What? Tennis and Yoga? No way! What do they have to do with each other? This is the question raised on the first day of introducing Yoga for the Tennis Juniors at Courtside in December 07! After few weeks of practicing Yoga for 20-30 minutes before the Tennis clinic on Fridays, juniors are asking a different question. Are we doing Yoga today? It feels soooo good!

Dear friends, welcome to this first short article on why Tennis and Yoga are a perfect set and match for each other! Yoga is an ancient science for optimizing the functions of our bodies and minds inside out(!) so they are stronger, yet softer, suppler, and more efficient. Yoga through Postures, Breathing Techniques, Relaxation, and Meditation techniques can prepare the juniors (and ALL ages as well!) to prevent injuries; improve the physical and mental conditioning to sustain the demands of competitive world of Tennis and Studies alike and more importantly, make everyone a better sports person!

Tennis is a great and fun sport that demands physical and mental fitness to be a better player! Today, Tennis needs Yoga more than ever to help ALL manage the stress of the competitive world of sports without going crazy, and without losing the enjoyment and fun!

Well, let me end with spelling TENNIS from Yoga point of view! Bottom-line: Yoga is a fun and important tool that can help the courtsiders to help improve Temperament, conserve Energy, handle Nerves, Nurture sportsmanship, become Intelligent on the court and off the court, and of course improve Stamina with strong, flexible muscles and don’t forget your lungs!

Thanks for reading!

     Coach P. (Prashant Joshi)
     Co-Founder, Gurukul Yoga Holistic Center, Bridgewater, NJ 08807

Well friends, in our introductory article on YOGA and Tennis, we defined TENNIS from YOGA perspective (Please refer to the Winter08 Jan-Feb08 Courtsider). Now that Dog Pounders have been exposed to Yoga on Fridays for the past 9 months or so, it is time to see how they can use Yoga to their advantage when it comes to preparing for the tournaments.

Preparation, preparation and preparation are the 3-cardinal rules for success in life! Tennis Tournaments are no exception. Physically and, equally if not more importantly, mentally prepared players stand a better chance in advancing through the tough tournament-draws than those who just show up and expect to win, no matter how skilled they are!

Yoga can be looked as Your Own Great Asset in preparing physically and mentally for the tournament. Our worst competition is not on the other side of the net but inside our own head! Learning to keep a cool head is easier said than done. So practicing to relax, to shut the noise and chatter of the mind is a must so you can learn to handle the stress of the tough tournament with all its dynamics. Since we are slaves of our habits, how about cultivating the Yoga habit so it becomes second nature to us? This also includes the common-sense tips of a good night’s sleep before the tournament, eating right and keeping you well hydrated.

What are the tools needed? Stretching and relaxing, conscious breathing, and quiet contemplation and introspection are simple tools which are essential for tournament preparation.

How much time is needed to prepare? Well, 20-30 minutes of physical preparation with stretching and relaxing, and 5-10 minutes of mental preparation with conscious breathing and contemplation can go a long way to prepare for a day of the tournament. Of course, these tools need to be used as and when needed even on the court and in between the points as well. Also, let us not forget a cool-down at the end of the day physically and mentally!

So, remember, whether you are yet to enter a tournament, or a veteran tournament player, the tips and tools mentioned here should help you compete better, enjoy the experience and increase your winning record! Life is not just about winning or losing, but is about doing the right thing! Adding Yoga to your Tournament preparation is certainly the right thing to do!

Thanks for reading!

     Coach P. (Prashant Joshi)
     Co-Founder, Gurukul Yoga Holistic Center, Bridgewater, NJ 08807

Happy New Year to the Courtsiders! New Year, New You is a natural choice for the topic for this first article of 2009 in the series “Yoga for Tennis”. Please refer to the 2008 Courtsider issues for the previous articles on Yoga for Tennis.

So what is New Year, New You? In our evolution as tennis players, New Year, New You is an approach that needs to be applied to every match, every set, every game, and for that matter to every point we play! Our negative emotions can affect our game negatively. This approach is about looking at all aspects of the game with a fresh, new attitude. New Year, New You approach helps being in the present - in a zone dealing with each point on its merits without getting affected by what happened in the previous point.

Look back at 2008. Be proud of your accomplishments, whether it is winning a tournament, or participating in it for the first time, or learning to hit a top-spin. Be prepared to laugh at your mistakes and take a vow not to repeat them. Hey… and be prepared to make some new mistakes in 2009!

Look ahead at 2009. Put some realistic goals to renew your approach to Tennis. Make a list of your challenges as a player. Whether it is your physical or mental conditioning, or tennis-skills such as foot-work, a sliced backhand, or your serve, - becoming aware of our challenges is the first step in renewing our approach to fixing them.

So far, reading this you may not have drawn the Yoga-connection! In this journey, Yoga does help prepare you to live in the present more effectively. With conscious breathing, relaxation and meditation, you renew your energy and focus at every moment. Do learn to breathe well (through the nose as much as possible) during the points, in between the points.

Well, we hope the New Year, New You approach works well for you in 2009! Let this be a great new year for you with less unforced errors and more winners!

Thanks for reading!

     Coach P. (Prashant Joshi)
     Co-Founder, Gurukul Yoga Holistic Center, Bridgewater, NJ 08807

Happy Spring Courtsiders! (Though it has felt like summer lately!). Spring is an intermediate passing season as we transition from winter’s cold to summer’s heat. It is about renewal and change. We do not always cope with this change that well. Many of our juniors and adults suffer from seasonal allergies. The suffering varies from a minor inconvenience of itchy eyes and runny noses to being afraid of being outdoors – let alone being on the court! Let us focus on being allergy-free this season with Yoga so you can focus your energies on sharpening your game and play your best tennis ever indoors or outdoors!

Benefits of Yoga for Spring Allergies

Yoga is a natural remedy to prevent and cure allergies. Spring is a beautiful season but many especially in NJ dread this season due to the nasal allergies. Medication can give you temporary relief but Yoga works to get to the root of the problem and help prevent as well as cure it.

How does it work? Yoga has a cleansing and purifying effect on your nasal and respiratory passages and lungs. The entire respiratory system is cleansed with Yogic Breathing techniques (Praanyaama) as well as Yogic Postures (Asanas). Yogic breathing is very much under-estimated and taken for granted. Breath is your friend on and off the court! As you learn to breathe through the nose with various techniques of cleansing(prana-sanchalan), deep breathing(ujjayi pranayam) and focused exhalations (kapal-bhati); your lung capacity and resistance to allergens is dramatically improved. There is better oxygenation of the blood reaching all cells improving the overall health. Also, the relaxation response that is created with Yoga helps strengthen the immune system. When there is continuous stress, the immune system becomes weaker and we are susceptible to viruses and bacteria. Yoga helps reduce the stress and thus helps make our overall health better at all levels.

So, take Yoga seriously with a smile to improve your resistance to allergies this Spring and let there be more talk of your heroics on the court rather than the stories of you missing tennis blaming it on the Spring allergies! Yes, you can have the cake and eat it too – with consistent Yoga practice – even for 5-10 minutes a day! Let us Spring forward and leave the allergies backward this Spring!

Thanks for reading!

     Coach P. (Prashant Joshi)
     Co-Founder, Gurukul Yoga Holistic Center, Bridgewater, NJ 08807