Welcome to TENNIS.com’s Health & Fitness mailbag, your reference for your tennis-related health questions. You can ask all you want to know about fitness, nutrition, and injury when it comes to tennis and get expert opinions. For the first mailbag, I enlisted the help of Todd Ellenbecker, chairman of the USTA Sport Science Committee and clinic director of Physiotherapy Associates Scottsdale Sports Clinic in Scottsdale, Ariz. I also talked to a couple experts in other fields.

I do want to say that advice in this mailbag should not preclude you from going to a health or fitness professional. If you’ve got a health issue or are having trouble getting the most out of your body, doctors, nutritionists, and fitness professionals are your best bet. Without further ado, your questions. Keep them coming!

Are there any exercises I can do before playing to prevent tennis elbow?
—Laura Williams, St. Louis, Mo.

“Your question is a good one,” Ellenbecker says. “While there are exercises that can be done to prevent tennis elbow, you would not want to do them before you play. You don’t want to fatigue your wrist and forearm muscles before going out to play as that would increase your risk of injury.”
For exercises recommended by Ellenbecker that you can do after you play or on days off to help prevent tennis elbow, follow this link and check out “Three Moves to Target Tennis Elbow.” The exercises include wrist curls, seated rows with a resistance band, and wrist stretches.

We are training a 10-year-old girl and would like to get some information about physical training.
—Julio Jose Alcaraz, Bali Tennis Academy

“It’s a great idea to get more information when you are training a player at any age,” Ellenbecker says. “Several resources are available on this topic.” Ellenbecker’s book, Complete Conditioning for Tennis (Human Kinetics), co-authored with E. Paul Roetert, managing director of the USTA’s Player Development Program, has information and a DVD on this topic. Also, check out a book published by Mark Kovacs and Jeff Chandler on TKTKTK. Good luck with your training.

How do the pros strengthen their wrists to generate such power, and yet avoid tendinitis? I am thinking of buying a gyroscope to shore up this area in my game. Will it help, or is there a better way to work on this oft-neglected part of people’s fitness routines? Also, could you address the issue of muscle imbalance in tennis. Obviously the shoulder is a big concern, but what about one’s core? I’m a righty, and my left side seems to do more work and seems consequently stronger than my right obliques and lower back. Any logic to this?
—Yahvey Hoffman, Fairfax, Calif.

“The power pros generate is not really related to the strength in the wrist. It’s generated via a complex interaction of body segments called the kinetic chain,” Ellenbecker says. “Most of the power really comes from the lower body and trunk, not the wrist.” That said, if you want to strengthen your wrists, a gyroscope can be helpful, but simple wrist curls with tubing and light weights can be just as good.

To answer your second question, Ellenbecker says that muscle imbalances are common in tennis players. “Typically, the muscles in the front of the body become well developed with tennis play while the muscles in the back of the shoulder and scapular area are less developed simply by playing tennis,” Ellenbecker says. “The same relationship in the core exists based on research. The abdominals in skilled players are actually stronger than the lower back muscles.” Players should make sure to work their backs to maintain better muscle balance.

My team is playing in the state tournament at the 3.5 level in Mobile Alabama. It will be very hot and we will have two matches a day for three or four days. I need information for my team on how to prepare for the tournament in terms of hydration, diet, rest, and just generally getting everyone in tip top shape for the tough competition. I would really appreciate any help you can give me.
—Carol Ann Jeffery, location withheld

Ellenbecker recommended that I speak with Michael F. Bergeron, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Department of Physical Therapy at Georgia Medical College in Augusta, Ga. Bergeron pointed me to an article he wrote for the Late Summer/Early Fall 2007 edition of the American College of Sports Medicine newsletter Fit Society Page. Bergeron emphasizes things like getting fit before you’re in the tough conditions, acclimatizing yourself to the heat, tapering conditioning before the competition, hydrating, and helping your body stay hydrated by getting plenty of salt in your diet.

I love playing tennis in my middle school. In August, the high school is having tennis tryouts for varsity and junior varsity. What I need help on is getting in shape this summer. I’m about 149 pounds and 5-foot-6. I hardly have any upper body strength and I need help. What do I need to do so that in three months I can be in shape?

“The old saying of playing tennis to get in shape is just that—an old saying,” Ellenbecker says. “We now strongly recommend getting in shape to play tennis.” To be the most effective over your summer, Ellenbecker recommends that you have a formal evaluation with a physician, physical therapist, or strength and conditioning specialist for tennis. They can tell you your strengths and weaknesses and get you going on a quality exercise program to target your three months of training.

I am a 3.5 player with tendonitis in my right shoulder (I am a righty). I also have bone spurs in my shoulder. I have received divergent advice on what type of racquet to play with to help ease the stress on my shoulder. Some people have said I should switch to a more flexible racquet and others say a lighter racquet. I have demoed the Wilson [K] Pro Open and the Wilson [K] Blade Team, both of which have helped somewhat. The main difference, I believe, between these racquets is that the Blade is more flexible and lighter and the Open is a little heavier. Would I be better off with a heavier racquet that will absorb more shock or try for a more flexible lighter racquet.
—Rich Cohen, New York

Here’s a response from Antoine Ballon, global business director for tennis racquets at Wilson: “A heavier racquet will certainly not help with shoulder problems. More mass means you need more energy to move it, resulting, in a way, in more work for the shoulder. The fact that it is heavier has very little to do with shock absorption. The variation in the frames is not substantial enough to make any difference. A more flexible racquet can help a little (yes, the Blades are more flexible) but the best in term of shock absorption remain our triad technology featured on [K] Three and [K] Five. For decent players, I would recommend the [K] Five 98. For very good players, the [K] Surge is also another good option (in addition to the [K] Blade team), which is even lighter.”