There are many reasons that children should be encouraged to play tennis. I will discuss five reasons below.

Flexibility

All the different serves, strokes, volleys and smashes that players do in tennis help build up flexibility. That range of motion is a good way to stay flexible. It’s surprising how much of the body is used to play tennis. It’s not just about the upper body, the leg muscles work very hard too. Tennis players have to move quickly around the court and brace themselves for the impact of the serve.

Mental Health Benefits

Studies have shown the tennis players have lower levels of stress and depression than non-players. Any exercise is great for boosting serotonin levels, but tennis also offers something else in that it is a very focused activity.

Hand Eye Coordination

Tennis is a good way to enhance your child’s hand eye coordination. They have to watch the ball and then hit it back. They have to know when to adjust their position which also helps with their motor skills. Fostering hand eye coordination is an important part of a child’s development.

Physical Health

Tennis is a fantastic way to encourage children to be active. Those children who followed sports in childhood are likely to continue to be more active into adulthood. This helps with life expectancy and general health as we age.

Tennis is one of the best sports for bone health. The only issue is the benefits are usually confined to the dominate arm. Some tennis players do switch between both arms, so it might be a good idea to encourage your child to alternate.

Improving Life Skills

There are lots of valuable life skills children can learn from playing tennis. They will soon learn how dedication can see results. Self-discipline is a must, to improve their ability. Tennis requires a lot of self-control which has been shown to help children with their achievement levels at school. Doubles matches will teach children about teamwork.

What Next?

Sign Up To LTA

It’s worth checking out the LTA website. They sometimes offer free tennis lessons, which is something I have previously mentioned on my blog. So, it’s worthwhile keeping an eye on that website in case they offer the promotion again. But even the sign up deals for children are good, its free to be a member and you have a chance of winning a years supply of tennis balls.

Get Kitted Out

It’s great that you don’t need much to get started as a beginner in tennis. You just need a racquet and a tennis ball, and you are pretty much good to go! Although there are still a few things to consider. For example, there are many different types of racquets to choose from.

Just remember an adult racquet will be too big for children to use. It can be difficult for children to handle so make sure you pick a tennis racquet in the correct size. On the other hand, if you pick a racquet that is smaller than your child needs, they won’t have the same power behind their serve.

As they develop their ability at tennis you will want to spend a bit more on a racquet. You can then consider ones made from graphite. These don’t cope as well under stress but are much more powerful.

You can buy tennis balls especially for children. They have a rebound rate that is a lot less than a regular tennis ball. With the reduced ball speed children hit more balls and are less likely to get frustrated and quit before they become accomplished players.

Warm Up

Muscle strain and ligament injury are very common in tennis. Children often dive straight into tennis without first building up to a good level of health and stamina. This means they are more vulnerable to aches and strains. Ideally your child will have a stretching routine to warm up prior to playing tennis just to reduce the risk of injury. Also encourage them to strengthen the muscles they will use a lot, especially the shoulder and forearm and legs.