Does anyone play Squash?

What the hell is Squash? :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

I play squash regularly and I was exactly the same as you. I thought that two or three 45 minute games a week meant i was untouchable when it came to weight but have been proven wrong, hence the reason im on here.

I've recently organised with a few different friends to play them on different days of the week so I can play regularly enough to keep buring calories alongside the occasional game of football hopefully leading to some noticable weight loss.

Im hoping this new regime (along with watching the calories) will give me some good results.

Feel free to add me as a friend.

H

Thanks, I was suprised to see I had lost 9 pounds of the course of a week but looking back I exercised 5 days last week and cut down significantly on my calorie intake. I doubt that rate of loss is sustainable but any loss is a good loss.



I felt exactly the same when I took up squash again after a dislocated shoulder, I had gone from a B+/A- player to a D+, after each point I would be out of breath and needing a rest. A few little tips that i used (and still do now that I'm getting back to being a better player) may help you out:

1) Stretch properly before starting a match - Warming up the muscles will ensure you are loosened up enough to ensure you can keep going for the full game without the worry of picking up an injury (unless you have a habit of colliding with the walls!), warmed up muscles will function better than cold muscles and mean you'll be able to rally longer.

2) After each point is scored or serve is changed slowly walk to the back of the court and wait a couple of seconds before taking your position to serve or receive the serve - This may infuriate your opponent as they will see it as you slowing the game down but it is for a reason, this is the time you can catch your breath back between rallies and prepare yourself for the next point. There's no point making yourself feel sick when a couple of seconds break will see you through.

3) Take water into the court with you - As long as it is placed along the foot of the front wall and it doesnt impede with the playing area you can take anything into the court. There's no shame in using a water break to regain your breath, cool yourself off and replenish your water. This is kind of a follow on from number 2 as its another way of slowing the game down so you can compose yourself, but as you get fitter you'll stop using these delaying tactics and need the water replenishment less. I always take a litre of water with me and in the bad old days that wasnt enough, during my games yesterday I barely touched the water once.

4) Remember that you're doing it for the exercise and have fun - Get an opponent you know well and can have fun with. A bit of banter between players is a good thing as it will keep you both motivated. If you do something good gloat a little bit (be careful not to over do it though), nobody wants to play someone who is always saying how good they are. At the same time let your opponent gloat too when you do something stupid, dont take it personally and play along with the joke. If you try the same shot a few times and they dont come off just smile and say "next time, I'll get you", it shows your opponent that you're taking the game seriously enough to make it a challenge, but not too seriously that you're not willing to laugh. If you play regularly against someone you enjoy playing against you're more likely want to keep playing week after week.

5) Squash isnt about power, more about placement - You said you felt weak, I don't know if that means that you feel like you're unable to keep up with the pace of the game or whether its about hitting the ball hard enough. I've already given you a few tips about you setting the pace of the game by slowing it down when you need to, now I'll let you into the big secret. If you can accurately place the ball where you want it to go most of the time you'll be able to win the game. After my dislocated shoulder I was unable to hit the ball with any power and had to rely on placement, I found that I was winning the majority of my games despite the weak feeling from my shoulder. Yes power helps but placement is more important. One of my regular players is a power player (he always hits the ball as hard as he can) and, not wanting to brag, I have never lost to this player despite the weakness in my shoulder. Aim for the back corners or low on the front wall preferably with a diagonal shot, these kinds of shots are the hardest to defend against and will let you pull your opponent out of position in an attempt to get the point.

Hopefully you'll find these tips helpful enough to get you motivated, back on the court and keep yourself motivated when you're there!

Hi guys!

I started playing like 4 months ago, and in the past month I've been playing almost 3 times a week, about 2-3 hours each session.
I haven't really seen much weight loss, I have seen endurance tho... so that's good. (I'm reassessing my caloric intake, because obviously something is failing) Now I've read in a couple of places that you shouldn't play to get fit, but get fit to play. The thing is that I really don't like going to the gym, and I love to play squash! So... will it be effective if I keep playing as a way of loosing weight? Or should I really just go to the gym?

Thanks!