There was a time when a good workout wasn’t measured by how fast your heart beat, or if you made it through the whole workout without stopping. It was when the “beep beep” of your sneakers hitting the floor echoed off the walls. When sweat dripped from your hands, and fingers throbbed with pain. And after it was all over, you felt so tired you didn’t even bother checking the clock. Who remembers Jane Fonda’s 80s workouts? Or Arnold Schwarzenegger’s gym sessions? Or legendary tennis stars like Björn Borg, John McEnroe or Pete Sampras giving their all at Wimbledon?
The Court Always Told You How You Were Doing
Unlike today’s fitness apps, where every move you make is tracked and recorded in neat little charts, tennis had its own way of letting you know how well (or poorly) you performed. You couldn’t fool anyone on the court. Either the ball came back at you, or it didn’t, whether you made it to the spot on the court where you needed to be, or not.
This is some of what still makes playing tennis exciting. You aren’t moving around because a screen told you to get up. You’re moving because the next shot needs something from you. To run down the court. To slide sideways. Or to stretch in ways you thought you’d never stretch again. It’s an active form of exercise that doesn’t require commentary from a screen.
You Trained Without Realizing It Wasn’t Just Training
One reason tennis has been a successful sport is that it masks the effort required to train by hiding it inside the game itself. Every step requires reaching, turning, bending, stopping, starting, and recovering. Many times, without realizing you’re doing these things. All of this happens within a matter of seconds during a single rally.
Working out in this way is much different than working out based upon a list of directions. While on the court, your focus isn’t just on moving your body. Your mind also has to watch the ball, read your opponent’s strategy, adjust the grip of your racket, and decide whether to play safely or to try to hit a winner.
While your body may do most of the work, your mind is completely engaged. This is why an hour can seem to pass quickly. You’re not waiting until the hour is done. You’re trying to win the next point.
The fact that someone else is waiting on the opposite side of the net makes it easier to commit to coming to practice and playing tennis.
Many modern forms of fitness have failed due to their isolating nature. People will download an app, start using it with good intentions, but eventually become disinterested in using it. Unlike most other sports or physical activities, tennis has a social component that encourages participation. There is no one pushing you to keep going unless you want to. If someone shows up at the court to play with you, you have already committed to showing up yourself. If someone consistently returns the ball, you’ll continue to develop your skills. If someone laughs at your bad shots and remembers your good shots, you’ll look forward to getting together again. At the end of each practice session or match, you’ll walk away with a memory and a story rather than simply a statistic. The simplicity of tennis has allowed many people to build lasting habits instead of creating temporary forced exercise routines.
You Don’t Have to Turn Tennis into a Lifestyle
To reap benefits from tennis, you don’t necessarily have to transform it into a lifestyle choice. Simply meeting up for a casual Saturday morning or afternoon session can help loosen your muscles, provide clarity of mind, and remind you that there’s nothing wrong with finding movement enjoyable and unclinical.
Fitness apps have their uses, they can lead you along a path, track your progress, and encourage you to achieve new goals. However, there are aspects of tennis that are timeless and more human. In addition to providing clean air and rhythm, tennis provides competition and the opportunity to experience the joy of living in the moment for an extended period of time.