometimes like good info is heard but then when play
starts, all that good info goes by the way side.<br />
<br />
</div>
YOU HAVE
TO PLAY WITH CONTROL. I constantly make the comment that players below
4.5 live to hit winners. This is NOT how you win pickleball. You have to
change your priorities from hitting winners to NOT MAKING MISTAKES.
Watch youtube videos of 4.5 and 5.0 play. These higher level players
make highest priorites of not making mistakes. By not making mistakes, i
am talking about the following:<br />
<br />
</div>
1) Dont try and hit a
winner when the odds of that shot being a winner are low. I like to make
the analogy of my one friends who is a world class swimmer and holds
several softball records. When he plays golf ( not one of his better
sports ) he tries to hit every drive 300 yards. He has the hardest golf
swing of anyone i have ever played with. Unfortunately 5 to 10 percent
of the time he actually connects with the ball and hits it 300 yards.
75% of the time he mishits it and it goes 50 yards. It is awe inspiring
when he hits it 300 yards, and that is the only shot he remembers. His
score is terrible. But he is always trying to impress. This is what i
see intermediate players doing. They want to hit that low percentage
shot that everyone goes oooouu, awwww. But they dont remember the 75% of
the time when that shot ends up a looser.<br />
<br />
</div>
2) Dont try and
hit a winner off a winner. When someone hits a great shot on you , your
goal is to just get it back and not give it back where your opponents
can hit a winner. I see so many people that have a drop shot hit on them
when they are back at the baseline and go running forward and now
instead of taking the pace off the ball and dropping it into the
kitchen, they smash it trying for a winner.<br />
<br />
</div>
3) When you do
have a winner to hit ( like an overhead smash at your opponents feet )
there is no need to go 110%. Go at 90-95%. I see so many players overhit
a winner and it ends up a looser. </div>
The next time you are
at play, watch your 4.0 and below players playing and see if what i am
saying is not so. Their main concern is to hit a winner at any cost. Now
watch 4.5 or 5.0 players either in person or on youtube if you dont
have that skill set where you play. 4.5 and above players points
generally last MUCH longer than intermediate players. Why?????? Because
the are not in the mind set that they have to end the point now. They
have confidence. They know that if they can go longer than their
opponents without making a mistake, they will probably win the point.<br />
<br />
</div>
Again,
watch play while you are waiting. See how many points are won, and how
many points are lost. MOST POINTS ARE LOST do to someone making a
mistake. That mistake might be over hitting a winner. Trying for a
winner before a winner is there. Popping the ball up on a poor dink or a
poor lob. Trying for a winner off a winner. ETC .<br />
<br />
</div>
YOU
HAVE TO GET INTO THE MINDSET OF OUTLASTING YOUR OPPONENTS. NOT HITTING
WINNERS. Yes you do want to hit a winner when a winner is there, but not
before the shot is there nor going 110% on that winner. You will not
believe how powerful you will feel when you develop CONTROL of your
shots ( hitting the shot where you want to ) and CONTROL of your mind
with your shot selection ( chosing the correct shot to hit ).<br />
<br />
</div>
<div>
Sorry
if i constantly harp on certain issues. But i keep seeing the same
things over and over again where i think some things might need to be
discussed several times before it finally sinks in to some. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
jeff shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-35050037895786060352014-04-16T05:24:00.000-07:002014-04-16T06:01:48.422-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #28<div>
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<div>
Ok, so let me first of expand on hitting to certain partners that we started last time. <br />
<br />
One
thing that i saw out at Nationals in Az. is that if both partners are
of equal strength, in tournaments some teams will just pick one opponent
and hit every thing to that player. This does a couple of things. It
put a LOT of pressure on the player getting all the balls, and it makes
the player getting NO balls on edge and that player may start to try and
poach when is not appropriate. <br />
.....................................................................................................................</div>
We are half way thru the first year of tips, so now would be a good time to go back to basics. </div>
There are three things that i say every player MUST put maximum priority on:<br />
<br />
</div>
1)
GET TO THE NET Except in instances where you are going to have a
ball hit hard at you, you should be up at the net. This is where the
game is won. Anytime you are up at the net and your opponents are back,
you are at the advantage. When you and your partner are stuck at the
baseline, you are ALWAYS looking for the ball that you can hit soft into
the kitchen to get you both up to the net. And when you are at the net
with your opponents back, you want to try and KEEP your opponents back
by hitting the ball deep at their feet.<br />
<br />
</div>
2) LEARN THE SOFT
GAME The soft game is what is able to get you up to the net when you
are back. And it lets you compete against advanced players. What works
for you at begginer and intermediate play will not let you win against
advanced players. When you play against better players, it is imperative
that you make your advanced opponents hit UP on the ball. This usually
means you must be able to dink into the kitchen.<br />
<br />
</div>
3) KEEP ERRORS TO A MINIMUM I often talk about the playing characteristics of different player levels:<br />
<br />
Beginner players.......... just want to get the ball back over the net. <br />
<br />
Intermediate players...just want to hit winners( but end up making LOTS of errors<br />
<br />
</div>
Advanced
players....Place most emphasis on NOT MAKING MISTAKES. By not making
mistakes i mean not hitting the ball out or into the net and not popping
the ball up for their opponents to kill. Yes, advanced players want to
hit a winner, but they realize that not making an error is more
important than hitting a winner. I want my partner to be a SMART player.
