How to Keep Up Your Mental and Physical Health as a College Tennis Player

Completed October 12, 2020

Jojo Chen, a junior tennis player at Temple University was more than thrilled to start her fall 2020 season, but never got the chance. “ I was kind of disappointed” she says “ I just recovered from a very severe injury, and I just started playing again. At that point, I was ready to play some matches, but then all the season got cancelled.”

As the fall 2020 semester started to take its course, the U.S was hit with the COVID-19 pandemic. What followed upset many students; schools sent students home, switched to online learning, and sports were cancelled. Needless to say, the 2020 school year was unlike any other.  

Whether you are a college athlete or a sports fan, game days were filled with energy, rivalry, laughter, and good friends. For many college athletes, sports practices and games are a large part of their college experience, which is why many athletes felt disappointed as their seasons slowly got cancelled. 

Thea Nagle, a junior tennis player at Emerson College, and Mikaila Baumel, a junior tennis player at the University of Maryland, both were unable to participate in their fall 2020 season.

Many schools around the country have opened up classroom doors to their students, however, schools are working with a new online hybrid model. Each week, college students will alternate between online Zoom classes and in-person classes, ultimately increasing the amount of time they spend on their computer. 

With all the hours spent on Zoom for classes and meetings, student athletes are not getting the same physical activity and face to face interactions with their teammates. According to studies from the American Psychology Association and the Association for Applied Sport Psychology, isolation has had a negative impact on student athletes as many have experienced higher levels of stress, depression, anxiety and a lack of motivation. The uncertainty of the spring 2021 semester is only one of several factors that could be leading to a decrease in motivation during the current semester.

Here are a few tips on how to keep up physical and mental health for college tennis players this season.

Create a Schedule

Finishing off the school year online and at home was hard enough for college athletes. The summer that followed proved to be an even bigger challenge. The amount of free time now available to them was not something they were accustomed to. But, creating a schedule helped get them through their day and continues to help them throughout this semester. 

Nagle, a tennis player at Emerson, has a schedule that not only keeps her organized, but also active during the day. “Morning: coffee, go for a run, make breakfast, log onto zoom for class. Midday: start homework, make lunch, FaceTime with a friend. Night: finish off some assignments, make dinner.” This is what an average day looks like for Nagle now that she's back at school. Being able to stick to a schedule will help with organizing assignments, workouts, interactions with friends and family, and overall getting your body moving throughout the day. 

“The best thing you can do is stay busy,” says Aaron Bergeron, tennis coach at Emerson College. 

No gym? Home Workouts Are The Way to Go

Students are regularly able to visit their gyms and use the equipment offered to them during the school year, but since the COVID-19 pandemic, going to a gym is not as easily available. Since Chen isn’t able to use any gyms, her new go to is at-home workouts. Whether it was in the backyard or inside her house, Chen makes use of household items to help her in workouts. For weights, water bottles and food cans can be used. There are, as well, many alternative ways to follow at home workouts. 

“There are some great agility drills you can find on YouTube,” says Coach Bergeron. 

For more tennis focused workouts, “sprints, fast feet drills, ladder drills, and shadow hits” are some favorites of Abigail Villenas, a professional tennis coach and alumni of Ohio State Women's Tennis Team. 

To practice serving tosses inside your house, Coach Bergeron says, “Make an ‘X’ with some painter’s tape on your ceiling and practice your ball toss. Aim for the X!”.

Keep up Small Activities

If quarantine proved anything, it's that sitting on the couch and watching TV is an easy go to, but it's important to keep your body active throughout the day. There are many benefits that come from an active lifestyle. Not only are these tips beneficial for student athletes but for students in general. The main goal during this time is to keep yourself mentally and physically healthy; one of the best ways to do this is to keep your body active. 

Coach Bergeron says, “Working out keeps your body, mind and spirit sharp.”. Keeping yourself active during the day doesn’t just mean intense cardio workouts or weight training routines. 

“One of the best ways to keep up daily activities is to keep it fun,” says Coach Villena. Whether it is going for a walk outside, doing some outdoor yoga, stretching, or doing a small workout with music, making daily activities fun will help you keep a more active lifestyle.

Stay in Contact With Teammates

Whether it's a Zoom hangout, FaceTime, phone call, or text, staying updated with your teammates has helped college athletes get through these big changes they faced. According to a study by the National Collegiate Athletic Association, commonly known as the NCAA, 90% of athletes surveyed said they had more positive emotions when they constantly communicated with their teammates and coaches. Just like staying in contact with friends and family, teammates can help keep you motivated and on track with your health. 

Coach Bergeron tells his athletes it’s important to stay connected since “things will eventually get back to normal, and when they do you should fall right back into the old schedule”. Constant communication with teammates will help ensure a smooth start to the season.

Focus on Small Goals

Maybe you want to keep up non tennis related activities, or get through some school assignments you have due, the best way to get through them is to keep your daily goals small. Coach Villena advises her tennis players to take it one step at a time. “It can get overwhelming thinking about a week's worth of work and having to manage all of it at the same time.” she says. If you're working on one assignment, focus on that one assignment. During your workouts, try to focus only on your workout. You’ve allowed yourself that specific time to workout, so try not to get distracted by other obligations you have that day. 

Take Breaks

It's fairly easy to get wrapped up in work, especially now that the school year has started up again.

With Zoom becoming part of students' daily routines, it's important to give yourself a break from the computer. The American Psychology Association says, “Zoom fatigue”,  is affecting a great deal of people and can cause a decrease in motivation. Collectively, psychologists have defined zoom fatigue as the tiredness or burnout caused by overusing online communication platforms due to the coronavirus.

Baumel, junior tennis player at the University of Maryland, is one of many student athletes that has struggled with keeping herself motivated. “The motivation is different simply because I hate staring at the screen all day every day for work.” Baumel says. Her go-to solution when feeling tired is to take a break and listen to some music. Getting your mind off of work and body replenished with nutrients will help you stay focused when you return to your work. 

Breaks can come in all different forms, for Nagle, running has not only been beneficial to her physical health but her mental health as well. It’s a chance for her to step out, get some sun, and take a break from the long hours she spends on her computer.

These new changes student athletes are facing are not easy to manage alone. Having a good support team with you will make these months and the start of the 2020 fall semester far easier to maneuver. Stay in contact with your team and keep your body moving. One thing that Nagle wants all student athletes to remember is, “we all are just learning to be more adaptable and work with whatever we can!”