This is going to degrade into the pro vs club player debate. Ratings will be discussed and all of that.

I'm just going to continue to try and hit the ball with lots of spin/power/quality and act like I'm a developing junior. After all I have a long road to 2000.

The stroke I have learned does not produce the results I need from it. So I'll find another one that does.

I've heard you mention upper arm overuse a few times, and it's time for me to ask what it means?

When the upper arm is moving without being driven by movement of the shoulder joint. If I point my arms out to the side and I rotate my body, I am not using my upper arms. If I point my arms outwards and I cross my elbows in front of my chest, I have used my upper arms.

Like I said a while back, the biggest thing I have noticed when watching pros vs amateurs is when they use movements of type 1 (shoulder joint powered by core) to largely move the racket vs movements of type 2 (upper arm moving the racket) to hit the ball. I think that accidentally, some of us who try to straight arm get into trouble with type 2 movements. This is what I try to reduce by getting people to hit the ball like Mizutani. Not to get them to be T Rex's. I try to get them to keep their core as what largely moves the racket and not their upper arm. I can't quite do It as well as i would like to but i try.

Got it.

Sometimes I drive myself crazy thinking about how much the arm is actually used. In true NextLevel style, I sometimes find myself shadow swinging in weird places, without deliberately starting. I want to see exactly what is going on.

If you use your body correctly, the arm gets a significant boost in the right direction. I know this for sure because I can feel the force in my hand. But does the body generate enough momentum so the arm can just be held straight, as per the rattle drum video?

Unfortunately once one is used to actually swinging too actively with the arm, it is an impossibly difficult habit to break.

LTT117 is now available on ttEDGE.com

As I mentioned, I'm teaching this stuff a lot on a daily basis, so it was time for the video.

This is great. I look forward to the backhand version. I find jumping into the fh backswing much more intuitive than the backhand. I can just do it in practice. With the backhand something feels off. The coach at my club has told me my body with the backhand looks stiff too. I just try to do the two step bow but something about it isn't quiet right, it isn't fluid.

I don't imagine it to be too complicated, like I should just do a mini hop into the bow position but something about my bow position isn't really right.. I should get some footage.

Name the player

Harimoto. We spent 126 posts discussing a similar picture on mytt for reasons I wish had value right now.

Harimoto. We spent 126 posts discussing a similar picture on mytt for reasons I wish had value right now.