Thoughts On Training

Table tennis is a fast reaction sport similar to the martial arts or boxing — you train by repetition day in and day out until a reaction becomes automatic, until you don’t need to think about it anymore. It is when the body does things on autopilot effectively. When you start to think about the strokes and especially about technique, you introduce problems, the thinking part of the mind interferes with the subconscious execution of the shot or serve and performance is affected. For a start the automatic reaction is much faster, you only slow things down by introducing the conscious, thinking process. This is why with players who have trained for many years and whose habits are firmly ingrained, you can often only change small aspects. You can only restructure the player’s technique by destroying his/her game and starting again.

Many players seem to think that you can only improve by training with much higher level sparring than yourself…ermm it seem ok in the first place but if you always play only against much better performers than yourself, how do you ever learn to impose your game on others and to develop your own tactical plays? The better player is always in control! You need in fact to practise at all three levels.

• With players better than yourself to learn new things and upgrade your skills.
• With players of similar standard to work out new tactics and try to control the play.
• With players of lesser ability where you can control the game and have more opportunities to use your more powerful strokes.

Be aware at all times what is happening as you train. Be aware of your own body, what it is doing and how you are using it. Be aware of your feet, the movement and your balance and recovery. Be aware of the differing contact and timing points and how to use these. Be aware of spin and no-spin shots, the flat and brush strokes which are the essence of table tennis. Be aware of variation in spin, speed and length and of force and lack of force. Be aware above all of how and where you play best, of how you win points and in what circumstances, of your own strengths.

Perhaps the single most important thought however about training is to bring the right approach and attitude to every session. Without the optimal mental state, the right level of nervous excitement and a positive, balanced approach to training, it is very difficult to progress — instead we keep taking half a step backwards. There is little point in training if you’re just not in the mood, if you bring outside problems from your personal life into the hall – feelings and emotions get in the way and even the smallest things will be a source of irritation. The psychological adjustment of players so as to keep them in the optimal mental state should in fact be an obligatory theoretical course for all players.

Copy & Paste : protable tennis.net, tq