The summer is on. It means that in most places the temperature will be quite high and there will be more sunny days that allow to hit the courts from early morning to late evening. It is important to work on your technical and tactical skills but you should also set mental development as a priority to take your mental game to the next level over the next 2 months.
In any individual sport, mental aspects are of utmost importance. To deal with the attacking return of the opponent, converting break point or trying to stop losing streak, tennis players need specific mental skills. It doesn’t matter how good physically or technically players are, if they can’t cope with the difficulties related to tennis career, they won’t have expected results. That is why it is crucial to consciously take care of the aspects of mental development and work on these abilities every day.
Mental development should be planned as any other area. A lot of players plan their technique or they use specific approach to improve their body but they neglect the area of mind game. Thinking that individual sport will make you really competitive or that by playing a lot of tournaments you will control your emotions more effectively, is a dream that will not come true. Your mind needs skills to control your automatic reactions (read here how to be ready for tennis challenges) so you should take care of this area if you think about being really prepared for all challenges that happen on and off the court for tennis players.
Summer months are mostly associated with the comfortable state. Players think about less school, more time for other activities and better weather. For really ambitious tennis player, July and August should be used to make significant steps towards being mentally tough as Novak Djokovic or Rafael Nadal. Here are the actions that you can consciously take to improve given area:
Wake up early and improve
The suns gets up really early and you should do exactly the same. A lot of players use additional time for sleep even when they don’t need this amount. The day is much longer, the weather is better so there are many opportunities to improve even from the early hours. Wake up at 5.30 or 6, enjoy the bright light and do something for your career. Reading book while sitting in the garden, listening to psychological podcast while having a walk or watching tennis match are great examples of early activities that you can repeat every day. Mentally, you will learn how to get out of your comfort zone and start being proactive even when your body would like to sleep more. Later on, this ability will help during the tough times when your body will want to rest but your mind will not accept this proposal.
Set up practice for sunny hours
Practicing in comfortable environment doesn’t have positive impact on your mental strength. Only when you get out of the zone that you are not afraid of, you start working hard on your mental aspects. When the day is hot and other players go to the swimming pool, set up the practice for 2 pm when the temperature is the highest. If you prepare for safe practice being properly hydrated, having enough energy and covering your head with hat, few hours will not put you in any danger related to your health. And struggling in difficult environment will be the best practice you couldn’t get even from the world-renowned psychologist. You will improve internal motivation, ability to focus on the goal as well as resilience to never give up when you feel really tired.
Implement new activities that are out of your comfort zone
During the summer, players have more time than usual. Additionally, a lot of companies create special holiday offers for people who want to try new things. As a tennis player, you can work on your mental adaptation if you take part in activities that are outside of your comfort zone. Signing up for the group boxing lessons, taking part in meditation course or using sauna every other day are great examples that will help you progress with your tennis as also will make you work mentally. If you see the goal in any activity, it actually doesn’t matter what you will choose but the most important is to do something uncomfortable because on the court, you have to always deal with factors that test your comfort zone.
Summer time. From one perspective, it is a great time to reset the mind and have some more fun. From other perspective, it is an environment where ambitious tennis players can improve the mental abilities that will give them advantage over the rivals. Make sure you use the next 2 months to have the best mental camp that you can access and work every day to become the strongest opponent possible for anyone who will face you on the court.
Marcin Bieniek is a professional tennis coach. You can contact Marcin through his personal coaching website http://marcinbieniek.info. Marcin has been working with USTA, top 50 ITF and WTA/ATP players. Author of tennis book “Tenisowy Olimp” and frequent contributor to TennisPro and TenisKlub magazines. He was a speaker at International Coaching Tennis Symposium 2016 and 2021 at Hilton Head Island, USA.
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