Tennis Progress - Year One

Me and Stephen began practicing tennis a bit over a year ago on October 2024. We only caught the tail end of the 2024 season but this season we practiced regularly. Looking back on my progress over the past year there are lots of things I am happy about, but also a few things that definitely should have been improved by now.

The Good

I have a genuine drive to improve at this game, and I am smart and unapologetic in that goal. We bought SwingVision late in the season and I am looking at the videos critically. Both of us are aware of the fundamentals and we are consciously trying to improve on these every play session.

We are not being discouraged by slow progress. We are miles ahead of where we were on October of 2024 but still not close to where we want to be, but we still go out there almost every week and drill down.

Within just a month and a half of starting we had 5 month layoff during winter. Then in June/July we also took a couple months off when I moved out of Sunnyside. But we have kept playing throughout both breaks. This is a persistent hobby for us both.

Our actual gameplay and stamina are eons better than when we first started. I remember last October I couldn't play for 30 minutes straight. Now I can play for 90 minutes at a reasonable pace. Our shot making has naturally gotten a lot better, and my technique on the forehand side is clean. That being said there is still a lot of improvements I can have.

What needs Improvement

My footwork is the single most glaring issue I have right now. I move as if I'm walking through mud, and my first step is incredibly delayed. It goes beyond my obesity. I need a lot of footwork drills to get used to naturally being active on the court. The first step still isn't natural, and I'm usually falling into the trap of moving parallel to the baseline instead of perpendicular.

My forehand, while I'm mostly happy with it is just too weak. I don't think that's a fault of my power or technique though. I'm just hitting it softy back afraid to overhit or hit too hard for Stephen to return it. That's not something I need to be afraid of. I have plenty of topspin on the ball, and there is a big window between how soft I am hitting it and actually hitting hard.

Another issue with the forehand is tied to the footwork. I am not moving away enough so that my arm is extended, and I'm not perpendicular to the court. It leads to my forehand being jammed and my arms bent when hitting it, sapping a lot of potential power.

Forehand has issues but it's technically sound and improved leaps and bounds from when I started. Unfortunately that's not the case for my backhand. It still feels unnatural, inconsistent and my footwork on that end is especially sloppy and awkward. On the run especially I have zero feel for how to hit it or position myself, and my slicing is not good at all either. Overall it's definitely the part of my shotmaking I need to improve on the most, and it's urgent because what's missing are the fundamentals.

Goals for 2026

I think next year is going to be a formative one for me in tennis. My overall goal is to be good enough by year's end to be able to play competitive matches at the 3.0-3.5 level. 2027 will likely be the year when I begin taking lessons.

Winter break

The tennis courts are closed from December through March, and it's too cold to do much work on handball courts, so during those months I want to focus on getting more fit and improving my footwork by doing drills.

• Weigh 180 lbs by the first week of April.
• Become more natural in my footwork.
• Practice ball toss for serves.

Serving

So far neither me or Stephen have tried to serve in our hitting sessions, but it's too important to not learn. Being at a manageable weight will lessen the impact on my back to serve. I want to have a consistent, repeatable and accurate serve. Speed isn't important but I want a short ball toss and quick hits and it's important that I am able to serve on all parts of the court comfortably.

Lessons

Right now I'm thinking of lessons in 2027 instead of next year, but if I see myself getting bottlenecked or requiring help that I can't get from online it's on the table for 2026, even if it's just a few lessons instead of a full course.

Overall I'm happy with my progress in tennis so far, but mostly I'm proud to have stuck with it through the bad days and long breaks. I want this to be a lifelong activity and 2026 will hopefully solidify that.