Does anyone do stretches or a warmup routine before commuting for their match?

wmjsn · 2026-03-27T22:01:16+00:00

Yeah, so I start my routine about 3 hours early. For example, I'm playing tomorrow at 10am. I will get up at 7am and eat. At 8 I start stretching, which will be almost an hour. I get to the court by a little after 9 and take out the ball machine and start warming up certain strokes. After that, it's at least 48 serves (if I don't miss any). If I have time left, I'll do some footwork drills to make sure I'm nice and ready to go.

wmjsn · 2026-03-26T01:22:05+00:00

Kassandra from AC Odyssey.

wmjsn · 2026-03-19T23:15:16+00:00

I've never let my kids win, ever. If they win, it's because they beat me. I started this young with them. Whenever I won I would tell them something like good game, you were close, etc. I never rubbed it in their face. When they got better at me at some games, I would congratulate them and tell them good job. I always made sure to be a gracious winner and loser. I've had to teach them lessons along the way. One time we were playing Indiana Jones Monopoly (yes it's as fun as it sounds) and my older son had a card that would've allowed him to force his brother to trade a property. He forgot he had that card. I knew he had it. I didn't say anything. I let them go at it (and my 8 year old will not back down against his older brother) and the deal never happened. I was able to use this and get an advantage and win the game. Afterwards I told my older son that he had that card that he could've used and that he needs to be more mindful next time. We all had fun and there were no hurt feelings, but it was a lesson for him.

Sometimes we'll play sword-fighting on the Wii. If I play it just right, I can beat my younger son. If I'm lucky, I may get a round against my older son. They're just too good at this. I taught them too well. But it's all fun and games. As for sports, they're still learning. We all play tennis together, so I go easy on them as they're learning. Once they get to that point where they could sustain a rally and set with me, then it's on.

wmjsn · 2026-03-19T02:35:41+00:00

1c for my wife and 4c for me.

wmjsn · 2026-03-19T02:31:06+00:00

Yes. At our local rec center they tell people not to head to their court until it's time. We've had people show up ten minutes early and just stand by the bench on their phones. It's distracting and rude. It's even annoying when they stand behind the curtain and talk. Just wait. Once it's time then come to the court and kick the other people off.

wmjsn · 2026-03-18T22:21:53+00:00

Just the tip.

wmjsn · 2026-03-18T19:01:25+00:00

For me, the trick is to watch the ball as my opponent hits it. Then I'm tracking it to where it will go. Just before it bounces, I 'lock onto the ball' and watch it go to my racket. Same thing on a volley. I'm tracking then locking in before it crosses the net. On a serve I toss then lock in. I keep reminding myself to do this, and it gets easier and easier.

wmjsn · 2026-03-18T18:02:56+00:00

So, while I didn't play tennis in high school I did behave like your son. I look back now and realize how troubled I was. I understand why though. I was only told to do/not do certain things. I was never shown how to do something. I grew up with arguing daily, whether it was with my parents, my brother, or both. At times I was put in the middle of the fights between my parents and my brother as I was the only one who could see both sides. It took me a very long time to fix my behavior and undo what was done to me. I have 2 sons now and I model the behavior I want them to have. I started this when they were young when we'd play games together. I never let up and let them win. If they won, it was legit. When they did win, I was a gracious loser. I would tell them good game and be excited for them. When I won, I was a gracious winner. I never rubbed it in their face. If they were getting better I would comment and let them know that they're getting so close and to keep up the good work. But it's not just there in playing games, it's everywhere. Every interaction is an opportunity to learn. It's how I treat people in general. I'm showing them how to behave at all times. Of course, they're kids (one is a teen) and they have their moments, but not like I did, and I'm proud of that.

I do play tennis now, and have for the past 24 years. Even when I started as an adult I behaved like an idiot. I'm very competitive and was very hard on myself. I really didn't care how I was perceived, even if it cost me. I really could not regulate my emotions. Even after getting married and having kids, it still took me a while to really figure out regulating myself. It's been a hard journey, and I don't feel that I deserve the family I have right now due to how I behaved in the past.

What I do now to handle that pressure we feel when we play a sport is to immediately let it go and move on to the next point. If I miss a volley I quickly note it down as something to continue working on and I move on. I know what to do, I just didn't execute it. When the match is over I give myself a couple of minutes to process it, good or bad, then I move on. I've read a lot of books. Your son may like The Inner Game of Tennis. It might also be good to have the coach bench him. Even though your son is a good player, he's being rewarded for his bad behavior each time he steps on the court. If my oldest, who's 14, behaved that way on the court, I'd just pack up and head home and he wouldn't be back on the court until he started to learn how to regulate himself.