That means making the correct decisions on which type of shot to hit.<br />
<br />
</div>
Remember, MOST points are not won by hitting a great shot, they are lost by making a mistake. </div>
jeffAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-52625170508975219752014-04-16T05:21:00.004-07:002014-04-16T05:21:52.313-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #27<div>
<div>
Hey All,<br /></div>
I am still up in Maryland and Pickleball less for one month now. I hope to be able to return this coming weekend. <br /></div>
This weeks tip will be on playing your opponents.<br />
<br /> This
is more for competition play rather than rec play, but you can practice
it at rec play also. Lets consider the first scenario where one of your
opponents is much better than the other opponent. IF YOUR MAIN concern
is to win the match, you will want to hit to the weaker player all other
things being equal. <br /><br />IF YOU WANT TO IMPROVE YOUR GAME, hit
to the better player. This is what we locals all decided to do when Tim
Nelson comes to play with us each year. What is the sense of being on
the court with the best player in the world , if you dont play balls to
him? Just a waste of everyones time!!!!! <br /><br />Now lets say
both your opponents are advanced players, so fairly equal in overall
skill levels. However every player has strengths and weaknesses. I
consider myself a very good dinker. But if my opponents are Deb Harrison
and player XXXXX , I will probably chose to get into a dink battle with
player XXXX as i know that Deb also excels at the dink game. Why would i
want to play to my opponents strengths? ( unless again i am just
looking to improve my game and not win points). However if i am going to
hit a nice high lob and can chose to hit it over Deb's head or her six
foot two, 200 pound partners head, i will probably choose Deb's five
foot zero head to try and go over. Again, i am trying NOT to play into
my opponents strengths. <br /><br /><br />Next week we will talk about a strategy of who to hit the ball to that i learned out at Nationals. <br /><br />jeff shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-17713294173917777502013-09-15T15:46:00.003-07:002013-09-15T15:49:00.570-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #26<div>
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<div>
Hey all, </div>
I have been up north the last couple of weeks. No PB for me :(.<br />
<br /></div>
This
weeks tip will be on being unpredictable. Lets take one example. Before
Timothy Nelson taught me the misdirect shot ( which we will discuss at a
later date ) when ever i had an easy overhead smash while standing at
the NVZ and my opponents were also at the NVZ here is how i would hit
that overhead ( or easy smash ). The first one, i would usually hit it
down the line. The second time it would happen , I would also hit it
down the line. Now my opponents have probably sensed a pattern on my
overhead smashes. That is what i am hoping for.<br />
<br /></div>
So now the
third time i get the chance to hit this shot , I will go down the
middle. I do this because a smart team will remember how i hit the first
two and be looking for the same. And since now i hit the third one
differently , it will have an even higher likelihood of being a winner.
