The other day I was playing with a brand new group of players at a location I used to frequent but rarely go to anymore.
I went there that day intentionally not arranging any games and wanted to just see who was there; when we get caught up in who we know, where we play and a routine is sort of created, it’s easy to forget just how much the game is growing outside of our own “bubble”.
So, rolling up to the courts, it was really cool to see 7 players, the majority of them being pretty young - like in their 20’s. For the most part, these players had only just begun a year ago and were having a great time volleying and smashing the ball about. Fortunately, they needed one more person so I jumped in with them and played a few games.
Driving home I got to thinking about where my own game was just one year into it. I was playing a lot - like 5 days a week for a few hours at a time. I was playing so much that silly habits were being formed without my knowing. Overall, what was I doing? Way too much. Sometimes less is more...
Less Wrist
To me, the wrist is my default. I’ll use it in a pinch but otherwise I try to not use it much at all and prefer to keep it stable. To me, the wrist is its own unit, it has the ability to create direction and even some power. Badminton and table tennis really utilize the wrist in certain shots.
However, in pickleball that little guy is going to wear down really fast and can eventually cause long term pain.
At the beginner level, using the wrist is a bad habit. What people don’t realize is that by using the wrist that probably means they’re not moving the feet enough.
For example: if a person stops too far away from the ball then their only option is to stretch out the body in order to hit it and use a flick of the wrist just to get the ball back over the net.
What most players don’t realize is that the wrist is an uncontrollable power - I find myself saying this to students all the time. Why rely on power that’s hard to control when you can utilize another part of the body that’s more reliable, like the shoulder?
Dancing Feet
If you are a shuffler, meaning, your feet are constantly moving and you can hear them shuffling around the court, then you’re likely moving more than necessary. While footwork is fundamentally the most important part of the game, moving too much is inefficient.
Yes, you want your feet to get your body close to the ball to make solid contact with it, but keep in mind that if you’re burning energy by shuffling between shots then you’re going to fatigue faster than you think.
In doubles, you’re covering just 10 feet of non-volley line. The longest distance to run is 15 feet - either up to the non-volley line or back to the baseline retrieving a lob.
Swinging the Paddle
Back in those beginner days, I would swing away at the ball with full strength and not only did it feel right but it made sense as well.
To move the ball forward - over the net to the other side - I would need to swing in order to gain power, right? Wrong. It took a while to get out of this habit, that swinging is actually detrimental to my game. It now makes sense to me, but for those of you who are swinging through the ball, consider this:
A ball weighs under 1oz and an average paddle weighs between 7oz-9oz, so, the paddle carries the weight to move the ball over the net. But, where the power and control truly comes from is the person.
The power comes from the arm - makes sense? Nope. Now consider this: the minimum a person plays is 1 hour but usually 2-3 hours is the average amount one will play (rec) games and most pickleball junkies will play up to 3 times per week. Finally, an average game is 15 minutes long.
So let’s split in the middle: 2 hours of games are approximately 8 games per “day”; 3 times a week means approximately 24 games in 7 days.
Relying on one arm for 24 games a week sounds pretty unsustainable, right? That's because it is. To get into the habit of swinging less, start moving the feet and generate momentum and power from the feet and lower body into the upper body.
I used to play a lot of other sports. In basketball, I once ran as hard as I could to the basket and went for a layup. The ball crashed so hard against the board it must have landed at the top of the key.
The next time I went for a layup I knew that I would have to control the body and just let my hand guide the ball in. As a young striker in soccer, it took a lot of work and self-control to not kick as hard as I could on a breakaway or penalty shot, that hitting with 60% power and 100% control was far more effective. Pickleball is no different.
Photo credit: SwitfNet
The Brain
Tough but true, don’t overthink things. I know in previous articles that I state this but the emphasis is real. If a ball bounces high chances are you’re tempted to speed up the pace.
If your head is down as you execute this shot then what you can’t see is your opponent reading the entire play and ready to counter attack your obvious speed up. Play the smart shots and play the high percentages.
Keep the ball in the middle on your put away and as my soccer coach always said “play what you see”; creating too much while executing a shot is a highly aggressive move. Call it what you want (some will say boring) but consistency is key.
It was fun playing games with these newbies, who were just starting down their pickleball road there. They asked for some feedback and I left them with the suggestions to swing less, move less and essentially do less.
It totally feels like you’re going against the grain - but believe it or not - that’s what it takes to get better at pickleball.
Even though you see pros and high level players taking big wind ups especially at the baseline, they’re using great footwork to get to the ball and have the time to wind up on the ball, but be sure to take a closer look and you will see that they only actually accelerate through the ball as they’re making contact with it. The wind up is a part of their preparation and not required to generate power.
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