Taylor Townsend: When Players Need To Lose Weight

Based off the article: http://www.si.com/tennis/beyond-baseline/2012/09/07/taylor-townsend-usta-controversy

Article summary: USTA (Patrick McEnroe) decided not to fund Taylor Townsend's travel despite her being the best junior player turning pro.  Because of backlash they retracted it though.  This was way back in 2012.  But I would like to use this instance to illustrate my point.

Let me make one thing clear before finishing this blog.  I am DEFENDING Townsend and players that have weight to lose.

Rant: Skinny people always think that losing weight is the answer to everything.  You can't pay rent...you need to lose weight (even though healthy food costs more and it seems to make you hungry still).  Do you need a new car...lose weight.  It's understandable that people confuse success with being thin.  But, as a coach, I take pride in losing weight to be the LOGICAL conclusion for a player to have.  I don't bring it up because it is not necessary.  NOT NECESSARY.

What happened with all those great looking male players the USTA is fostering?  How come they aren't winning?  They all look great.  Do you think MAYBE, PERHAPS playing tennis is more about winning the matches than it is about looking good when you lose?  When Taylor wins or loses she looks like she can go another 2 sets but that is because she is fat and out of shape?  That is the best coaching you can come up with?  Trying to make it harder for someone to play matches because you think they are overweight is like revoking someone's gym membership because they don't have muscles.  It doesn't even make sense.  "You are the best player we got but you can't roll with us unless you fit better in those dresses."  I'm sure there is more to it than that, but people who seem to think that telling you that you are out of shape helps you as a person is LAME.  FOSTERING the habits that lead to a logical conclusion of weight loss on purpose or as a result is way more tactful.

Why You Should Lose Weight for Tennis

Sigh...alright now to the actual LOGIC.  The only real reason to lose weight is so that you can improve your footwork stamina.  More weight pretty much improves everything above your waist except for flexibility.  More weight, less effort above waist, more effort below waist.  Bigger people naturally hit the ball harder.

If you find yourself unable to move well at the end of 2 sets of play, you should start strengthening your footwork.  You can strengthen your legs faster than you can lose weight.  But it should be a testament to the level of tennis you are playing.  You like to play a certain way, you need you legs to do it.  If your legs are about as strong as they can get for now, lose weight.  Fair enough.

Are You Even Fat?

Also there is a different between being fat and having a muscular core.  It is ridiculous to think that all over the body you workout and your muscles get BIGGER but your abs are the only muscle that gets SMALLER.  The core is responsible for breathing and for general flat power.  Your stomach muscles expand and contract to take in and expel air.  You would think that big strong abs would be important.  If you have tiny weak abs, you have to raise your whole upper body to breathe.  That is easy to do just standing there.  But in the middle of athletic activity it's difficult.  Kind of like when people jog for a while and then they have to stop and walk.  The more muscle you utilize, the more air you need.

A general rule of thumb is if you poke spots on your body and your finger sinks way down, fat.  Hard at the surface, muscle.  No one grows the fat UNDERNEATH the muscle.  If that was the case, every fat person would have a six pack.

The BMI

The Body/Mass index is not nice to people who are THICK.  I weight about 230, 240 lbs depending on who tries to pick me up and I actively play at a 4.5 level.  5'9" tall.  That puts my body mass index at 35 which makes me SUPER FAT.  This is a picture of me.

Now I'm not by any means Dwayne Johnson....but OBESE???  Yet people still tell me "You MIGHT have to start exercising 30 minutes a day ACCORDING TO THIS CHART."  Seriously if I lost enough weight to fit the BMI I would probably die.  

The Bonus of Weight: Center of Gravity

Scientifically speaking, you have a center of gravity that moves around alot.  Your ability to maintain balance is based on your awareness of your center of gravity.  When you swing your racket forward, your center of gravity moves backward to compensate making you lose power and balance a little.  A lot of players stay rooted into the ground when they hit balls because they are trying to cancel this effect.  However, the more mass your body commands, the less this effect happens.

Simply put: In those instances in which a player cannot root into the ground, like when they are stretched out, they lose the ability to generate power.  Heavier players have the power advantage because even in midair their body is more steady and easy to control.

A Warning for Weight Loss

I am just a coach.  But when you decide to lose weight through tennis fitness a few things happen that you should be warned of:

1.  Your muscles will enlarge and tighten which will push fat to the surface.  Muscles grow faster than you lose fat.  Your problem areas will probably look bigger and get more doughy.  THEN people will tell you you are getting fatter when really you are getting in better shape.

2.  After they say that, you will try to eat more healthy, however your body will need certain nutrients and will probably crave a certain type of food.  It's one thing to eat like a bike riding hipster, its another to be an athlete.  You don't want to deprive your muscles to lose weight faster.  You will injure yourself and that will stop your training all together.  Everyone is different.

3.  You might be in great shape and have about 10% body fat.  That doesn't mean you will look like a model.  Hey....Serena Williams will never look like Maria Sharapova and vice versa.  You might STILL have a belly or a little underarm waddle.  It's genetics...if you don't like it, get surgery, or wear clothes that highlight the good stuff.  More importantly, be proud of what you've accomplished.

The idea is that you make the adjustments in tennis as you go along.  It's pretty simple, your opponents beat you up in rallies, upgrade your strokes.  You find yourself breathing hard after every point, jog more.  You are experiencing joint pain, lift weights.  Your legs are getting tired in matches, lose weight.  The life lessons come with the success.  Rarely in tennis is you losing as simple as "you need to lose weight."  If your love of tennis demands that your body be lighter, so be it.