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Timothy Nelson also taught me that the only
difference between a 4.5 player and a 5.0 player is NOT how good you can
hit the ball. But it is how the player thinks. His shot selection. His
ability to confuse and keep his opponents off balance so that they are
not able to do the same to you. </div>
So the next time you are
on the courts, try and think about your shot selection. Be
unpredictable. Try and confuse your opponents.<br />
<br /></div>
On a side
note, as i have said before, very little of what i teach, did i come up
with or invent. Most of what i teach is just copied from talking with
and observing top players. I still constantly watch PB videos on
youtube. Unfortunately most of the best videos are my own so i dont get
to see as much variety as i would like. However i would recommend you
also watch youtube videos from the world pickleball
federation......wpfadmin is the youtube address or those put out by Tim
Nelson.......his youtube addresses are either Timothy Nelson or
Pickleballstars.<br />
<br /></div>
I watch at least an hour of TOP video a week. Many matches i have watched so many times, i know who wins each point.<br />
</div>
jeff shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-37828691283195063192013-09-04T11:50:00.002-07:002013-09-04T11:51:31.593-07:00Pickleball Tip Of Week #25<div>
<div>
<div>
This weeks tip is another tip on dinking the ball.<br />
<br /></div>
First
off when you are up at the NVZ dinking the ball, DONT bounce up and
down. Stay down as much as you are able. Keep bent at your knees and
slightly at the waist . If this is too tiring, it is ok to place your
non paddle hand just above your knee for support.<br />
<br /></div>
If you dink and then come upright, you have to go back down
again when you hit the next dink. When you go down to dink and then
stand upright, you have much less control and are prone to pop the ball
up. The less movement of your body the better. However it is not a bad
idea to move your feet a little bit on every shot. I see many players
that over reach for a shot instead of moving their feet to where they
should be. Over reaching gives you less control.<br />
<br /></div>
So to summarize, when you are up at the net dinking, stay in
the low, bent knee position as long as possible. Dont bob up and down.
But DO move your feet on each shot.<br />
<br />
jeff shank <br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-11016918461348951712013-08-25T12:16:00.001-07:002013-08-25T12:17:24.090-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #24<div>
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<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Hey All,</div>
This weeks tip is moving from baseline to NVZ after 3rd shot.<br />
<br />
</div>
Deciding
how to move up depends alot on your partners abilities. If i get stuck
with a banger as my partner and he/she is going to hit the third shot, i
dont even consider moving up to the NVZ as he bangs the third shot from
the baseline. Against great opponents, any movement up to the net now
is a death wish. Great players will redirect my partners bang back at
our feet if we are closer than the baseline. And the other downfall of
banging the third shot from the baseline is that now , since we cant
immediately come up to the net, we are susceptible to our opponents
hitting a drop shot with us both back. Now staying back with a banger
hitting the third shot does NOT apply if the banger is banging the third
shot from "No mans land". He is close enough now, that he may be able
to overpower our opponents who are standing at the net. <br />
<br />
</div>
If
i am lucky enough to be partnered with a great touch player who usually
hits the third shot nicely into the opponents NVZ, i move up fairly
quickly as my partner hits her third shot with the confidence that it
wont get us killed.<br />
<br />
</div>
If i play with a on again off again
partner who sometimes hits a good third shot into the kitchen and
sometimes gets it too high, i now have to think more. ( This is the
application that requires the most decisions ). As i see the SERVE
RETURN coming to my partner who is standing at the baseline ready to hit
the third shot, i take about two steps into the court while i am
watching closely how well my partner hits the third shot. If she hits a
nice one that will drop into the kitchen i scoot QUICKLY up to the net.
If my partner hits the ball too high which will allow our opponents to
crack it back at our feet, i immediately recognize this and STOP ( about
four or five feet into the court ) and split step and default to my
backhand and get ready to a speedster coming my way.<br />
<br />
</div>
Remember
as you get more advanced and practice more and more the touch game, you
are always looking for a ball that is smashed at you that you while you
are stuck at the baseline that can still be hit softly back into the
kitchen with no pace. This is the shot that takes you from a
disadvantage situation (the baseline ) to a neutral one ( at the NVZ). .<br />
<br />
</div>
So again............In a perfect world, this is how it
should work. I see the serve return coming to my partner who is going to
hit a nice soft shot into the kitchen. As soon as i see she hits a good
one, i scoot up QUICKLY to the NVZ and she comes up quickly also ,
following her shot up. <br />
<br />
jeff shank Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-12473186950772772082013-08-16T06:25:00.003-07:002013-08-16T06:32:04.048-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week 23<div>
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<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Alright Gang, </div>
This weeks tip is a little about the drop shot when your opponents are back at the baseline.<br />
<br /></div>
There
are some players that actually like to stay back at the baseline and
just keep lobbing the ball high to two opponents standing at the NVZ.
