Hi Ben, before start I want to say that you are one of the most complete tennis channels of all YT, with you I have learned too many things that have helped me a lot in my forehand, backhand, serve, slice ... But I propose you a new topic that can help you with your future videos, so, you could leave us an email or any kind of contact so that we could send you a video of our serve, forehand, backhand ... And then you upload that same video to RUclips but correcting it, it's like a video analysis. I think that would help a lot of people around the world and I think it's an interesting topic. If you are not interested in this idea, I could give you more different ideas for future videos. Keep it up Ben!
As soon as I saw the word "Unique" in the title, I assumed it to be click-bait. I apologize. I was dead wrong. It must have been a real epiphany when you suddenly associated the feeling of a more powerful impact with the creation of a more obtuse axial release of the non-dominant shoulder. The clips of Cilic and Schwartzman prove that this is no bs. Thanks for enlightening us all.
Thanks for watching! I actually hesitated to say "unique" as that is something that people tend to say to get your attention but I felt it was something I wish I knew awhile ago while first figuring this sport out :)
Interesting idea. Ben, just some constructive criticism. If you got a higher resolution camera, and improved the mic, I think you'd get better numbers on youtube (You might not care). Your ideas are very original and your tennis knowledge is super high level. Your channel should be at 100k at least.
Nice. As in serve - it's not a completely passive movement by the non-dominant arm even if it should become automatic by practice. Yet, it needs pretty delicate timing and relaxation to add up to the net sum of momentum generated and mediated by kinetic chain. If you do it with a "forced = stiff ignition" it won't work; you'd better get it right - or forget about it and let the non-dominant arm "move away from the way" in due course passively/as the kinetic chain travels through its course...
@@teachyourselftennis Yes, it is. Still figuring this great game out by myself also (a long journey it is!) and practicing and experimenting everything in my own game and strokes. I have learned a lot in my private painstaking investigations on the court and accordingly developed in leaps and bounds with this self-study method but there are certain areas (or seams between different "areas") which are still somewhat eluding my conceptual apparatus (lighted only dimly and partially). Maybe the final answers we are after are in some fundamental sense non-conceptual and can only be felt and seen as things happen to click in one's game and techniques. This might sound paradoxical and paradoxical it might be (and dialectical lol) - I need to put everything in a well-founded theoretical/scientific frame-work and have a clear conception of things - tennis is not an exception here, not a sudden tour in mysticism but rather a case of applied bio-mechanics. Yet. it is also something else. Since the self/subject which operates within the bio-mechanic machine has a say in the outcome of its movements and actions. Or better, less the self has a say in its actions the better (is the outcome). :D
@@jackquinnes well said! It's almost like growing up with your parents saying stuff years before and finally you get what they were saying all along haha. I think our own journey to understanding is not a specific timetable but rather takes on its own unique track.
@@teachyourselftennis i find i'll go back to old videos, like Oscar W or many others - stuff i've watch hundreds of times - and then sudden go 'i never saw that'... it's not that i never saw it, its that i wasn't ready to see it, or couldn't. lol...
Ben is always so insightful; his science class must be the best - anyhow, tangential discussion when you get to it is folding that non- dominant arm/stopping its momentum both in forehand & serve... Thank you Ben.
Ive rewatched this maybe 10 times to digest it. If I am understanding this properly, I will make a unit turn and keep the tip of the racquet pointed up to sky then while also loading with my right leg (right handed player) and coiling shoulders more than my hips in a neutral or semiopen stance for most shots, as I lower the right hand the racquet tip will eventually point from sky to somewhere between the right side fence and corner of where side fence and back fence meet then as I uncoil I transfer my body weight gradually from right leg to left leg, uncoiling from feet gradually to knees, hips, torso, then shoulders shoulders which will propel my hitting arm to cause the racquet head to "flip" to back fence without forcefully doing this with my wrist as you explained in another video. My racquet will then travel from low to high depending on how much I bent the knees and how much lower I got my racquet below the ball. The racquet will "lag" and but cap will point towards incoming ball, swing will go inside out, contact will occur with right shoulder slightly in front of left shoulder. Ideally racquet will be spaced away from body and not jammed, knees have straightened for most part, chest is facing the net, I maintain eye contact on target even after hitting ball to avoid looking up too soon. The arm must be relaxed throughout the whole process, I should concentrated on using legs, hips to uncoil to generate more racquet head speed. I should not force my arm to accelerate on purpose but instead allow the lower body to do it while keeping right arm as relaxed as possible. I know its easier said then done, but did I explain it correctly @Ben Wolfe or am I missing something? Also do you have an email I may be able to send you a video of me hitting for feedback please
I'm so sorry for the late reply! Been working a lot on my tennis profession with certifications and working with clients :). About your question: First, of course! Please email me at: benwolfetennisandfitness@gmail.com. Also I think you have it down and can tell you are very analytical which helps break down the swing. The problem will be putting it all together. I think the best way to make that happen is to realize that the movement is a kinetic chain so if you have experience with other sports (like a jump shot in basketball or a swing in baseball) or olympic lifts (like a hang clean), it will be similar to those motions so it won't feel so choppy. Looking forward to seeing your video!
