How to Improve at Tennis

Tennis is a game of physical skill and endurance, and it requires mental speed. Good tennis players can move quick and think fast on their feet. What do professional tennis players know that amateurs don't? You have to keep your body in shape and your mind focused, and your game will improve.

Instructions

    • 1

      Exercise to increase your endurance. Begin working out at a moderate level, and build up to a one-hour session of running, biking, or other aerobic activity at least three times per week.

    • 2

      Keep your feet moving during a tennis match. This keeps your energy level high, and enables you to react quickly in any direction necessary. Mimic the pros. Instead of standing in place while waiting for your opponent to serve, quickly step back and forth. This enables your body to react quicker, since you are moving already. Trying to react quickly to a server, from a standstill, is difficult.

    • 3

      Watch your opponent closely. Try to anticipate your opponent's move so that you can react quickly. The more you watch and try to anticipate the moves of your opponents, the more accurate you will become with your reactions to serves and strokes.

    • 4

      React quickly to the tennis ball. Do not sit and think about your move. Instead, train yourself to react correctly without thinking. To increase your reaction time, play a no-rules tennis match with a friend. In a no-rules tennis match, you do not keep score. Your only focus is to hit the ball. Focus on responding to the ball as quickly as you can. With practice, your reaction speed will increase.

    • 5

      Keep your cool. Do not let yourself get angry when the match is not going well. An angry mind makes rash decisions. Rather, learn how to channel your anger from your mind to your body. Release your mental anger any way you need to. Take a deep breath to calm yourself. Try jumping from foot to foot to move energy to your body. By using your anger to pump up your energy level, you fuel your reaction speed. The adrenaline rush that stems from your anger can give you a much-needed rush in energy.

    • 6

      Watch professional tennis on television or at a local tennis center. Take note of how players move and respond to the tennis ball. Ask yourself the following questions: How do the players move? What is their body posture? Where are they looking? What does their serving form look like?