serve mechanics

[rfhjr]

I was writing to ask if someone could maybe do an article on the serve and how the muscles should function in the motion. Such as the muscle feel and what should be stretched and at what time. I know some people including myself are not very visual but think of things mechanically. Even though the videos on the site are good it is really hard for me to determine how the players are using and stretching their internal muscles in the motion; the ones you cannot see.

I was just thinking and do not know if this is right but if the muscles are stretched or twisted the right way in the backswing of the serve shouldn't the forward part happen automatically sort of like a rubberband like affect. My problem right now is not knowing which muscle should be stretched and what feel I should have during the backswing. Thanks

[vmiller]

Most people think I'm crazy or obsessed (maybe I am ) but I tend to think the same way. Let me warn you that we are the minority!

I think you'll like the articles by Bruce Elliot and Greg Ryan on this site as well as some of the articles at http://www.stms.nl/ . I have yet to read them myself, but there's plenty of articles in scientific journals on tennis by expert biomechanists.

You may also like the book 'World Class Tennis Technique'.

Some things you may want to think about and study are using the quads and glutes to drive an upward and rotating motion with your shoulders coiled (rotated) further than your hips. As all of that unwinds, it will transfer to a stretch of your shoulder (external rotation) which will ultimately be the lowest point of your racket drop, and that stretch will rebound into internal rotation which some believe to be the major contributor of racket head speed.

Of course there's more to it than that, but if you're looking for something to dig into, this should at least get you started. I think the rebound of the external rotation of the shoulder is part of the rubberband effect you're after. The trick is achieving all the proper positioning to facilitate it and the timing and sequence of events to execute it. It's not a simple stroke!

[johnyandell]

Will see what BB has to say, but since everyone has been jumping I will say this.

A visual picture is a pathway to a feeling. It's hard to separate the two though some players are more visual and some more kinesthetic.

I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for a complete physiological description of the patterns of muscle contraction in the strokes just yet. When we asked to drill the holes in Roddick's arms to insert the electrodes, he refused for some reason.

What the images should do for you is give you the blueprint to create the postions physically without the ball--like the racket drop on the serve. You can now create an internal mental "feeling/image". This should guide you a lot more successfully than thinking your way through a chain of muscle contractions--that's a recipe for frustration and stagnation.

[vmiller]

This should guide you a lot more successfully than thinking your way through a chain of muscle contractions--that's a recipe for frustration and stagnation.

Good point. Personally, I find the scientific information helpful for understanding a stroke better. But that does not mean I try to mentally force a muscle contraction sequence on court - I still go by feel. What I like is having an explanation behind the feel. I'm not one to accept something as working well unless I know why and am satisfied that there's no obvious way to make it work even better. That's just my personality and learning style and assumed that to be the case for rfhjr as well.

Also, I have no intention of stealing wind from personalized expert forums. I was just trying to contribute to the conversation and keep it going.

[Bungalow Bill]

I was writing to ask if someone could maybe do an article on the serve and how the muscles should function in the motion. Such as the muscle feel and what should be stretched and at what time. I know some people including myself are not very visual but think of things mechanically. Even though the videos on the site are good it is really hard for me to determine how the players are using and stretching their internal muscles in the motion; the ones you cannot see.

I was just thinking and do not know if this is right but if the muscles are stretched or twisted the right way in the backswing of the serve shouldn't the forward part happen automatically sort of like a rubberband like affect. My problem right now is not knowing which muscle should be stretched and what feel I should have during the backswing. Thanks

Hi rfhjr,

Have you checked out the articles here on the site? One of the best ways to learn the function of the upper body motion is to get a flexible string/rope and attach it to a tennis ball. Make the string a little longer then the length of your racquet. Then swing it around using the serve motion. You will get a sense on how to bring the non-dominant arm into the body to help accelerate the racquet. This is usually when the racquet is going back into the so-called "backscratch" position.

[GregRyan]

A few EMG studies out there

Here is a citation to one study that has used EMG to identify muscle activity. You will have to order it for the full text version, but there are many muscles involved and could complicate the stoke.

Am J Sports Med. 1988 Sep-Oct;16(5):481-5. Related Articles, Links


An electromyographic analysis of shoulder function in tennis players.

Ryu RK, McCormick J, Jobe FW, Moynes DR, Antonelli DJ.

Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic, Inglewood, California.