Ben, just found this video, love your thoughts here. I still watch your fist forward/ don't manually move the racquet head back forehand video from 4 or 5 years ago. I have one quick question, as you point out all the time, a relaxed hand/ grip is a must on this forehand technique. Do you think it is helpful to emphasize grip pressure on the last 2 fingers, pinky and ring finger, in order to enhance the whip action of the racquet head?
Great question and thanks for posting! In my lessons I stress the importance of a loose grip like you said but also mention the pressure in my fingers are more at the pinky and ring finger like you mentioned. It increases the lever of the racquet which means more power. So to recap, you’re 100% correct! :)
@@themrstroke I haven't played in a while so I'm rated as a 4.5 but play with 5.0s and 5.5s. I personally train 4.5 players. I need to get out and play more this year!
I love this video. Is it this kind of swing is the the result of the hip rotation?. I heard so many people saying the phrase " shoulder rotation", this makes me confused.
chung Nguyen good question! I think the shoulder rotation starts to create torque with the body and allows coil to naturally happen which can then we released with the hips. Try keeping your feet in place and rotate your shoulders only and you should feel this a bit!
Ug! I think I’m gonna have to watch this a few more times to fully understand what ur saying. I just watched the video about cocking the wrist forward and leading with that in the FH swing (I think I’m explaining that right) and I’m gonna give that a go tomorrow while I chew on this video a bit more. Thanks for the informative content🙌🏽
I wish it was that easy for me :) Yes, definitely and I think the more you are used to playing other sports the easier it is from what I've seen when trying to teach it on the tennis court. Thanks for commenting!
Great video Ben! When you are clearing the path for your swing with your non-dominant arm are you actively engaging/pulling with the off-arm to accelerate your turn or is it more limp? I've noticed that I'm pretty limp with my off arm and wonder if the pros are actively engaging those muscles to speed up their torque/twisting motion. Thanks!
This is not unique for advanced players, they all do this. It's just not taught by 90% of tennis coaches. It's not easy to do for 90% of rec players being taught by 90% of coaches who don't even teach this. That's why 90% of tennis players can never develop a great FH. Good job making your followers aware of this. Now you have to go out and hit 10000 balls under match play pressure to make it a habit. Good luck.
@@teachyourselftennis Unless you're 7 years old there's virtually no chance to reach advanced level. Once bad habits are ingrained it's game over. We're not just talking physical but more importantly, mental - chronic FH anxiety is just too high. It even undoes pro players who can clear non hitting shoulder. However, at least you can teach it and make small gains on your own FH. I've seen college level players fail to get the mechanics right, just too many things to overcome. You overthink it and can never really "own it". Everyone wants the Federer FH though, and there are lots of shyster coaches selling it, especially online coaches here on RUclips.
poida smith very true. Kids brains are built to learn and adults are to perform. Just happy to share any knowledge that can help us feel like we can get a tiny bit better :)
poida smith I had that on the back of my varsity girls tennis shirts a couple years ago. Love the 1% story with the British Cycling Team. Actually out that in my book :)
Hi Ben, before start I want to say that you are one of the most complete tennis channels of all YT, with you I have learned too many things that have helped me a lot in my forehand, backhand, serve, slice ...
But I propose you a new topic that can help you with your future videos, so, you could leave us an email or any kind of contact so that we could send you a video of our serve, forehand, backhand ... And then you upload that same video to RUclips but correcting it, it's like a video analysis. I think that would help a lot of people around the world and I think it's an interesting topic. If you are not interested in this idea, I could give you more different ideas for future videos. Keep it up Ben!
As soon as I saw the word "Unique" in the title, I assumed it to be click-bait. I apologize. I was dead wrong. It must have been a real epiphany when you suddenly associated the feeling of a more powerful impact with the creation of a more obtuse axial release of the non-dominant shoulder. The clips of Cilic and Schwartzman prove that this is no bs. Thanks for enlightening us all.
Thanks for watching! I actually hesitated to say "unique" as that is something that people tend to say to get your attention but I felt it was something I wish I knew awhile ago while first figuring this sport out :)
Interesting idea. Ben, just some constructive criticism. If you got a higher resolution camera, and improved the mic, I think you'd get better numbers on youtube (You might not care). Your ideas are very original and your tennis knowledge is super high level. Your channel should be at 100k at least.
