Developing an ATP Forehand Part 1: The Dynamic Slot

[bottle]

A suggestion for re-reading this article. Start with Part 2. Then take the first link to Part 1. Then finish reading Part 2. I am not deceiving myself when I say I noticed much more in all of it this time-- stuff that one can immediately take out on a court with this step being well worth while. Self-feed at first, I'd say, just as if you were going out with a basket to work on your serve.

[docjoque]

The key to the method is this: you bend over at the waist, on a bed or somewhere private,

I'm not sure I understand this step. Can you clarify please. Thanks.

Hope all goes well with the hammy. Is it a cramp, strain, tear? Any swelling? Fiber disruption....like a divot or something like that? Keep us posted.

[GeoffWilliams]

I use a method of healing injuries, that focuses your chi energy towards the injury, and combined with intention to heal, the injuries heal faster than normally. The key to the method is this: you bend over at the waist, on a bed or somewhere private, and tighten your abdomen/core area and hold it tightly for two seconds, and then release it for two seconds for ten reps. Then do it again and again. Three times a day. While doing this, you make sure to either stretch the injured area a bit, so that it hurts a little, and make sure that the blood pressure in your body increases so that you can feel it in your head very strongly, and use your will to focus towards the injured area, with the intention during these exercises, that the increased blood flow and sped up condition, will focus your energetic body that resides inside your physical body, will heal you. I pulled my hamstring a week ago during a tournament match, and have another match tomorrow, and the leg normally would take 6 weeks to heal from that degree of a pull. I used to run track, so I know. It's almost ready now. I'll find out tomorrow if the leg holds up or not.

[docjoque]

Thanks. I've been using it, but unfortunately, I think I have an anconeus tendinitis/strain as well, so the flexbar seems to be exacerbating the condition right now. I've gone all the way down to the red, so I'll see if that helps. I don't have the yellow, but I might have to go get one. I'm going to try some specific anconeus therapy, then tackle the TE. So far, it's not too bad, so I can still play with no problem. I have had the problem before, but it's always after I quit playing for a long time and hop back into it full-force. It doesn't matter if it's tennis, golf, racquetball, badminton, volleyball, or even just going to the batting cages after a long layoff. I guess I'm like a hot house orchid.

Anyway, I'll have plenty of time to rest it. I just fractured a couple of ribs the other day, so no tennis for me for a while. but for the elbow.

[GeoffWilliams]

Check out the flex bar. Some copolys cause elbow pain.

[docjoque]

I'm loving this site. The first article I read was about the Modern Forehand (or ATP forehand, or whatever that article was), and I had to continue with the entire series. That single change in the forehand was worth the price of my subscription, by far!

I started playing tennis again after about 5-6 years off due to a bunch of surgeries. For the first two weeks after I came back I was hitting my forehand into the fence (and that wasn't even mis-hits), and I was ready to hang up the rackets again. Then I joined Tennisplayer.net and found the article. My forehand was fixed immediately! Just needed some tuning and timing, but just that series made all the difference. Thanks. That new forehand with all the wrist extension on the set up has taken a toll on my elbow, but I think that's due to not playing for 5 years and my co-poly hybrid. I'll work it out.

Another thing I love about the site is that I found out my old buddy, opponent and sometimes doubles partner Kerry Mitchell is a contributor. Love it.

[DougEng]

A very good read, it builds on and elaborates on what Heath Waters had talked about with the stretch shortening cycle on the forehand on his site 6-7 years ago. Brian does a nice job of sharing extra details and information, and this data further backs up the belief that especially on the forehand, the technical setup and hitting critical checkpoints allows for strokes to get to optimal levels. Great work!

I would still be curious as to what the exact difference is between the women being able to do this and the men? Cleary Usain Bolt isn't going to be beaten in a 100 meter dash by any woman more than likely ever. Our bodies are also built differently (breasts), so I'm curious to see what his research will say in regards to the limitations body wise between men and women? You have to wonder if the benefit of the stretch shortening cycle for women outweighs being comfortable in the traditional WTA type swing? If women have less maximum ability to accelerate will this benefit them enough to make it standard in their strokes? Interesting arguments can be made all around.

I have attempted to teach this to female students in the past, and it is very difficult. Now if you have an academy girl training 6-7 days a week from the start, I'm sure that the sheer number of reps will help as well.

Great read, keep it coming as it helps in the development of juniors.

Edit: It is also my belief that the preparation position is critical in setting this up. Most women wait in a style of preparation position that is conducive to the WTA type swing, and many of the men wait in a position that is more adept at getting the hitting elbow away from the body at the start. If you look at Stosur, she has the more common ATP style ready position on groundstrokes like (Fed, Nadal, and Djokovic).

