I want it all. Strength, speed, agility, endurance...

Sam_I_Am77

So you're basically in-season right now? From when until when?

M/W/F 3x10 of compound lifts at a challenging weight with circuits to improve on weaknesses or enhance.

Not really. Why 3x10? Why circuits? What do you feel your weaknesses are?

S/S/M 60 minutes of tennis (two are rest days). On the non-rest day, I can do a mix of plyometrics including jumps

No, I think you missed what I was trying to say.

F I would like to add a PM-bleachers circuit to Friday's AM-strength training. I do a mix of steps going up (two-at-time, lateral...)
I push for speed going up and rest on the descent (1000 steps total) plus 4-5 laps on the track and 10 box jumps.

Why do you do this? What is this getting you?

Edit: Sorry if that came off crappy, wasn't intended. I'm just curious as to where you're at with Tennis and why you're choosing certain routines and variables.

rileyes

Sam_I_Am77 wrote: »

So you're basically in-season right now? From when until when?

I have been playing tennis for fun 3 days a week, like, f o r e v e r. I can definitely step up my game with coaching or tournaments. I may go that route in spring. So I am thinking this is off-season.

Sam_I_Am77 wrote: »

Why 3x10? Why circuits? What do you feel your weaknesses are?

I thought the 3x10 was suggested. I looked at it as an alternative way as helping my strength progress.
I ran 5x5 and stalled before which helped create my inconsistency. Can more reps at a slightly lighter weight be a method used to break a plateau?

The circuits are so I can get more movements like walking lunges, step-ups and rotations in. The extra work seems to help with definition as well as mobility.

Sam_I_Am77 wrote: »

medicine ball/jumps/drillsNo, I think you missed what I was trying to say.

I was thinking of 10 ball throws/10 depth jumps/10 broad jumps on one strength training day. The concentrated explosive work to help with speed/strength. And a 3-minute tennis drill on the court to help with agility.

Sam_I_Am77 wrote: »

bleachersWhy do you do this? What is this getting you?

The bleachers help with my legs, explosiveness and stamina. And I like it.

My training sessions are about 60 minutes. And I have four rest days (two active).
What am I missing?

Sam_I_Am77

The 3x8-10 was suggested for the plyo work only. I'll message you.

robertw486

rileyes wrote: »

Thanks all. I needed this.

For flexibility, I warm-up with dynamic stretching and have an Arsenal of static stretches particularly yoga (definitely need to do more of this). And my chair is a foam roller.
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@ndj1979 I have been running StrongLifts 5x5 inconsistently for a few months. I frequently deload 10-20% and may do 5x10. I have always added accessory lifts (thrusts, pull-ups, dips...) to help weaker areas or just for added interest. The heavy-lifting gives me the best visual results. I also feel like I have more power in my tennis. So I totally get your passion. I may just need to be more dedicated to get that frame of mind. As far as cardio goes, I am more interested in the cardio vascular conditioning than the distance. I would rather keep my cardio interesting (to me) in the form of circuit training.
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@robertw486 My focus is to achieve optimal health from the weights and cardio. And, you are right, my progress has suffered from trying too many things. I tend to be all over the place when I think of a competitive goal. I will do some research and find a coach for any specialized goal.
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@Sam_I_Am77 You really helped put things into perspective. And, as usual, I slowed down to read your comment so I could digest. I understand that you are suggesting I could do the following?:

M/W/F 3x10 of compound lifts at a challenging weight with circuits to improve on weaknesses or enhance.
S/S/M 60 minutes of tennis (two are rest days). On the non-rest day, I can do a mix of plyometrics including jumps
and Medicine-Ball-Oblique-Throws while waiting for a court. Then I could to some agility drills on the court.
F I would like to add a PM-bleachers circuit to Friday's AM-strength training. I do a mix of steps going up (two-at-time, lateral...)
I push for speed going up and rest on the descent (1000 steps total) plus 4-5 laps on the track and 10 box jumps.
T/Th Rest days
Sat/Sun Active rest days.


So my week looks like this:
Monday: AM tennis+circuits/PM weights
Tuesday: rest
Wednesday: weights+circuits
Thursday: rest
Friday will be AM weights+circuits/PM bleachers
Saturday: active rest
Sunday: active rest

Here is a little more info...
Weight training session =45 minutes
Circuit training session =15-35 minutes

My weekly circuits include these:
lunges, step-ups, pull-ups, dips, rotations, planks, bridges and thrusts.
I do a mix of supersets each session with one maybe being Landmines and Kettlebell Swings.

My favorite warm-up is this:
50 JJ
10 Burpees
15 Squats
30 Mt. Climbers
15 Dips
10 Burpees
10 Lateral Lunges
40 High Knees
5 Push-ups
_____________________________________________________.

I haven't played tennis on more than a casual level, but overall that new schedule makes a lot of sense to me. You're hitting a lot of different muscle groups as well as the flexibility angle.

McCloud33

I like my sports and when I'm "in season" my routine is really only modified by how many days I'm playing. I just generally supplement a running/cardio day with the day I play. So I still try and lift MWF and if I'm not in season, I run on TRS. I just try and make some of my accessory work more explosive to add to the compound lifts I do.

heatherwartanyan

Shaun T's beachbidy programs Insanity, Insanity the asylum, Insanity Max30 are all created to build every single one of those within their programs.

Sam_I_Am77

heatherwartanyan wrote: »

Shaun T's beachbidy programs Insanity, Insanity the asylum, Insanity Max30 are all created to build every single one of those within their programs.