NOT a great strategy. A good way to make them pay for this poor strategy
is the soft drop shot into the kitchen instead of continuously hitting
hard shots back.<br />
<br /></div>
The lobbers usually can handle your
decent smashes straight back at them. And if that is all you are going
to do, you could loose the point. So you have to NOT be predictable. If
you never hit anything different back at them, they KNOW each time you
smash it back at them, and they can get ready for it.<br />
<br /></div>
Hence
comes the soft drop shot. WAIT until you have a shot that you can take
LOW. While standing right up to the NVZ with a short lob coming your
way, you MUST wait for one that is fairly low. You want to disguise the
shot by taking your normal backswing you have been using while smashing
the balls back at their feet. However this time, at the last minute do
your forward swing slow and drop the ball soft into the kitchen.
Preferable on the side of the SLOWER opponent. They now have to bust
butt to get up and get the ball. Even if they do get it back it will
usually either be a pop up you can put away, or it will go deep out.<br />
<br /></div>
The
shot you are going to do this on MUST be one you can hit with control
when the ball is at shoulder height or lower. If you try and do this
drop shot reaching way up in the air you wont have as much control and
since you are taking the ball up high, it takes longer for this ball to
travel down to the ground and gives your opponents extra time to get to
it.<br />
<br /></div>
I generally try and put some backspin on this shot if
possible as with backspin the ball will "DIE" on your opponents court
and it will make it even more difficult for them to return it.<br />
<br /></div>
Even
if you miss the shot, you are putting your opponents on notice that you
have this shot in your arsenal and they have to be on guard for it.
They can no longer just hang back at the baseline hitting lob after lob.<br />
<br />
jeff shank Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-36506766757641483292013-08-12T17:35:00.003-07:002013-08-12T17:35:30.909-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #22I got this article from Stu, one of our club members.<br />
<br />
<div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">1. TRAIN HARD: Train hard now to get in phenomenal physical shape before competing </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">during the hot summer months. Physically fit athletes handle the hot and humid </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">conditions better because they are able to consume and utilize more oxygen per </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">breath. Their ability to handle mild increases in core temperature gives them a </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">distinct on-court advantage over opponents who are not in the same physical shape.</span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"> </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">2. HYDRATE - Drinking high volumes of carbohydrate & electrolyte-enhanced fluids will </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">prepare the athlete and help limit the severe loss of fluids and electrolytes during </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">play. Since tennis players can lose between one-fourth of a gallon and three-fourths </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">gallon per hour it is important to make sure they do not go onto the court already </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">dehydrated. As much as 50 percent of tournament players go into matches already </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">dehydrated. We as coaches need to educate our players on the importance of </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">hydrating not only during the match, but also the night before and the morning of </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">the match. For every 1 percent of body weight that is lost due to sweating, the </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">athlete's heart rate rises approximately five to 10 beats per minute. This means that </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">the athlete's body will need to work much harder to produce the same result. It is </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">important to remember that the fluids consumed need to have appropriate levels of </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">electrolytes, specifically sodium, so as not to dilute the electrolyte levels in the body </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">(hyponatremia, see tip 3).</span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"> </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">3. SODIUM - Consume high-sodium food and drink. Sodium is the major electrolyte lost </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">in the sweat, and it is directly related to an athlete's likelihood of cramping. An easy </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">way to tell if your players are "salty sweaters" is whether a white residue is left on </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">dark-colored clothing or hats. This white residue is salt deposits released from the </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">sweat. The higher the athlete's salt concentration in the sweat, the more this white </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">residue will show up on their apparel during and after a long match or practice </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">session in hot and humid conditions. Another important reason to consume enough </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">sodium in the diet and fluids is that athletes who consume large amounts of plain </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">water without enough sodium may experience a condition known as hyponatremia, </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">or "water intoxication." Diluting the body's sodium stores can have potentially life threatening consequences.</span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">Make
sure that rehydration is performed with sodium enriched fluids.
