It?s a little over six weeks until we get started on the 2011 Champions Series, which means it is time for some serious training for yours truly. I just took a two-week vacation where I didn?t touch a racquet, and now I?m starting from ground zero to build my body and game back up again for the tournaments.
So how will I get ready? It's a question I get a lot, so I thought I?d answer it here in the hope that I don?t have to answer it elsewhere! I train in a similar fashion to how I trained when I was playing full-time on the ATP tour. I need to train for my worst case scenario for any given day, which used to be five-setters but is now a little over two sets (we will play a one-set semi-final and an eight-game pro-set at each of the one-night Champions Series tournaments this fall). So I basically do a pro-rata version of what I used to do, i.e. about 40 percent as much time and repetition. My body is not capable of taking the same type of pounding that it once did, but it can still do pretty well for a good amount of time, and I find that my body likes it when I push it to the limit every now and then.
Here?s what a typical week of training will look like for the next five weeks or so. I will taper off the last week as I get ready to play, losing the track work and focusing more on speed and agility.
1. Play tennis four times a week for 90 minutes each time (mostly playing sets/baseline games). I don?t do two-a-days anymore?
2. Hit the weight room (two to three times a week for one hour) to keep toned, not to bulk up
3. Hit the track for some sprint work (50?s, 100?s, 200?s) (once a week for about 20 minutes of intervals)
4. Do on-court foot drills for agility (once a week for about 20 minutes)
5. Stretch (daily)
6. Get massage once a week
While doing the prep work I?ll also be doing my other jobs, like my full-time day job at InsideOut Sports as well as a little U.S. Open TV for CBS, and of course watching the Americans closely at the Open in my role as Davis Cup Captain. It?s going to be a full plate but let it be said that I will not be bored!
Feel free to send in any questions about my training (or anything else) to our twitter page at @cs_tennis or via the Champions Series website in the fanzone Q&A section and I?ll be sure to answer them.
Source: http://feeds.tennis.com/~r/tenniscom-features/~3/NKSeGA29m7Q/
No comments:
Post a Comment