Yoga for Tennis: New Year, New You!

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