Hey!

110 days until ThatPickleballSchool Launches on October 1st. LET'S GO!!!

Before we keep going, welcome back to another edition of the blog. If you’re new to the blog and want to go back and check out past editions, go here!

Today’s edition has three parts:

1. Let's Build Together – What Are You Struggling With?

2. A Helpful Tip (Video) – Being the Best Partner, Ever.

3. Update on My Journey Playing Pro – My Workout Regimen.

LET'S BUILD TOGETHER:

After last week’s edition, several of you asked about my workout routine off the court. Before diving into it, I want to share two quick stories.

A little over a year ago, I attended a convention with my parents. It involved a lot of walking, and at one point, I had to request a golf cart because of severe pain in my right knee. The pain stemmed from being on the court 3-4 hours a day.

About 6 months later, I started working to enhance the power on my serve, and my body wasn’t ready for it. A week of intense serves left my shoulder in pain for the next 4-5 months.

See, in the past, I was like most. I just wanted to play a ton, but neglected strength training and recovery. 

That needed to change.

Today, I’m (mostly) pain-free from that knee issue and shoulder pain. But it’s because I work at it daily. 

And here's some insight into my workout routines.

I discovered KneesOverToesGuy (Ben Patrick) awhile ago. And when my knee started hurting, I began doing everything he suggested.

I believe in his stuff so much I’ve watched all his videos on youtube & instagram, bought half his equipment over the last year, and am a subscriber on his workout programming app called ATG.

Here’s some of the exercises I do.

(1) I walk backwards every day - click here (you don’t need a treadmill for this, although it is helpful). You can just do it when you’re walking around. If I’m ever walking up on a hill, I always turn around now.

(2) I do 2-3 tougher workouts each week. Which include, 

Tib raises - click here

Calf raises - click here 

Hip flexor work - click here 

Hamstring work - click here 

Some type of lunge series

Then I spend a lot of time on shoulder / back exercises - here’s some ideas for that. These are especially good because of how much swinging we're doing in pickleball.

In addition, before I play, I spend about 20 minutes warming up, every time. Ask my friends and they’ll tell you. I always have my bands to go around my knees for hip / glute activation and my lighter ones for shoulder mobility to get the upper body warmed up. In addition, I like dynamic movements on court like high knees, side to side slides, lunges, and some backward jogging around the court to get my body feeling ready.

And then, after I play, I spend at least 10 minutes doing a cool down stretch. Which is usually some version of hamstring / hip stretching, lower back stretching, and some shoulder work.

Some Final Thoughts: 

If you already have a program you do, great. But if you're in the, "play for 5 hours a day and never stretch or strengthen crew," this is my encouragement to you to do some off court work so your body continues to feel good. Also, I'm not trying to sell you on Ben Patrick's stuff. It's just what has worked amazing for me, and he has so much free content that can help!

Talk next week,

Kyle

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