| Diet Forums : Fitness (Library) | Report Violation · Tag It! |
| Tennis |  hettyanne |
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| #1 |  trhawley |
May 14 2008 14:40 |
| Of course it's good exercise. Anything that raises your heart rate is good exercise. | ||
| #2 | hettyanne |
May 14 2008 14:46 |
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I guess I should rephrase the questions - it's not whether or not it's good exercise, I mean more 'how is it compared to other exercises'? |
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| #3 | melkor |
May 14 2008 15:16 |
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Depends on the alternative exercise you're considering - if you're comparing it to syncronised crotcheting it's better, if you're comparing it to powerlifting the two exercise goals are so different there's no valid comparison, if you're comparing it to volleyball it's probably better. As a calorie burner I think only raquet ball or trying to keep up with Tom on his bike rides would beat out tennis - while you may not be diving for the ball, you're still sprinting up and down the court and hitting the ball with explosive power. Besides - who cares about efficiency, really? Consistency beats efficiency when it comes to results - playing tennis half an hour a day will beat out sprint training once a month, even if sprint training burns more calories when considered in isolation. And it's a lot easier to be consistent about something you enjoy doing - so as long as you're having fun and want to do it again soon, it's a good activity. |
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| #4 | trhawley |
May 14 2008 15:23 |
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"...or trying to keep up with Tom on his bike rides"
Forget the bicycle, I play a pretty mean game of tennis myself. So try staying with me on the court for a couple of sets. ;-) But as Melkor said it's hard to compare one activity to another. What's best is what you like to do. And your goals make a difference to. If you want to build muscle mass, tennis is probably not the answer. (Unless it's just your racquet arm you want to bulk up, remember Rod Laver?) If you want to run the Boston Marathon tennis is probably not the answer. If you want to get your butt off the couch for an hour and get some exercise then tennis is just the ticket. |
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| #5 | hettyanne |
May 14 2008 16:57 |
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"get your butt off the couch..." LOL Exactly. I'm blessed with youth, a decent metabolism and tons of energy but have a hate-on for exercise. I know my figure will not last me long if I don't find a way to love it so hoping tennis once or twice a week will help break up going to the gym as much! Thanks for the advice guys! |
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| #6 | hettyanne |
May 15 2008 11:12 |
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So - not sure if you guys will check this but wanted to let you know that WOW I had a great time last night. Stayed out playing (learning) for an hour and a half. This just might be 'my' thing!!!
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| #7 | pinkgirl04 |
May 16 2008 01:10 |
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I love tennis and it is definitely one of my favorite exercises! I could not contain myself waiting for spring so I could play tennis! I recently got a Polar F11 Heart Rate Monitor and wore it when i played, and burned a fabulous 245 calories for 45 minutes! Who knew chasing after a ball with a racket could be so fun! I'm also really competitive, so it's fun to beat my boyfriend's butt! So have fun with it and burn some calories! |
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| #8 |  cvbinrichmond |
May 21 2008 15:37 |
| I have played tennis for some 30 years, but for the last 10 years or so before starting again last year, I played very little. I went from 200 lbs. 22-23 years ago to 281 about 2 1/2 years ago. I was almost desperate to lose weight. I looked FAT...felt FAT...WAS FAT... and I had trouble just bending down to pick something off the floor. I would huff and puff with little activity. I then decided after retiring, to join a club and start playing again on a consistant basis. They would set up the matches, usually Monday, Wednesday and Fridays and I could play any other time with friends I met at the club. Now I play about 5 or 6 days a week, sometimes for 3 hours a day, and have lost 40 lbs in the last 2 1/2 years. This is a fairly slow rate, but then, I don't feel like I am hungry all the time. I want to lose another 50 lbs, and if I lose at the same rate as this last year, I will reach that goal in about 3 or so years. Tennis is a great way to lose weight, but you have to really enjoy what you do, so if you don't like the sport, try raquetball, biking, running, swimming, even table tennis played at a higher level can burn many calories. Good luck. | ||