ground. Power results in speed, but speed does not produce power. 2. Hip lift and extension Great mechanics transfer energy and move it in the right direction. Sit back to flex your hips and you are ready to extend and lift from loaded posterior muscles rather than the quadriceps. The quadriceps are not made to drive your body up; rather, they flex and extend your foot back. Quad dominant or toe runners, especially female athletes with wider hips and greater “Q” angles, are prime candidates for knee hip and ankle injuries. You will explode with force by extending the hips forward and up using the gluteus from a loaded position. This is the desirable source of power in the hit, as the goal is to transmit hip lift power up the kinetic chain from prime movers 3. Good explosive torso angles Hip extension causes your legs to accelerate up in a unified explosive movement; however, if your body mass is located directly above your legs, your torso decelerates. The result is a vertical jump, not a
forward movement. Forward acceleration as a result of hip extension happens when most of your mass is forward of your legs, therefore, every hit requires forward torso leans from the ankles, not the hips. 4. Pre-tense the core Relaxation promotes emotional serenity; however, this concept is undermining of stroke production unless it is clearly understood, since good movements require mobility in some joints and stability in others. Core tension is vital to stroke mechanics because as forces travel up, they pass through the core muscles on their way to the torso. A relaxed core is an unstable body part and an inefficient transmitter of power, because only neutral spine positions transmit force from the ground up. Relax your mind as well as those parts of your body that should be loose, like the hands and facial muscles, but tense and set your core before hinging your hips. 5. Strong shoulder positions Throw a punch with your shoulders rolled forward and up and notice how your
arms disengage from your body. Now take your shoulders and pack them back and down and punch again. This is powerful because back stabilizing muscles are activating to connect your arm to your body. The power generated by great hip extension and a rock-solid core isn’t going to connect if force doesn’t find its way from your torso to your arms. 6. Internal shoulder rotation The result of good shoulder position is the ability to perform an internal shoulder rotation. This can be thought of as screwing your arm into your shoulder as a bulb is screwed into a socket. This corkscrewing of the arm is essential to the transmission of explosive power. Try throwing a punch with your thumb facing up during the entire movement. Now rotate your thumb in the direction of your opposing arm as you strike. You don’t have to be a black belt in martial arts to recognize what all martial art masters know. These internal forearm rotations continued on page 40
LITennisMag.com • January/February 2012 • Long Island Tennis Magazine
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