I appreciate that and definitely will look into it. Thanks again for the idea :)
Nice. As in serve - it's not a completely passive movement by the non-dominant arm even if it should become automatic by practice. Yet, it needs pretty delicate timing and relaxation to add up to the net sum of momentum generated and mediated by kinetic chain. If you do it with a "forced = stiff ignition" it won't work; you'd better get it right - or forget about it and let the non-dominant arm "move away from the way" in due course passively/as the kinetic chain travels through its course...
Great insight Jack! I love the comment "it's a delicate timing" as you are so right...I'm still trying to figure it out! Thanks for the post.
Couldn't agree more, Jack.
@@teachyourselftennis Yes, it is. Still figuring this great game out by myself also (a long journey it is!) and practicing and experimenting everything in my own game and strokes. I have learned a lot in my private painstaking investigations on the court and accordingly developed in leaps and bounds with this self-study method but there are certain areas (or seams between different "areas") which are still somewhat eluding my conceptual apparatus (lighted only dimly and partially). Maybe the final answers we are after are in some fundamental sense non-conceptual and can only be felt and seen as things happen to click in one's game and techniques. This might sound paradoxical and paradoxical it might be (and dialectical lol) - I need to put everything in a well-founded theoretical/scientific frame-work and have a clear conception of things - tennis is not an exception here, not a sudden tour in mysticism but rather a case of applied bio-mechanics. Yet. it is also something else. Since the self/subject which operates within the bio-mechanic machine has a say in the outcome of its movements and actions. Or better, less the self has a say in its actions the better (is the outcome). :D
@@jackquinnes well said! It's almost like growing up with your parents saying stuff years before and finally you get what they were saying all along haha. I think our own journey to understanding is not a specific timetable but rather takes on its own unique track.
@@teachyourselftennis i find i'll go back to old videos, like Oscar W or many others - stuff i've watch hundreds of times - and then sudden go 'i never saw that'... it's not that i never saw it, its that i wasn't ready to see it, or couldn't. lol...
Nice and valuable, sensible tip coach! Thanks. Godspeed.
Thanks for your kind words! Happy hitting :)
That advice is super clear. thanks
You are most welcome thanks for watching.
Excellent point!
Thanks for watching!
Ben is always so insightful; his science class must be the best - anyhow, tangential discussion when you get to it is folding that non- dominant arm/stopping its momentum both in forehand & serve...
Thank you Ben.
Ken Powell I appreciate it! I find that the combination of a passionate teacher and a passionate learner makes all the difference!
This! A thousand times this! One of the often overlooked last steps of the kinetic chain weight transfer. Don't jam yourself.
Agreed! Thanks for watching Jon! Much appreciated!
Thanks Ben, that helps me massive.
Awesome! Very happy to hear that :)
Ive rewatched this maybe 10 times to digest it. If I am understanding this properly, I will make a unit turn and keep the tip of the racquet pointed up to sky then while also loading with my right leg (right handed player) and coiling shoulders more than my hips in a neutral or semiopen stance for most shots, as I lower the right hand the racquet tip will eventually point from sky to somewhere between the right side fence and corner of where side fence and back fence meet then as I uncoil I transfer my body weight gradually from right leg to left leg, uncoiling from feet gradually to knees, hips, torso, then shoulders shoulders which will propel my hitting arm to cause the racquet head to "flip" to back fence without forcefully doing this with my wrist as you explained in another video. My racquet will then travel from low to high depending on how much I bent the knees and how much lower I got my racquet below the ball. The racquet will "lag" and but cap will point towards incoming ball, swing will go inside out, contact will occur with right shoulder slightly in front of left shoulder. Ideally racquet will be spaced away from body and not jammed, knees have straightened for most part, chest is facing the net, I maintain eye contact on target even after hitting ball to avoid looking up too soon. The arm must be relaxed throughout the whole process, I should concentrated on using legs, hips to uncoil to generate more racquet head speed. I should not force my arm to accelerate on purpose but instead allow the lower body to do it while keeping right arm as relaxed as possible. I know its easier said then done, but did I explain it correctly @Ben Wolfe or am I missing something?
Also do you have an email I may be able to send you a video of me hitting for feedback please
I'm so sorry for the late reply! Been working a lot on my tennis profession with certifications and working with clients :). About your question: First, of course! Please email me at: benwolfetennisandfitness@gmail.com. Also I think you have it down and can tell you are very analytical which helps break down the swing. The problem will be putting it all together. I think the best way to make that happen is to realize that the movement is a kinetic chain so if you have experience with other sports (like a jump shot in basketball or a swing in baseball) or olympic lifts (like a hang clean), it will be similar to those motions so it won't feel so choppy. Looking forward to seeing your video!
