Tennis is an excellent way to get some exercise while also getting outside. All you need is a racquet, some fuzzy green balls, a partner, and some court time to get a good exercise. Tennis, like any physical hobby, may take a toll on your body if you’re not careful. Supplements are available to assist you.
Different supplements are used by professional tennis players depending on their specific needs. Protein powder, amino acids, carbs, antioxidants, probiotics, fish oil, and glucosamine are among the most commonly used supplements.
Tennis is a physically demanding activity, especially for the muscles and joints. As a result, the majority of supplements taken by professionals are specifically for joint protection and durability. Let’s take a look at the most popular tennis supplements.
What Supplements do Pro Tennis Players Use?
Considering the high stakes of professional tennis, players at all levels seek out ways to gain an advantage over their opponents, and one of the simplest ways to do so is through supplementation.
We’ve seen countless times how to correct supplementing — that is, taking the right supplements at the right times – can help athletes improve their long-term performance and exercise results, making them stronger and quicker than they’ve ever been.
While many people feel that amino acid-based supplements are the most helpful, each pro tennis player has their preferences and coaches who advise them. To put it another way, it’s hard to know what supplements a certain pro tennis player is using to improve their game, but we’ll go through some of the most common tennis supplement choices below.
Best Supplements for Tennis Players
With a few exceptions, tennis players’ nutritional requirements are largely the same as those of other athletes. Because almost all sports put similar strains on the body – muscular injury, energy depletion, fluid, and electrolyte loss – the needs to counteract those stressors are nearly the same.
To summarize, a tennis player requires amino acids to preserve, repair, and develop muscles, carbohydrates to replenish energy stores, and electrolytes to maintain hydration balance from a supplement. Tennis players frequently utilize one (or a combination) of the supplements listed below to increase their performance and facilitate recovery to address these needs:
Protein powder
One of the most prevalent types of supplements in sports, is a classic supplement for any athlete, especially tennis players. The explanation for this is straightforward: Complete protein sources, such as whey and soy, supply essential amino acids, which are required for the body’s healing processes. Protein supplements are often used by tennis players due to their convenience.
There is little information on protein consumption and requirements in racket sports, with most published recommendations geared mainly at strength or endurance athletes. Tennis is not directly equivalent to either strength or endurance.
As a result, estimating tennis players’ protein requirements based on the volume and intensity of training or competition is more appropriate. Because nutrition-related research is scarce in elite-level tennis, time, kind, and amount of protein ingested, as well as protein co-ingestion with other nutrients, may be especially relevant. Manipulation of these elements will have an impact on the protein’s ability to drive protein synthesis while also maximizing recovery and adaption.
I would recommend Legion Whey+ (Affiliate Link) mainly because of three things: price, quality, and transparency. Why is transparency important? To put it simply, there are a lot of garbage products on the market that do not want to provide relevant details about their product. With this company, everything is transparent. In fact, this protein is made from both hormone and antibiotic-free cows.
Amino Acids
Some supplements are based on free-form amino acids rather than entire proteins, and they effectively fulfill the same goal without the downsides, as well as providing some additional benefits.
Pre-workout BCAA supplements, for example, have been found to protect muscles from damage, reducing discomfort and recovery time, while post-workout amino acids have been shown to increase protein synthesis, allowing the body to repair and rebuild injured muscles more quickly and effectively.
Furthermore, taking BCAAs during exercise may aid in reducing mental tiredness and improve performance, making them an excellent choice for any tennis player.
Recommended BCAA for tennis players: Gold Standard BCAA (Affiliate link)
Carbohydrates
Any supplement taken in excess can have harmful consequences. This is especially true of carbohydrates, which, if consumed in excess without sufficient physical exercise, can lead to undesirable weight gain. However, if you’re serious about tennis and find yourself playing for hours on end numerous times a week, consuming some extra carbohydrates can be beneficial.
Recommended carbohydrate energy supplement: UCAN Edge Energy Gel Shots (Affiliate link)
Antioxidants
When it comes to body impact, tennis is a deceptively difficult sport. Supplementation can aid in the prevention of this, as well as long-term harm. Antioxidants like glutathione and N-Acetyl-Cysteine, which can be found in supplement form or naturally occurring in sulfur-rich plants like kale and garlic, are useful in reducing inflammation.
