What Junior Tennis Players Need To Do To Become Pros?

If you are reading this and you are a junior tennis player (18 and under) a parent of a junior player or you coach junior players, then I want to pass on some valuable information to you today. I also want to let you know about a new tennis training project we have just launched after 2 years of testing and refining it. It is an exciting time!

Let’s get into it!

For those of you who don’t know me my name is Nathan Martin, and I have been lucky enough to have worked as a tennis fitness trainer for over 25 years, I have worked with many top pros and world-class juniors. I have co-authored a junior tennis fitness book, created countless online tennis fitness programs, written 100s of blogs and articles and I have worked in some of the best tennis academies in the world.

I have been called a tennis fitness master, but I like to think of myself as a tennis fitness student!

The reason I wanted to introduce myself and explain my experience is not to brag, but to give you an understanding that what I am about to explain to you comes from a passion to see players improve, specific experience, time in the industry, and knowledge of the game and what is required to reach your potential.

Now for the junior tennis reality check …

Right now, around the world, there are well over 100 million people playing tennis, split evenly between males and females. I estimate 1% of the 100 million to be serious junior players under the age of 18, players striving for the same thing – to become a professional player.

The reality is less than 0.05% of either gender will go on to reach a pro level (Top 1000 ATP/WTA) this number can seem harsh, but it is actually generous.

This should highlight the fact how competitive it is to make it to the pro level. When we add other factors like; costs, natural ability, injuries, having a supportive family, and having the right coaching/training support.

There are a lot of things that need to fall into place to even give you a slight chance and get you close to the 0.05%.

Now for those of you who have met me, read something I have written before, or watch something I have recorded you will know I am a positive, optimistic person, so please don’t get the wrong idea of me from what you have just read.

All I am doing is letting you know the truth from what I am seeing, hearing, and experiencing globally.
 

IT IS HARD TO MAKE IT TO THE PRO LEVEL!!!

I have been wanting to write about this for a while now because I answer emails and take calls every week from parents and coaches who ask similar questions, they are all after the same thing – To help their child or player become the best they can be and win more matches because their goal is to go pro one day.

I love having these interactions with players, parents, and coaches, I feel the optimism and excitement, but I also know the challenges every player faces to even give themselves the slightest of chances of making it.

I work with some of the top juniors from around the world, I know what they are doing, and what they are going through, and I know the journey!

The secret is there is no secret, I am sure you have heard it before, many times – It takes hard work, commitment, and the right attitude. Yes, these attributes need to be in place, and for those of you who have worked with us before you know we are big on pushing these areas.

What I have learned on a deeper level over the past 2 years is that players, parents of players, and coaches also need “structure” (remember that word) that involves;

• A training plan specific for the individual.
• Specific tennis fitness programming
• Player and parent education and guidance.

To explain the importance of these “structure areas” and why you need to get them right in order to get moving towards a pro career let’s break each area down.

Training Plan

First of all, without a plan, it is hard to have a clear direction, especially for young developing people. We all know they get distracted easily and they do not have the life experience to know what they should and should not be doing.

Most players and parents are going around in circles, they are confused and unsure if they are doing the right things and if they are on track. I get it, I worked this out years ago and it is why I am here with you today, I want to give you solutions!

Step 1 to getting this right is finding out the reality. To do this you need to complete a “weekly schedule review”

A weekly schedule review includes everything a player is doing from Monday morning until Sunday evening. It needs to be as detailed as possible giving information on what time a player wakes up, and their daily activities – schooling, tennis training, fitness training, recovery, study, social activities etc, basically everything they do on a given day.

I call this the “Player Reality” it gives us a clear picture of the - what and when, for each player. Why do this?

It is a powerful way to understand the training loads, sleep patterns, rest, balance, and overall long-term feasibility of the player's tennis life.

We have a custom-made “weekly schedule” document that players fill out when working with us, it helps them work out their reality and is a great point of reference for us to use with them.

The real power and impact come from this process when you get an expert to help examine the weekly schedule and give guidance on how you can make the training plan work better, I will discuss how I can help with this in a moment.

An area of concern for me is when a player’s reality has not been looked at and their training loads are too high, or too low, possibly unbalanced between tennis practice and tennis strength and conditioning – Tennis fitness training, recovery protocols (stretching, foam rolling), and sleep.

