Tennis reflection II

I need to hit more cleanly on my forehand and not let the grip twist around in my hand.

The serve is hard to get right on my own being as complex as it is. I'm getting the hang of the footwork for the serve now. The toss and the swing needs a lot of work.

I'm more aware of my footwork, the split step now.

Swimming reflection I

Today I realized I haven't improved my swimming much, as my speed in the water is still the same, and slower than competition. I am trying not to drop my elbows, but I don't know if I am actually doing it or not.

Tennis reflection I

Today I played my first real tennis after writing the last note on improving my tennis.

I think I made some improvements today.

I had the chance to only practise two aspects today, the forehand and the backhand. I only did a few volleys, but more of that later. But maybe I should also consider probably the key improvement, the footwork and the split step, too.

The backhand was much better. I leaned into the shot. The racquet head take-back was improved. The preparation of the feet was better, and I was able to bend for the low shots and not fall back too much on the deep or high shots, though this needs more improvement. As a result I was more consistent and had increased power as well.

I made a conscious effort to impart more horizontal action on the ball on my forehand. I thought I made more shots than before, but I know that the improvement was not as marked as the backhand. I think that on the low shots, I definitely need to use more horizontal action, but the trick is to do that with spin as well -- I definitely need some practise on that. On the high shots, I can definitely hit a deep shot with spin, but I must make sure not to overhit the spin and cause the racquet to twist in my hands (that happens on the low shots too if I use the wrong technique). Also if the shot comes at me fast, I must make sure to use the right swinging motion. I should make sure to go under the ball so it clears the net, but not use too much spin.

On the volleys, I strained my knee. And that's because of my poor footwork. This really highlights how important the split step is, and I made sure I used the split step after it happened. Footwork, the split step, they are indeed the foundation, and I think much of my improvement is due to that.

Also I'm thinking about language lessons, maybe after I have my books again.

My tennis partners have been my friends pretty much, but what happens when they are not around? Who can I play tennis with, I wonder.

Surfing for tennis and over-singing

I think the national anthem in the USA is over-played, over-sung, over-performed. When I googled this idea and found an article on this (the writer had a different take on why he thought so), there were a bunch of typically nasty comments. But I highlight two comments (yes, two) that were on my side.

"I agree with Moore 100%. Save the national anthem for more appropriate times; like limiting it to the beginning of Championship series or the likes of an season opening game, parades, etc.

It's so over used that it's lost it's reverence. How many times do the players start walking around before the song is done. It gets lost in all the pregame hype. And Tv networks have gone to televising it at the beginning of a series and at the start of potential close out games.

If you want the National Anthem to have reverence, treat it so, not like the drinking song it's tune originated from and as it's now degraded by all the drunk and methed out fans of today.

And, yeah, I could go into how the Star Spangled Banner is used to condition all you to the hoo-ah of the war machine, but that's another story. For now I agree with most here that there's a need for a revered national anthem - so let's use it appropriately."

"I see a bunch of morons claiming the writer is anti-American and a liberal commie for not wanting the national anthem before sporting events anymore.

I love America and everything about it, but frankly I am a bit annoyed at how frequently the national anthem is played. Don't get me wrong, I understand what it means and where it comes from, but do we really need to play the anthem before a whiffle ball game?

Plus, only 67% of the population knows the lyrics.

If you people think the writer is an anti-American liberal commie for writing his comments, wow just get out of my country, there's enough retards in it already."

Trying to improve my tennis

I am discovering all the errors in my tennis technique and starting to fix them bit by bit.

To get the correct leg action on my serve, I need to put my weight on my right leg and take off on it during the upswing.

For my volleys, I need to adopt the proper preparation stance and make cross-steps to get to the ball. I need to grip my racket tight and keep my wrist steady as I make the volley

My forehand needs a stronger horizontal motion so that I can get good depth on my shots while imparting good spin on the ball. I need to make sure my grip is steady. Sometimes the handle turns in my hand. That is because I mistakenly grip it a little too extremely on switching back to a forehand grip in the middle of the rally.

I need to make sure I hit my backhands through the shot everytime, like I do when I am properly set up so that I don't end up getting jammed on the shot. Sometimes I also get jammed due to a lack of confidence on the shot. If I get my feet ready and adopt the right stance, posture and body weight balance, I can hit through the shot well.

I just read a little and saw a short clip on the split-step. Basically the split-step is a hop and putting the two feet close together and then quickly widening the stance again. This is good footwork preparation for the shot.