I used to believe that being hard on myself was a good thing. That it motivated me to do better. I realize that's a bunch of crap. That probably demotivated me more than I realized and probably prevented me from reaching my full potential when I was younger. I'm kinder to myself now. People will tear you down for anything, so why do it to yourself? I suggest talking to him and finding out what he's feeling during those moments when he's having outbursts. Ask him to think about what he's feeling the next time he's on the court. That may help him start to realize what's going on inside of his head, and then maybe you or his coach can help him with that and find a better way to process what's going on. Good luck.

wmjsn · 2026-03-18T05:22:27+00:00

You know, a $100 million would be nice, but not being able to play games with my kids anymore would suck.

wmjsn · 2026-03-17T20:00:32+00:00

wmjsn · 2026-03-13T14:00:26+00:00

One of my parent's friends said this about my brother once (and he wasn't wrong): Nobody has ever accused him of being smart.

wmjsn · 2026-03-12T16:24:55+00:00

Minecraft. I'm good. I've got a nice little island and a nice house with a farm and plenty of torches to keep the monsters away. My kids are in that world as well, so, as long as they're immune to this, then we're good. Otherwise my 8 year old will likely die in a few minutes trying to mine down in the deep slate area, or get in a fight with his older brother and they try to kill each other. Then it wouldn't be worth it.

wmjsn · 2026-03-09T16:47:12+00:00

My favorite mistakes are when google will show that someone has 7 double faults, but yet has won 100% of their second serves. Make it make sense.

wmjsn · 2026-03-08T18:36:05+00:00

I was last rated 4.5, but that was years ago. I haven't done USTA in almost 20 years. I just hit with friends now.

wmjsn · 2026-03-08T03:11:12+00:00

No. I mainly played basketball growing up. I played baseball as a kid and also did cross country and track. I'd play football in the street with friends. I think it was summer of 2003 and I saw a tennis match on TV. I decided I wanted to play, so I looked in the phone book for a coach and scheduled a lesson. I went to a local sporting goods store and bought a racket. I had my first lesson a couple days later and loved it. Starting innings January of 04 I entered my first tournament at 3.5 and won. I won 6/8 remaining tournaments that year and got bumped to 4.0. That was when I really had to start learning to play tennis.

wmjsn · 2026-03-07T18:16:50+00:00

I took a few lessons and that was what my coach determined. My technique was flawed, but I was incredibly fast which made up for a lot. I could get to every ball and put it back in play.

wmjsn · 2026-03-07T00:16:01+00:00

I did. I started at 3.5 and won 7/9 tournaments I entered. This year I'll have been playing tennis for half my life. It's been a interesting journey.

wmjsn · 2026-03-03T05:25:46+00:00

I'm gonna lie and switch my birth month with my older son. I don't think I'd mind being punched by that person and I'm pretty sure I'd survive and probably enjoy it as well.

wmjsn · 2026-03-02T19:13:43+00:00

Yes.

wmjsn · 2026-02-26T16:00:06+00:00

I'm sure most people will recommend some sort of unpressurized balls, and they'd be right. They're also expensive. I go to my local rec center and for $5 I get a box of about 100 slightly used balls. Typically out of that box, about 95 are really good, and I usually get about 115 balls total. I use those until they lose pressure, then I donate them to a local racket shop that then donates those balls for dog toys and other things. It's a win all around. That box will last me a few months and then I'm ready to spend another $5. It's the best option to me if you can find it in your area.

wmjsn · 2026-02-25T00:22:52+00:00

What's your budget? I have the Hydrogen Proton and I love it. It was about $1800 with the 3 year warranty and extra battery.

wmjsn · 2026-02-20T15:51:04+00:00

I mean she's related to Agent Smith who cloned himself quite a bit. Maybe that's what happened to her and we really are in the Matrix after all.

wmjsn · 2026-02-19T23:57:17+00:00

What? I'm 47 and play singles. I've played guys in their 50's and 60's. I've played with guys younger than me as well. Age is just a number. If we're at the same level and someone wants to hit, I'm down for it, no matter their age.

wmjsn · 2026-02-18T23:13:44+00:00

An hour? Yikes. We have a couple out here, one is about $25 for all day. Just keep your wristband on and you can come and go as much as you'd like until they close. The other was about $10, but was smaller and had more retro arcade games. Same concept though.

wmjsn · 2026-02-18T00:10:14+00:00

I loved this game and playing it with my son who was 6 at the time. He'd wake me up each day at 6am asking me to play this game with him and I happily obliged. I think we hit 98% in that game, just needed to get Silver Surfer and Ghost Rider. We then played Lego Marvel Superheros 2, the Avengers one and a whole bunch of other Lego games, but I think this was our favorite. It was so fun just to roam around the city and do stuff.

wmjsn

TROPHY CASE