Recommended antioxidants for tennis players: Garden of Life Vitamin Code (Affiliate link)
Vitamin D
It helps the body absorb calcium, which helps to keep bones healthy and avoid fractures. When skin is exposed to the sun directly, the body produces vitamin D, and most people get enough vitamin D this way to meet their needs. The quantity of vitamin D produced by the skin is reduced by cloudy days, shade, sunscreen, and dark-colored skin. Tennis players who are covered in sunscreen or clothing should eat more vitamin D-rich foods or take a vitamin D supplement.
Recommended vitamin D for tennis players: GIVOL Vitamin D3 K2 Organic drops (Affiliate link)
Probiotics
With your body protected, it’s up to you to figure out how to speed up your recuperation through supplementation. Probiotics, which help the gut to grow healthy bacteria that aid digestion, toxins disposal, and increased immune function, are especially beneficial to tennis players. All of these actions will help to reduce inflammation and other factors that contribute to a sluggish recovery.
Recommended probiotics for tennis players: Culturelle Daily Probiotic Capsules (Affiliate link)
Fish Oils
Tennis necessitates a lot of abrupt stop-start motions, which can be taxing on your joints. This is especially true if you are playing on a more difficult court. One of the many advantages of fish oil supplements is that they aid in the reduction of inflammation.
Recommended probiotics for tennis players: Now Foods Ultra Omega-3 Fish Oil (Affiliate link)
Glucosamine
This is another weapon in the fight against achy, painful, and dysfunctional joints. Glucosamine aids in the maintenance of healthy joint cartilage. The amount of glucosamine in your body decreases as you become older. This is one of the most commonly used non-vitamin and non-mineral natural supplements in complementary and alternative medicine.
To increase its efficiency in the body, vitamin C, beta-carotene, zinc, selenium, manganese, and copper are essential components. These vitamins and minerals collaborate to keep connective and shock-absorbing tissues in good shape. They help shield the joints from free radicals, which hasten the breakdown of connective tissues.
When paired with these vitamins and minerals, glucosamine can improve the lubrication and cushion of the joints.
Recommended glucosamine for tennis players: NOW Glucosamine & Chondroitin with MSM (Affiliate link)
Sports Drinks
Gatorade and Propel may not seem like supplements, but they’re still supplements because they’re products that offer the body certain nutrition ingredients — in this example, water, carbs, and electrolytes.
Sports drinks have all of these nutrients, making them a smart choice for staying hydrated during a long tennis match, and the carbs in some of them can provide energy when you need it most. However, because they won’t assist your body mend muscle damage or combating soreness, tennis players should consider adding other forms of vitamins to their routine if they opt to hydrate with sports drinks.
Recommended sports drink for tennis players: Gatorade Thirst Quencher Sports Drink (Affiliate link)
Improving Performance
Certain supplements can help you play better during the match itself. Glutathione and probiotics are responsible for preventing inflammation and delaying the development of weariness, while supplements like L-arginine are responsible for improving day-to-day performance.
Studies on the efficacy of L-arginine in tennis and martial arts players indicated a potential link between mental acuity, athletic performance, and overall relative success in their sport, according to the Office of Dietary Supplements.
Focus on supplements that increase the availability of energy in your body and aid to alleviate stress in your body so you can play for longer periods. That means you’ll never run out of energy, even in the most fierce rallies.
The most important factor is diet, but supplements can help. This is especially significant for tennis players who don’t always eat the healthiest or most precise diet possible. Finding the correct food and supplement combination will help you reach your full potential.
Conclusion
These supplements can help you improve your tennis performance by increasing your endurance, improving joint health, and giving you more energy and confidence on the court. Whether you’re a professional tennis player or just enjoy the game for fun, you should stay in shape to maximize your performance and avoid injuries.
Supplements are vital for athletes’ health, in addition to a good diet and adequate fluid intake. Tennis players should take the supplements that their doctor or coach recommends for them, based on their unique needs.