Interesting idea! Going to try it tomorrow, after doing some shadows swings to get the feel for this.
Henry Scuoteguazza let me know how it goes!
can't believe this hasn't been coached by many others online
Alexander N I wish I knew this earlier myself!
Ben this is so interesting and I can’t say I have heard this explained before the way you have. Can I ask how did you discover this?
Thanks for watching! A lot of trial and error and thinking things through when I play helps with some ideas :)
Best tip ever!
Thank you!
You are the best ❤️
aissaoui adel you are very kind thank you!
Cool video, I see what your saying when they play but when you see a lot of them practice , its of time they are slightly near parallel.
Glad you liked the insight!
Thx ...new sub here
Would it make easier if I think that I am getting power from the hips..work together with shoulders makes a perfect forehand.
Paresh Mathew I try to get out of my students’ path towards learning so if that works for you then that sounds good to me!
Ben, just found this video, love your thoughts here. I still watch your fist forward/ don't manually move the racquet head back forehand video from 4 or 5 years ago. I have one quick question, as you point out all the time, a relaxed hand/ grip is a must on this forehand technique. Do you think it is helpful to emphasize grip pressure on the last 2 fingers, pinky and ring finger, in order to enhance the whip action of the racquet head?
Great question and thanks for posting! In my lessons I stress the importance of a loose grip like you said but also mention the pressure in my fingers are more at the pinky and ring finger like you mentioned. It increases the lever of the racquet which means more power. So to recap, you’re 100% correct! :)
@@teachyourselftennis thanks so much Ben for your response
Btw, how tall are you, and would you say you are about a 5.5 USTA rating?
@@themrstroke I haven't played in a while so I'm rated as a 4.5 but play with 5.0s and 5.5s. I personally train 4.5 players. I need to get out and play more this year!
I love this video. Is it this kind of swing is the the result of the hip rotation?. I heard so many people saying the phrase " shoulder rotation", this makes me confused.
chung Nguyen good question! I think the shoulder rotation starts to create torque with the body and allows coil to naturally happen which can then we released with the hips. Try keeping your feet in place and rotate your shoulders only and you should feel this a bit!
Ug! I think I’m gonna have to watch this a few more times to fully understand what ur saying. I just watched the video about cocking the wrist forward and leading with that in the FH swing (I think I’m explaining that right) and I’m gonna give that a go tomorrow while I chew on this video a bit more. Thanks for the informative content🙌🏽
Basically relax and Uncoil and let the arm do whip.
I wish it was that easy for me :) Yes, definitely and I think the more you are used to playing other sports the easier it is from what I've seen when trying to teach it on the tennis court. Thanks for commenting!
Great video Ben! When you are clearing the path for your swing with your non-dominant arm are you actively engaging/pulling with the off-arm to accelerate your turn or is it more limp? I've noticed that I'm pretty limp with my off arm and wonder if the pros are actively engaging those muscles to speed up their torque/twisting motion. Thanks!
I felt the same when I figured this out myself! Had to hit the gym and the ball machine for awhile to figure this out :)
@@teachyourselftennis Hey Ben, so they are using the off-arm to help accelerate the swing path? Thanks!
C F I feel like that’s the case. It first initializes the turn and then helps produce torque from my experience.
@@teachyourselftennis Thank you!
@@teachyourselftennis Can the same be said about the serve motion? Using the off arm to help speed up the torque.
This is not unique for advanced players, they all do this. It's just not taught by 90% of tennis coaches.
It's not easy to do for 90% of rec players being taught by 90% of coaches who don't even teach this. That's why 90% of tennis players can never develop a great FH.
Good job making your followers aware of this. Now you have to go out and hit 10000 balls under match play pressure to make it a habit.
Good luck.
poida smith You nailed it! I just got done hitting and it went rather well but it’s still not match tough :-)
@@teachyourselftennis Unless you're 7 years old there's virtually no chance to reach advanced level. Once bad habits are ingrained it's game over. We're not just talking physical but more importantly, mental - chronic FH anxiety is just too high. It even undoes pro players who can clear non hitting shoulder. However, at least you can teach it and make small gains on your own FH. I've seen college level players fail to get the mechanics right, just too many things to overcome. You overthink it and can never really "own it".
Everyone wants the Federer FH though, and there are lots of shyster coaches selling it, especially online coaches here on RUclips.
poida smith very true. Kids brains are built to learn and adults are to perform. Just happy to share any knowledge that can help us feel like we can get a tiny bit better :)
@@teachyourselftennisKiazen, 1% improvement each year.
poida smith I had that on the back of my varsity girls tennis shirts a couple years ago. Love the 1% story with the British Cycling Team. Actually out that in my book :)