Unfortunately when it comes to training athletes, those group fitness classes are typically the wrong way to train athletes. You can train the aerobic energy system of course, but that's about where the value stops. There are other aspects of an athlete that need to be trained as well. Training somebody for athletics versus training somebody for GPP are very different.

rileyes

I'm thinking of proceeding with SL5x5 until stall. Then I may modify by deloading or adding strength work to break through the plateau. I have full days available to divide my workouts. So I may add another block or two for circuits, supersets and/or cardio. Dynamic stretching and foam rolling before workout. Static stretching after or on rest days.


@McCloud33 --I'm looking t o incorporate more explosive work. It seems to help increase power a lot. And, I too, usually do some kind of 30-minute run if I'm not playing tennis.

@robertw486 --Thanks. I think it will work for me with slight alterations. I am able to create blocks throughout the day so I can get good breaks between workouts. So I'll try this new plan to see if it can help my consistency and strength. It may not be such drudgery knowing there may be an equal mix of easier and harder (below) weeks.

Mon: Tennis/Strength/Bleachers
Tues: Rest
Wed: Strength/Circuits/Cardio
Thurs: Rest
Fri: Strength/*Extra strength "plateau bust"/Circuits
Sat: Rest/Tennis
Sun: Rest/Tennis

My hardest work days will be Monday and **Friday. I can always eliminate "bleachers" and/or "plateau bust" on weeks calling for more rest.
My circuits will be varied to help with function/mobility and to keep things challenging. I may be seeking a PT for focus--waiting out the New Years wave to pass.

*Allan Thrall's strength training techniques to help bust through a plateau.
**I'm not sure how to schedule this heavy-azz push into my week. I was thinking of doing one day of heavy-as-I-can of this "plateau bust" on the week following a 10-20% deload of 5x5. And, Or I could schedule the full "plateau bust" once a week to begin and see how it goes.

@heatherwartanyan --I'm a bit familiar with those programs and some of my circuits may be similar. The circuits I do seem to help with agility and a bit of strength conditioning. I'll look more into the programs you listed.

@Sam_I_Am77 --I'm trying a bit of the plyometrics training as you described. It makes sense to have more concentrated effort. Those darn box jumps are going to play mind games with me as I add height though. I am trying to get the cleans right too (thinking of switching to a sand bag for this).

Sam_I_Am77

@Sam_I_Am77 --I'm trying a bit of the plyometrics training as you described. It makes sense to have more concentrated effort. Those darn box jumps are going to play mind games with me as I add height though. I am trying to get the cleans right too (thinking of switching to a sand bag for this).

Yeah I understand the box jump head-game issue for sure. I use to do box jumps religiously and then one day when I shouldn't have been doing them I did them anyway and fell 40" to the ground; luckily I didn't break anything. It was then I decided that they were too risky, I'm not competing in a box jumping contest, and there were other jumps I could be doing instead. If your main goal is to train to improve Tennis performance, then take that risk out of the picture to stay healthy for tennis.

I sent you a direct message, let me know if you have any questions. @rileyes

McCloud33

one of the best explosive jumping activities that I've found is do jump with the hexagonal trap baryoutube.com/watch?v=_okAciJVUv4
I do it with about 30-40% of my squat/deadlift max. I've done it with more, but I think I lose some form and can't concentrate on exploding up as high as possible. For me this is 140lbs compared to a 350ish squat and 415ish DL. A little safer than box jumps too as you're not getting as far off the floor.

Sam_I_Am77

McCloud33 wrote: »

one of the best explosive jumping activities that I've found is do jump with the hexagonal trap baryoutube.com/watch?v=_okAciJVUv4
I do it with about 30-40% of my squat/deadlift max. I've done it with more, but I think I lose some form and can't concentrate on exploding up as high as possible. For me this is 140lbs compared to a 350ish squat and 415ish DL. A little safer than box jumps too as you're not getting as far off the floor.

That's actually very awesome, nice post. A lot of S&C's for Rugby, Sprinting, etc., will have their athletes do loaded jump squats, but this is actually a bit safer as you don't have the load of the bar coming down on the cervical spine. Very cool.

Stoshew71

rileyes wrote: »

"Sam_I_Am77 wrote:

Are you training for a sport? If you're looking to build speed, which is also an expression of power, and agility I think some adjustments to your training can be made. How exactly are you running your plyometrics (sets, reps, length of time, etc.)?

I play recreational tennis and want to start competing. So I need to get stronger-faster.

Plyometrics circuit: 4x10+ of Box Jumps, Burpees, Skaters, Lateral Jumps, Single Leg Lateral Jumps, High Knees, Medicine Ball Jump-Squat-Toss
Also when I run the bleachers I add 10 box jumps and 4 very short sprints.

I am not trying to beat my time at the moment. I am just maintaining the conditioning. I keep a good challenging pace but time is not my focus lately as I am trying to like strength training.

I read everywhere that compound barbell lifts are the foundation for fitness. So I'm trying to create a program that fits in with that training.

Have you thought about hiring a professional grade tennis coach? I am sure they would be much more helpful than a bunch of random people on mfp. Like would you want to take advise from a marathon runner (me) on what's best for tennis? Especially if you are looking to be a competition level tenis player?

rileyes

@Stoshew71 --I have actually thought about that. There are a couple coaches who have commented on my game but they coach guys that would knock me out with the first serve. Those are the coaches who could offer the best training advice for the court. But I am not their TM. I know a woman who coaches Highschool tennis and she can help with my game in general. I think @Sam_I_Am77 has offered a good approach for both on and off the court training for my goals.

Sam_I_Am77

Stoshew71 wrote: »

Have you thought about hiring a professional grade tennis coach? I am sure they would be much more helpful than a bunch of random people on mfp.

Unfortunately the sport coach is not always the best person to coach strength & conditioning, hence why most college and professional athletic programs have their coaches for the sport and a strength & conditioning coach and they each handle their own discipline. That's a big reason why Exercise Science degrees and certifications that focus on S&C and Performance Enhancement are viable.