However, if the athlete has a medical condition that affects the </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">kidneys, heart or blood pressure, it is important to speak to a physician prior to </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">increasing the sodium in the diet.</span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"> </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">4. BALANCED DIET - A balanced diet is important for all athletes from a general </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">performance standpoint and especially in regard to heat-related issues. A balanced </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">diet with the needed carbohydrates, fats and protein, as well as the required </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">vitamins and minerals, ensures that the tennis player is not deficient in any one </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">area. It may also be beneficial for athletes to have their blood work analyzed once or </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">twice per year to make sure they are consuming appropriate nutrients (especially </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">vitamins and minerals).</span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"> </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">5. COOLING - Use ice and other cooling mechanisms to keep the core body </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">temperature cool before, during and after practice and competition. Individuals who </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">go into hot and humid environments with lower core body temperatures to start with </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">have been shown to perform better than when they go into situations with slightly </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">higher core temperatures. This process of pre-cooling has shown positive results and </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">is something that can be accomplished by tennis players before they go onto the </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">court for matches during the hot and humid summer months. Vests are available </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">that can store ice for a long period of time and cover the core of the body to help </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">lower body temperature. If pre-cooling techniques are used before practice or </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">competition, it is advised not to put ice directly on the joints or limbs (arms and </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">legs), but instead focus on the core of the body to help reduce core body </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">temperature.</span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"> </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">6. CARBOHYDRATES - Maintain blood glucose (sugar) levels throughout a </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">match/practice. If an athlete does not consume enough carbohydrates before and </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">during the match, energy that can be used for the working muscles is reduced, and </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">this will result in the body using other processes to generate fuel for the working </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">muscles. These other processes are not as efficient and require more steps to </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">produce usable energy for the body. These extra steps require the body to work </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">harder, resulting in greater core temperatures.</span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"> </span></b></div>
</div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"><div>
<br /></div>
<div>
7. WEAR SUNSCREEN! Sunburn increases skin temperature and makes the body less </div>
<div>
efficient at body cooling. Most of us have been sunburned and had the feeling of heat </div>
<div>
dissipating from the skin. This process limits the amount of heat that will be moved </div>
<div>
from the core to the periphery (skin) and limits the ability to cool as efficiently as </div>
<div>
possible.</div>
</span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">REFERENCES</span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">1. Falk B. Effects of thermal stress during rest and exercise in the paediatric population. </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">Sport Med. 1998;25:221-240.</span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">2. Moran DS. Potential applications of heat and cold stress indices to sporting events. </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">Sport Med. 2001;31:909-917.</span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">Mark Kovacs, PhD, FACSM, CTPS, CSCS</span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">Dr. Kovacs is a former All-American and NCAA tennis champion. His background involves</span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">directing the sport science division for the USTA and is a founding member of the </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">International Tennis Performance Association (<a href="http://www.itpa-tennis.org/" target="_blank">www.itpa-tennis.org</a>) which is the leading</span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">organization in tennis fitness, performance education and certification. He is also an author </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">of five books including Dynamic Stretching, Tennis Anatomy and Tennis Training: Enhancing </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">On-Court Performance and is currently the Director of the Gatorade Sport Science Institute. </span></b></div>
<div>
