In today’s day and age, keeping kids active can be difficult. Between running around from work, school, and home, extracurricular activities sometimes cannot fit in. For many reasons, starting your child in tennis is a great way to get active. Not only is it great exercise, but there are also many great life lessons learned in tennis. Check out why starting your child in tennis can significantly affect their life and future!
1. Hand-Eye Coordination
Tennis helps develop hand-eye coordination at a very young age. When a child learns to hit a tennis ball, they constantly learn to judge the distance to the ball and when to make contact.
2. Bone Strength and Flexibility
Starting tennis at a young age helps strengthen bone structure. It is proven that tennis can prevent osteoporosis later in life. Kids also learn about stretching before and after activities, and they constantly stretch when maneuvering to the ball, drastically improving flexibility.
3. Cardiovascular Strength
When you get a kid on the tennis court, they can spend an hour running around with high energy without even realizing it. With all the running around, they strengthen their heart while having fun.
4. Motor Skills
Playing tennis helps condition large muscle groups. From running around to striking the ball, tennis is a full-body activity. As their skills advance, fine motor skills are strengthened because of difficult shots like volleys, drop shots, and lobs.
5. Agility and Balance
During a single point, a player may change directions 5 times in 10 seconds! They must learn how to run up to a ball, stop, strike it, and then recover. With all of the stop-and-go movement, kids become more agile and learn to balance their bodies.
6. Life Skills
Many life skills are learned while playing tennis. Like all sports, when learning tennis, you can run into points where it gets difficult or frustrating. Learning to overcome obstacles and improve from them is an important skill to learn while young. Also, when playing against other kids, you will find that other kids are unfair. Learning to deal with unfairness at a young age prepares kids for the rest of their lives. When they learn to handle injustice and act out of logic and reasoning instead of feelings, they learn to act well beyond their years. Tennis teaches mental toughness in general. When you are out on the court, you are against your opponent. You must learn how to face adversity and rise against struggles on your own.
Tennis is a sport that can be played for the rest of your life. Not only are you giving them a lifetime sport, but you are also teaching them a sport that can be used for family bonding. Playing tennis as a family can be so enjoyable and a great way to bond with your children. There are many physical and mental advantages to playing tennis. Starting a kid in tennis early can be a great way to get them active and a fun way to spend time together.