Shoulder injuries in tennis players are common because of the repetitive, high-magnitude forces generated around the shoulder during the various tennis strokes. An understanding of the complex sequences of muscle activity in this area may help reduce injury, enhance performance, and assist the rapid rehabilitation of the injured athlete. The supraspinatus, infraspinatus, subscapularis, middle deltoid, pectoralis major, latissimus dorsi, biceps brachii, and serratus anterior muscles were studied in six uninjured male Division II collegiate tennis players using dynamic electromyography (EMG) and synchronized high-speed photography. Each subject performed the tennis serve and the forehand and backhand groundstrokes, and each stroke was divided into stages. The tennis serve contains four stages. Three stages characterize the forehand and backhand groundstrokes. Our results indicate that the subscapularis, pectoralis major, and serratus anterior display the greatest activity during the serve and forehand. The middle deltoid, supraspinatus, and infraspinatus are most active in the acceleration and follow-through stages of the backhand. The biceps brachii increases its activity during cocking and follow-through in the serve with a similar pattern noted in the acceleration and follow-through stages of the forehand and backhand. The serratus anterior demonstrates intense activity in the serve and forehand, thus providing a stable platform for the humeral head and assisting in gleno-humeral-scapulothoracic synchrony. The tennis serve and forehand and backhand groundstrokes are accomplished by complex sequences of muscle activity that incorporate contributions from the lower extremities and trunk into smooth, coordinated patterns.

[vmiller]

Here's another EMG study:

http://www.stms.nl/december2004/artikel4.html

[rfhjr]

Hi rfhjr,

Have you checked out the articles here on the site? One of the best ways to learn the function of the upper body motion is to get a flexible string/rope and attach it to a tennis ball. Make the string a little longer then the length of your racquet. Then swing it around using the serve motion. You will get a sense on how to bring the non-dominant arm into the body to help accelerate the racquet. This is usually when the racquet is going back into the so-called "backscratch" position.

Thank you for the reply. I have used the ball and string this past summer when practicing and it helped a great deal.

The type of motion I am trying to develop is a swing based upon using leverage essentially a centrifugal force swing. I was thinking the lower body is supposed to pull the object in your hand in this case the tennis racquet would be always lagging this pulling motion. Just like if you had a ball on a string as your training aid the lower body hips and legs turn to the right (for a right handed player) which moves the shoulder, arm, hand, and then the racquet then the hips turn forward pulling the racquet into contact.

The problem I am having is the feel of the correct coil or torque on the backswing. In looking at videos and reading articles I have picked up with bits and pieces of instruction and am just trying to put everything together. For example in "The Sonic Serve" video there is an emphasis placed on the stretching of the shoulder blades and front side of the body, other articles mention the coiling of the stomach and or getting your butt facing the net. In the coil of the service motion is the aim to create a point of opposition where the racquet is still going back while the lower body since it has completed the backswing is moving forward? If this loading is done correctly wouldn't the forward part of the swing occur automatically?

I also had another question I would need some help with. Should the tennis ball when it is hit correctly feel light on your racquet? I have played other sports and I always judged how efficient my swing was by the contact with the ball when my timing was good the ball always felt light or like air and it always seemed I could make the ball go with very little effort. When my timing was off the ball felt like a rock when it was hit. I have asked some of the tennis players I hit with about this and they have no answer about this feel so I did not know if this is something that is not common in tennis.

[johnyandell]

Wow. I think that the best thing you could do would be to attach a piece of video. Or send one in for Your Strokes. That analysis is pretty tortured. I don't think it is really possible to have a productive verbal discussion about it without seeing where you are with the motion.

The relationships you are talking about are very complex. There are very few players who have ever turned away from the ball as much as you seem to be trying to do, but then again it's hard to tell from what you write. Even Sampras never truly turned his back all the way to the net. But tons of club players have tried to copy it...not with beneficial results.

My suspicion is that, as with virtually all these kinds of threads, if we saw the video it would shift the discussion in a different direction. Very few players actually do what they imagine they do or are trying to do. Unless you start to do some visual comparisons I think you will continue to be frustrated.

On your other question--yep the ball sure doesn't feel good when it hits the edge of the frame... I wouldn't say "light" in the sweet spot. I'd say solid and effortless and physically very pleasing.
Just my opinion, but one I hold strongly.

[gzhpcu]

Just a question to John:
When you have a visual image you want to copy and go through the motion very slowly in front of the mirror, don't you feel the muscles involved? I know I do. When I am on court and can't see myself, I just try and duplicate the feeling.

[johnyandell]

Exactly--I think some people imagine feel more than image and vice versa--just think it's two halves of the same whole.