<b style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"><span style="color: black;">Follow Mark on twitter @mkovacsphd</span></b></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-13490077582691242962013-08-12T17:19:00.001-07:002013-08-12T17:22:14.763-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #21<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Ok guys, </div>
We have
another video this week to watch. It is myself ( in yellow ) partnered
with Brian Staub ( who took fourth place in 2012 Nationals Mens Open
Division when he partnered with Phil Bagley). We are playing against the
team of Rob ( in the hat ) and Matt Staub ( Brians son ). Rob and Matt
are practicing for this years Nationals.<br />
<br />
<br />
</div>
There are a couple of things i want you to notice. First off I
am the weakest player amongst the four. I am a weak 5.0, Matt and Rob
are good 5.0 and Brian is a top 5.0. Being the weakest player on the
court , partnered with the strongest player, my role is just to keep the
ball low and in play. My opponents are VERY HIGHLY skilled. It is not
good odds for me to hit winners against them unless i have a very high
ball. So i just try and keep the ball low and in play and let my much
better partner go for the winners. This good strategy is not what i see
locally in open play. When intermediate players come to play against
advanced players, the intermediate players seem to want to "proof"
themselves by going for a lot of winners. Not a good strategy when you
are hitting against much better opponents.<br />
<br />
<br />
</div>
What you will see is the soft game that i preach so much
about. When you get on the court with this high level of opponents, you
HAVE TO KEEP THE BALL LOW. You just cant give your opponents a ball that
is high because they are very skilled at putting it away. Notice that
everyone has really good patience. We have confidence that we can hit
dink after dink.</div>
Notice that we try very hard to keep our opponents back. If
they are back, hitting up to the kitchen and we have to hit it with a
backhand, even if it is a little high, we just keep hitting it DEEP
until our opponents get it high to our forehand or they just hit it into
the net.<br />
<br />
<br />
</div>
Notice the touch control you see when a opponent hits a hard
ball , we have the abliity to do a couple of things with this ball hit
hard at us. Either hit it back hard or take the pace off it and drop it
in the kitchen. The same thing if we get get caught in no mans land and
they hit at our feet, we just drop it back soft into the kitchen and
work our way up to the NVZ.</div>
Notice that Matt and Rob usually hit the serve return to my
partner Brian instead of to me. They do this because when i hit the
third shot, Brian likes to come up to the net and poach. He does this
several times when they give me the third shot. Again, they are not
doing this because I am a better third shot hitter, they are doing it
because if they make brian hit the third shot, he cant come up and poach
and overpower them. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
You see a lot of CONTROL in this match. You learn
control by starting to play the soft game. Hitting balls soft into the
kitchen no matter how the ball is hit to you or where you are on the
court. If you have a very good soft game, you can play competitively
against ANY players in the world. You may not win, but you will be
competitive.<br />
<br />
<br />
</div>
<div>
This is classic good pickleball. </div>
<div>
Deep serve</div>
<div>
Deep serve return</div>
<div>
Third shot soft into the kitchen</div>
<div>
Dink dink dink until someone makes a mistake </div>
<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kPvYrBEre0" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?<wbr></wbr>v=_kPvYrBEre0</a><br />
<br />
jeff shank Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-23402441896776703982013-08-12T17:17:00.001-07:002013-08-12T17:23:10.365-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #20<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Ok, </div>
This
weeks tip is a little different. You have an assignment. Watch the
following video. It is last weeks Tournament Of Champions in Utah. It
was an invite only event which gave out $18000 in prize money. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPTR6kBJhwY" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?<wbr></wbr>v=xPTR6kBJhwY</a></div>
Print off this email and follow along as you watch the video. </div>
What
i want everyone to see most this week is the half volley Tim Nelson (
young man in Red and Black shirt and in my opinion the best pickleball
player in the world)</div>
does at both the return of serve and the third shot. He is half volleying or short hopping the ball. </div>
What
this does is two things. It gets him up to the net way quick and throws
off the timing of his opponents because he is getting the ball back so
quickly.<br />
<br />
<br />
</div>
So understand that Tim and his partner Billy
Jacobson ( who happens to be deaf) won the winners bracket and have
probably been sitting for several hours waiting for Lavon Majors and
Mike Gates to work their way thru the losers bracket. Hence see how many
UNFORCED ERRORS Tim and Billy make early in the first game. They are
down 1-5 and smartly take a time out to try and stop the momentum and
get their game together.<br />
<br />
<br />
</div>
You will see a LOT of advanced
strategies in this match. You will see that on most points, the servers
partner and the receivers partner are moving back and forth as the serve
is made. Tim wants to play most of the points on the left side of the
court. This gives him more room to poach with his forehand and cover
more of the court. Their opponents are moving back and forth based on
their own strategies and to try and get in the heads of Tim and Billy.<br />
<br />
<br />
</div>
At
8:25 you will see Tim fake swing at the ball as Billy is actually
hitting it. So early in the first game, Tim and Billy make the most
unforced errors. In the middle of the first BOTH teams are making
unforced errors and in the end of the first game, Lavon and Mike are
