Table Tennis Warm Ups

Are you a casual player or a tournament player? Do you prepare yourself for the play? Well, it is important that you do certain exercises and warm yourself up before the game, this is because it keeps you prepared and helps in decreasing the risk of injury as well. Moreover, we see that Table tennis is not much demanding sport but anyone who has played or watched the tournaments might have experienced that it is surely a high-intensity activity.

Many people regard this to be a casual game but you need to know that this is a serious sport as well. You might feel silly while you are doing exercises before you play the sport. But you need to be aware of the fact that it is a serious game and requires physical efforts. Thus warming up is good.

Importance of warming up:

This is a game that requires speed, fast reaction and thus it is a vigorous exercise. The American Heart Association also recommends warming up before playing the game, because it helps you to protect your heart health.

Quick moves:

If you warm up before the game then you can move very fast and since the game requires speed, agility, and fast reactions.

Reduces injury:

Warming up is one of the best ways by which the players can prevent injury. this also helps in improving the elasticity of muscles and reduce strains. A warm body also helps in providing more oxygen to the muscles and this further reduces the risk of cramps.

Mental preparation:

This physical warm-up is a great way to prepare one for the match and it also helps in building concentration. If you have good psychology then your body works well in the game as well.

Range of motion:

If you warm up then you can easily improve your range of motion and also prepare your joints so that your footwork is better.

Different warm-ups:

If you want to carry out a perfect table tennis warm-up session then you have to increase body temperature, open joints, and increase heart rate. Some of the exercises are:

Cardio exercises:

This exercise will increase your heart rate in just 2-3 minutes. this can be done by jogging, marching, some quick lunges, and many more exercises. Moving the muscle groups can help in pumping the heart faster.

Side to side movements:

Do this for 2-3 minutes. If you practice table tennis steps then this is a great form of exercise that primes up your game. This gets your body warm and also builds the skills at the same time.

Flexibility exercises:

This is the second part of the session. You need to spend about 4-5 minutes improving your flexibility. Do dynamic stretches as these allow you to develop the flexibility that is required without lowering the heart rate and it also stretches the muscles for better performance. This is one of the best ways to avoid injury.

Twisting reverse lunges:

This exercise helps in opening up your hips and also improves your flexibility. To do this start from the standing position. Do the lunges. Twist the upper body in the direction opposite to your rear leg and do it for 5-10 minutes with your right and left leg.

Lunging hamstring:

This exercise helps you to stretch your back and hamstrings too. You need to start from the standing position. Take a step forward and lower yourself in the lunge position. Now rest your finger on the ground. Rise from the hips and lift the rear leg till it is straight.

Do this 5-10 times.

Butt kicks and knee lifts:

These stretches help in improving the range of motion of your body. This will help in keeping your body warm and also provide energy to your body before you begin the game. For the knee lifts, you need to lift the front knee to the height of your hips and also try to kick the heel of your foot.

Do this with each leg for 15-30 seconds.

Skill drill:

If you have a partner to do the exercise then it is great. You can spend some of the last minutes of your exercise in the skill drill. This involves, rallying the cross-court down the line for a minute, skill practice with other players for 1 minute each, and 2 minutes of practice with service and receives.

Backhand strokes and forehand strokes:

If you want to play table tennis successfully then it is important that you play your stroke nicely. As the name shows this consists of switching the backhand and the forehand. You do not have to create an imbalance between these. You also need to reduce the time for each stroke and keep the back high while doing this drill.

Backhand exchanges:

This exercise is realistic. You and your partner can easily play down the line with this stroke and perform the pivot. This is an amazing drill because it helps you to focus on the opponents while playing the match.

Backhand and forehand topspin:

This is another drill that the players can do. The players need to perform two backhand spins from the backhand side and 2 from the forehand side.

Make sure you do this for 1-2 minutes and keep your body low while doing it. This exercise also helps in improving footwork.

Cooldown:

Before you start the game you need to cool as well. This will help your body to lower the temperature and protect your heart. Spend 5 minutes walking and decrease the heart rate.

Conclusion:

If you want to play well without injuries it is better that you do a warm-up before play. It protects your health and lets you get the benefit of exercise. Those players who warm up are faster than the others. Those who don’t warm up might be fast in the beginning but their speed slows down. So prepare well and do a warm-up before play. Make sure you cool down too.

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