Since tournament season is upon us and many pickleball players have upped their hours of practice and play time, I feel this subject needs to be addressed once again. After speaking to dozens of players who have various injuries, I asked them one question, “How much do you stretch?” Never! Not at all! Five minutes […]

While I was watching the five-hour final of the U.S. Open from my sofa, I paid attention to the players’ ability to move and hit the fuzz off the ball on each shot. They use their legs and body rotation to get their power. Like golfers who ground their lower half in order to coil […]

Did you watch the Olympics recently? No matter what sport you’ve seen, whether it’s diving, running, tennis or volleyball, you must have noticed black, blue or flesh colored tape adorning the bodies of many athletes. According to Wikipedia, the tape was first patented in 1965. For many years orthopedists, chiropractors, acupuncturists and other medical practitioners […]

More than 23,000 people each day in the U.S. require medical care for ankle sprains. Usually the ankle rolls over to the outside; this is called an inversion sprain. There are three levels of sprain: Stretching or mild tearing of ligaments, mild pain and some swelling  Tearing of ligaments, moderate pain and swelling, painful weight […]

Many picklers seem to be suffering from strain in the ligament that supports the foot’s arch. Repeated strain can cause tiny tears, swelling, terrible pain, bone spurs and inability to move on the court. This issue is more likely to happen if your feet roll inward (pronation), you have high arches or you’re walking, running […]

Playing in the Heat As I was getting ready for pickleball practice in 106-degree temperature, I was thinking of all the ways I needed to prepare for the heat. Signs of heat exhaustion often begin suddenly. The combination of not enough fluid intake, heavy perspiration and hot temperatures makes it difficult for the body to […]

I received an e-mail from a new pickleball group outside of Atlanta, Georgia expressing concern about how many injuries pickleball causes. This should not be the case, so I decided to address this issue with a few training tips and some words of wisdom. Improve your mobility by jogging both forward and backward. Without using […]

After spraining my ankle last week (I stepped in a hole during a 5k), I decided to feature foot and ankle health this month. There are 26 bones, 31 joints and 20 internal muscles in the foot. Lots of actions coming from the lower part of your body. Performing complex side-to-side and forward-and-backpickleball movements requires […]

Stamina/endurance: The ability to sustain prolonged physical effort. This past weekend I played in yet another pickleball tournament. While playing singles against 70- year-old Lola, I was extremely impressed with her endurance. Lola’s fitness routine includes jumping on a mini trampoline, called rebounding. She is in great shape, moves well and has unbelievable stamina. You […]

Remember when “they” used to tell us to “Move It or Lose It” and we said sure, sure — then we laughed? Well, as we grow older, that mantra is extremely important to live by. Sit in a chair (preferably a low chair) and, without using your hands, very slowly stand up and very slowly […]