Summer is Here!

The summer is now here!

For most kids, summer is a time to take a nice long break from school books and school deadlines.  Not having to worry about homework and extra credit grades and make up work makes any grade school kid happy to see the month of June.

For those kids looking to improve their tennis game however, summer is a time  to increase their training regimen and gain some ranking points though weekly tournament play.  Since most of the school year, kids normally have to sacrifice an important upcoming tournament or training session for a school event, summer is the perfect time to try and catch up.

Of course summer is supposed to be vacation time as well, so finding the time to get in that extra training time or etching in a tournament or two a week can be tough at times.

I am writing this blog to give you all an idea on how you can balance your tennis training and tournaments while still having some time for vacation and having fun.

Create a Schedule!

First off, you will need to create a schedule for the summer.  You can do this in any form, either online through a scheduling program, writing it out on paper and mapping it out with a physical calendar(old school) or by creating a spreadsheet.

It is really important that you first start there.  Come up with a number of tournament that you would like to play in June and July and schedule your tournaments based on how many weekends you will be available this summer.  Keep in mind that you will need the entire weekend for a tournament based on how well you do in the early rounds.  Some tournaments are Grand Prix which take up multiple weekends.

List Out Your Tournaments and Sign Up Early!

Once you have a good idea on how often and how many tournaments you can fit in in the two months, you will want to sign up for those tournaments as early as possible.  As we know, tennis is a HIGHLY competitive sport and will require a lot of planning.  Early registration is almost a must to avoid missing closing dates.

I recommend that players try and get in a minimum of 4 tournaments for June and July.  

Prepare for Each Tournament!

You will want to prepare for each tournament individually.  This means attending clinics, getting practice matches in (UTR Match Play Saturdays: 6-8pm: Bay Club Santa Clara :D).  You will need to get the most out of your tournaments.  You will only get ranking point in tournaments by winning matches.  So it is very important that you have a routine in preparation for each tournament.

I will be blogging about tournament preparation in the coming week.  There you will see the proper way to prepare for a tournament!

Track Your Progress!

Coaches and parents are here to encourage you as well as help you understand and track your progression in your tennis development.  Coaches in particular are here to help you prepare for matches and to give you advice on what works and what the industry recommends based on results of other top juniors.  That being said, you will need to understand and track your progress on your own, so that you understand what needs to be learned or changed.  

This will give you the best chance at success and will make the training session go much smoother, including retaining more information!

Be Disciplined!

You will need to wake up early.  You will need to eat the right things.  You will need to practice day in and day out.  You will need to always be aware of your schedule and your progress.  You will need to do things to prevent injuries and get lots of sleep.

The life of a tennis player is a hard life, but it is well worth it in the end!

Enjoy Yourself!

Tennis is supposed to be a fun sport and it is.  How great do you feel when you work so hard at something, failing at it many times, but then finally winning your first tournament?  It's just like playing a tough video game.  You may lose over and over again.  But once you learn the game and get better, you feel a huge sense of accomplishment when you finally beat the final boss.  Dark Souls anyone? :D

That is part of the allure of tennis.  It is such a tough sport.  It has less to do with talent than sticking with it and never giving up.  Practicing every chance you get.  Studying the pros and picking up tips from them.  Buying your coach that new BMW M3 that he always wanted..............oops.   Got a little carried away there.  

Have fun this summer kids.  I'm here to help you get where I know that you can be.  At the top of your game!

-Javon Montgomery