Yes, all great points. Vic Braden actually pointed out the stretch-shorten cycle at least 15 years ago. He used it to describe Agassi's forehand and serve return. Why being compact in the backswing still allows a great shot. Sometimes Vic has these amazing comments unfortunately no one caught on. Sometimes he makes some odd ones that later turn out wrong. But that's the risk of experimenting and being the first. Theoretically the stretch-shorten cycles occurs in many tennis strokes; for example, even the loading or split-step involves SSC with the legs. For many, the backswing also requires SSC (why the racquet goes back) but classically often coaches overemphasize use of the hand/racquet in making the C rather than the legs, hips and shoulders first which allows better SSC. Hence in the classic forehand, one steps in and uses less of a SSC. Today the body drive with the lagging hand allows better use of the SSC. In essence, a correct kinetic chain (from the lower body) promotes better SSC. The SSC in the forearm alone (Braden) is more practiced and emphasized in other sports (e.g, golf, squash) but only recently in tennis. Good thing it's here.

[johnyandell]

TCNZ,

There are 4 articles that are related here 2 by Rick and 2 by Brian. All are in the archives. I think you are referring to the first article by Brian:

http://www.tennisplayer.net/members/biomechanics/brian_gordon/developing_an_atp_forehand_part_01/

Here is part 2 of that:

http://www.tennisplayer.net/members/biomechanics/brian_gordon/developing_an_atp_forehand_part_02/

The two corresponding articles by Rick are:

http://www.tennisplayer.net/members/high_performance/rick_macci/develop_atp_forehand/

http://www.tennisplayer.net/members/high_performance/rick_macci/develop_atp_forehand/

[TCNZ]

Rod

Great article. Have been coaching for ten years and this is by far the best material I have read. Can not wait for part two.

[bottle]

EMG means Electro-Magnetic Girlfriend of course.

I have the antidote for this. STOP SPEAKING IN CODE!!!!!!!!!!

[julian1]

The time of SSC for the shoulder

Yes but that research was regarding SSC for gait analysis specifically slow
dorsiflexion. It may be likely that it is shorter for SSC in the arm near the elbow in the forehand (or the serve!) dynamic slot.

Greetings,

The blog of blog.tennisspeed.com entitled
"A Roadmap to a Hall-of-Fame Forehand - Part 6: Could Hall-of-Fame Performance be Determined by a Single Movement? (Sunday, May 20, 2012)"
provides the number 50 milliseconds
The exact quote is (a bit weaker) Page 15 is
"Muscle contraction MUST OCCUR within 50 milliseconds"
Do you think the number 50 milliseconds is correct?

[DougEng]

Maybe...but that is the Achilles tendon

Yes but that research was regarding SSC for gait analysis specifically slow
dorsiflexion. It may be likely that it is shorter for SSC in the arm near the elbow in the forehand (or the serve!) dynamic slot.

http://billnordt.com/MUSCLEANDJOINTF...rcharticle.pdf

The important quote
"The time lag between the onset of EMG and onset of force increase is 10-12 ms (Nicol and
Komi, 1998)."

[DougEng]

Maybe...not quite

Yes, the Y-component of racquet head velocity must be greater than typical if topspin is greater. Just classical physics. I would say the video is not quite an ATP tour quality swing (i.e, true dynamic slot).

Comparison of trajectories for the atp forehand and the classic forehand shows that the vertical component of the racket head speed just before the contact is much higher for the atp forehand.
Please see as well

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nt2g3EgSmk&t=1m54s

time 0:18/2:10

[julian1]

The vertical speed before the contact

Congratulations to Brian on a terrific article! Very significant work.

The slot and stretch-shorten (contract) movement is paramount. Many good coaches are teaching this which develops maximal acceleration. Many children often develop fuller motions due to weaker core, shoulder and less ability to take higher velocities in the arm. But it is trainable and requires physiological adaptations (e.g, increasing strength of shoulder stabilizers and higher bone density).

Juniors often also open the racquet face at the top of the helicopter swing. Rick Macci also encourages "pat the dog" which closes the face and gets the racquet aligned into the slot properly. Players are taught to make a C swing which is primarily involves the larger muscles but the best forehands in the world are often more of a boot-shaped swing. Imagine a boot with the toe box facing down. The racquet path goes around the back of the boot and over the heel and then an extra drop at the toe box. Federer and Djokovic clearly use this. Some players also use it but slightly more to the side than back (hence the box box is farther forward) such as Del Potro.

However, there are other players even at the ATP level who use closer to a Type II swing. For example, Lleyton Hewitt. Perhaps those players have less offense.

Interestingly the backhand corresponding technique to Type 3 include the more compact U swing with neutral wrist positions but the laid back (extended) wrist on the upper hand (or left hand for the righty). And also sometimes the wrist-breaking position with right hand (not all the time). Many WTA players use the large arc (using the hand and arm rotation and swinging closer to the body at contact) to generate a Type 2 like backhand. The men's U-like swing has a similar movement but the stretching is not only in the left arm (s-s cycle) but the upper right arm (triceps).

Best,
Doug

Comparison of trajectories for the atp forehand and the classic forehand shows that the vertical component of the racket head speed just before the contact is much higher for the atp forehand.
Please see as well

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nt2g3EgSmk&t=1m54s

time 0:18/2:10

[julian1]

stretch-shortening cycle

http://billnordt.com/MUSCLEANDJOINTFUNCTION/stretchshorteningresearcharticle.pdf

The important quote
"The time lag between the onset of EMG and onset of force increase is 10-12 ms (Nicol and
Komi, 1998)."