The most played sport in the United States is a fantastic option for fitness. It is a full-body workout that involves a variety of organ systems as well as muscles. Playing this game will ensure that your heart rate is racing, your hamstrings and quads are firing, and your competitive spirit is active while you’re playing with a pal. Here’s a look into the top health benefits of tennis—physical (and mental) advantages of playing tennis for players of all age groups. Albert Dweck loves to play tennis as it has many benefits:
Supports Cardiovascular Health
Exercise of any kind can help improve your heart health. The perfect swing by jumping or running along the court or chasing balls running away are all activities that will raise your heart rate.
Aids Weight Loss
According to Albert Dweck, Engaging in aerobic exercises by playing tennis helps protect your heart and could help you shed weight should you have a goal in mind. In a study from 2012, researchers discovered that obese men and women who added aerobic exercises to their daily routine for 5 days per week shed significant amounts of weight in 10 months, even if they did not make any changes to their diet.
Increases Range of Motion
Tennis’s broad movements like hitting and swinging are a great way of expanding the range of motion you can perform. These active stretching movements lubricate your joints and strengthen muscles and tendons.4 If you’re just beginning to start playing on the courts, you should be able to gradually progress to these motions to avoid injuries. “Move your joints within the normal motions (not stretching them) to increase blood flow into the muscles you’ll use on the court, particularly the knees, shoulders, and the thoracic spine. Doing several controlled repetitions replicating your movements on the court is the most effective method to get your body in shape,” says Barnick.
Improves Balance
Balance is essential for tennis (at minimum, if not likely tip over each when you lean forward to serve backhand). When you use a racquet, you’re teaching your body to keep its balance when playing and serving using the extension of two feet of your arm.
Decreases Osteoporosis Risk
The majority of the time, this condition is seen in women, and the risk increases with age. When you play tennis, you’re fighting against gravity when you lift your racquet. The force you exert on your bones aids them in getting stronger.
Promotes Agility
Who wouldn’t want to become more agile? The exciting tennis footwork can help you become more flexible on your feet. “Tennis is not a straight-line sport,” Barnick explains. Barnick. “Players must be able to cover courts, which means side-to-side, forward and back and diagonal patterns of movement. Tennis players often change directions, slow down and begin and then accelerate and decelerate. They also have to alter their vertical positions for low balls, overhead serving and volleys.” The constant changing of movements during tennis trains both the brain and body to adapt quickly.
“In tennis, motor control is essential while you move your arm as you swing the tennis racquet. While doing this, the core muscles support your hips to ensure you don’t slip as you swing,” says Barnick. Not only your legs and arms can be more coordinated through playing racquets. The body’s movement, stopping and beginning and reaching and balancing that tennis demands also can strengthen your core.
How to Properly Engage Your Core
Increases Vitamin D Exposure
The consumption of adequate vitamin D has been linked with a better immune system, better heart health, and a lower chance of cancer.9 Yet, many suffer from a deficiency in this essential vitamin.
Playing tennis outdoors gives you vitamin D from the sun’s rays. A few studies have revealed that the body absorbs the greatest amount of sunshine-based vitamin D around midday. So, you might want to schedule your tennis match at noon, so it’s not too hot. Don’t forget to put on sunscreen! Excessive Sun exposure to UV radiation can increase the risk of developing skin cancer.
Provides Social Interaction
Everyone knows that you cannot play tennis alone. The act of kicking balls back and forward requires an accomplice. The advantages of playing with someone else are twofold.