To be honest I see 1 in 20 people get it right without guidance. When we get the training plan right and consider the player's reality, the player's goals, their age, and what needs to change/get added. We find players and parents walk away more confident in what they are doing, why they are doing it, and how to do it.

They have a clear plan to follow that has been created to suit them, their reality, and their needs. I am sure this makes sense. Now if I am dealing with someone who just wants their kid to play a bit of tennis for fun and recreation then there is no need to create a training plan, but if the goal is big, if the goal is the ultimate goal, then we need to plan for that.

Remember we are competing against a lot of other players from around the world, all chasing the same thing!

Specific Tennis Fitness Programming

Tennis fitness programming is obviously part of what we do at Tennis Fitness and possibly why you are here, to get some advice and help - you can grab a free tennis fitness program right here.

I find most coaches do a good job of working on the tennis coaching side of things but there are limited tennis fitness trainers out there so players often end up doing unspecific training or getting their parents or coach to do what they think is best. Possibly not suitable for the age or physical level of the player. It can lead to injury and underperformance.

There are also a lot of players out there doing squads or group lessons and they have included in the sessions some form of tennis training, unless these sessions have been created and run by tennis fitness experts, they have minimal impact and players often just go through the motion when doing the session, this is very common.

Players rarely get the extra programming and support they need, especially when they are predominately in group programs, by this I mean extra fitness training sessions, recovery programming – stretching, foam rolling. Body preparation protocols – mobility and breathwork. Education – tournament preparation, training intensity, nutrition, and personal guidance – how to deal with specific issues related to a player’s journey.

In my opinion, most young players are not getting these areas right, most players are far from it.

We offer a range of specific online tennis programs you can check out here. But if you are still reading along and have had a few ah-hah moments then keep reading because in a moment I am going to explain a new product we have just launched which will give you solutions to your problems….. first, let’s finish off looking at player/ parent education and guidance.

Player And Parent Education And Guidance

Ok, this point covers a lot of areas, so I am just going to explain the basics. Players/parents need to learn the – what, when, and how of the tennis journey for a young player.

If you have been involved in the game for a while you will know there are a lot of moving parts – Tennis practice, matches, coaching, practice partners, tennis fitness training, travel, costs, support network, motivation etc, etc

Now getting all these moving parts to work alongside each other takes skill and experience, getting the tennis training volume right for you as an individual or making sure you’re staying motivated, getting the right advice about how much sleep you should be getting, even understanding how to maximise your time on court and train at higher intensities.

These areas often get missed, not by lack of commitment but by lack of knowledge. I mean how many times as a parent do you bring a child through from birth to a pro player, it is once in your lifetime right ……. So having experts in your team who have done it multiple times before might be a good option.

I often feel for parents when we chat or I respond to an email because they are lost, confused, and worried they are getting it wrong. I have experienced this myself with my own children with their school education or sports they have played that I have no background in, but I learned to rely on experts who had experience and knowledge, I often learn a lot by doing this myself.

My point here is that first you need to get this right and secondly you are not alone, learn to lean on coaches, our team at Tennis Fitness, and other experts you find on your journey.

Ok, so hopefully I have explained the 3 areas well enough for you to understand you need to get them right. If you are serious about the tennis journey and having a career as a player, you might be thinking I need to get some help here!

I mentioned a product we have been working on for the last 2 years, this product has been specifically created to help players get the solutions and results they need in the 3 areas we covered today :

• A training plan specific for the individual.
• Specific tennis fitness programming.
• Player and parent education and guidance.

When I was thinking about writing this blog, I knew it was going to be a long one, I had so much to share.

I was worried that I would not have enough time to explain all the ins and outs of the new product so what I have done is record a new webinar for you to watch.

The webinar will cover areas most parents and players are having issues with and in it I will explain how our new product will help you solve them.

Please note this product is for the serious young player, not just anyone, if you want to get yourself in that 0.05% it is the place to start. If you are not aiming for the top 0.05% or you feel you just are not ready to commit enough right now, then I would not recommend you watch it….. One of our online tennis fitness programs will suit you better.

After the webinar, we will also give you the option to book in a 1 on 1 call with one of our team members to answer any questions you have!

WATCH WEBINAR HERE

Thanks for reading and for following us. We are only here to support the greater tennis community!

Thanks for being a part of our team!