making most of the unforced errors. At 8-3-2 Tim is behind and starts
the short hop or half volleys that i am talking about. </div>
In
the second game, again Tim and Billy make a lot of unforced errors. At
4-0-1 Tim and Billy again take a time out to try and change the
momentum. They go down 0-5, but pull it together and Gates and Majors
start making lots of unforced errors and Tim and Billy run out the match
with 11 straight points. <br />
</div>
Notice the ball catch Tim makes at 22:20 !!!!</div>
Notice
what we call the "Erne" poach that Tim does at 27:20. You will see that
for about 5 seconds before Tim makes this incredible shot, he is
wanting to do it. Unfortunately if you watch it a few times you will see
that he does foot fault , but he does it so quickly and from out of
nowhere, that the ref does not catch it. </div>
Notice the
incredible "misdirection" shot that Tim does at 32:53. A misdirection
shot is where you are intentionally telling your opponents one thing
with your body/head/hand positioning but then hit it the entirely
different way.<br />
<br />
<br />
</div>
So in conclusion, my main goal is for you
to see what i am talking about with learning the soft game, limiting
unforced errors and TRY OUT THIS SHORT HOP return of serve and third
shot that you see Tim doing. When you do it on the return of serve, you
want to hit it as deep as possible. When you do it on the third shot you
want to drop it soft into the kitchen. Try it , You will be AMAZED at
how much quicker this gets you up to the NVZ. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-42565557706345338322013-08-12T17:14:00.001-07:002013-08-12T17:23:50.444-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #19<div>
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<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Ok Guys, </div>
This
weeks tip is on equipment, specifically paddles. Here in Florida, in the
winter we play in 30 degree to 60 degree weather. In the summer we play
in 80 to 97 degree weather with LOTS of hot sun beating on the ball.<br />
<br />
<br />
</div>
In
the winter time, our balls are nice and crisp when cold and POP off the
paddle with little help. In the summer heat and sun, the balls tend to
get soft and are much harder to generate a high rate of speed. </div>
The
past month i personally noticed that it was becoming much harder for me
to hit winners on my serve. Usually it is not uncommon for my serve to
win at least one outright winner per game ( receiver is not able to
return the ball ). And smashes at the net were very difficult to
overpower my highly skilled opponents.</div>
Today , realizing
these things, I remembered to switch back to my summer paddle. This
summer paddle hits the ball much harder ( thus less control ) than my
lighter , older winter paddle. But i need this extra power on the soft
summer ball. Control is great, but when the opportunity arises, you need the power to win the point. </div>
I had 4 outright winners in one game today on my serve with the summer paddle.<br />
<br />
<br />
</div>
Newer
paddles, heavier paddles, composite paddles ( as opposed to light
hitting graphite paddles ) and paddles that have had the Jim Carroll
upgrade are all good choices for the soft summer ball. I personally like
to use a lighter paddle, however my summer paddle has the Jim Carroll
upgrade. He takes an older paddle and applies a tough smooth coating to
the surface. He can also put college info or grandkid photos on the
paddle with this coating. It does NOT provide any trampoline effect
which is against usapa rules, however it does give it a little more pop
as it is a nice hard surface. And adds a little weight which also gives
extra pop. </div>
So a slow light winter paddle will give you
about the same power and control in the winter as a heavier more
powerful paddle in the summer.<br />
<br />
</div>
jeff shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-85046016162094285752013-08-12T17:12:00.002-07:002013-08-12T17:24:02.486-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #18<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Hey All, </div>
This weeks tip is a short one. </div>
As
you are playing make sure that you are ALWAYS facing the ball while you
are awaiting the shot from your opponents. Your feet and shoulders
should be SQUARE to the ball. This is true whether or not you are
waiting for a dink, a ground stroke or a smash from your opponents.<br />
<br />
<br />
</div>
If
the ball is on the opponents right side of the court, that is the
direction your feet and shoulders should be facing. Same if the ball is
on the left side of the court. Dont get caught up or be lazy and just
always be facing straight ahead. </div>
jeff shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6070845432809248606.post-48679219683400105552013-08-12T17:10:00.000-07:002013-08-12T17:24:24.425-07:00Pickleball Tip of Week #17<div>
<div>
<div>
Another "quick" tip this week. Todays tip is based on play that i witnessed today. </div>
Lets
say that you and your partner are up at the net. Your opponents are
stuck at or near the base line. You and your partner are hitting smashes
at your opponents. One thing that you need to remember is that it is
MUCH better to smash the ball as deep as possible even if you take a
little pace off the ball to do this. This is opposed to smashing the
ball really hard , but it is hitting the court ten feet or so in front
of the opponents. When you smash the ball way in front of your
opponents, the ball now is much easier for them to return because it
will bounce nice and high by the time it gets to them.<br />
<br />
<br />
</div>
As
opposed to hitting with a little less pace, but it will be within a foot
or less of their feet. Now with this better smash , it will be much
harder for your opponents to do a decent return.</div>
<div>
So
try and remember, deep near your opponents feet with a little less pace
is much preferred to hitting the ball 110% ( which means less control )
way in front of your opponents. </div>
jeff shankAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15272265139334781706noreply@blogger.com0