Hi, My Name is Rick, and I am a Pickleball Addict

How NOT to Let Pickleball Doom Your Body While Adding a Dash of Fun

In today’s Bite Size Pickleball Newsletter:

1. Know when to say when.

2. Button, button, who’s pushing your button?

3. How to use playfulness to break out of your pickleball box.

4. A simple exercise idea.

KNOW WHEN TO SAY WHEN

FYI: These thoughts stem from one of the more popular Pickleball Tip’s of the Day on the Bite Size Pickleball Facebook group this week.

Each of us has our own limit of playing time. And it is super important to recognize when we “take it to the limit, one more time.” Because if we exceed the limit, one more time, and then one more time again, we might be risking injury, or worse (see illustration above). BTW, that WAS a classic rock riff from The Eagles.

It’s important not to let our addiction to the sport of pickleball (yay!) exceed that of the message our body is trying to send us. Which is, sometimes, to go home now, do not pass go, OR play “just one more.”

I played a lot this past Saturday, and by Sunday, on the court, my body was really dragging. I felt 105% depleted after playing on Saturday, so it wasn’t a shock to me my tank was running low on Sunday. However, I recognized what my body was telling me, and after four, fun games, I heeded its warning to: “get back, get back to where you once belonged.” Which, in short, translated to: my couch.

For me, my philosophy is rooted in trying to extend my pickleball playing days as long as possible. Because I really don’t think it’s “better to burn out than to fade away.” Although, Neil Young is fading away with Daryl Hannah by his side, so he’s doing all right. Me? I don’t have the rock star girlfriend, I only have pickleball. And I want her to last forever!

And, what happens is, you might get away with a bunch of “OK, I can play one more,” days. But I do believe they all add up in the long run, and exact their toll. Dang, another Eagles riff. What’s happening to this post? It’s like a classic rock fan’s dreamboat Annie. Oh, Annie, dreamboat Annie, do you play pickleball, perchance?

The message is simple: Be conscious of not pushing your body too far. Because that MAY lead to injury. I have seen it happen with several friends. They play too much, often twice a day, and then they hit maximum burn out/injury, and it sidelines them for an extended period of time. “Not fun,” I am sure they would tell you.

You can probably play a lot more if you’re in your 20s or 30s, but when you’re pushing 40, 50, 60, 70…and still dragging your ass back out on the court for “just one more,” you’re putting your body in jeopardy. And, TBH, I have a few friends in their 30s who mess themselves up, too.

The answer, to you, my friend, is blowing in the wind. Think of the old adages, 1) It’s better to be safe than sorry, and 2) Anything in moderation (including pickleball! )

BUTTON, BUTTON, WHO’S PUSHING YOUR BUTTON?

I was waiting to play the other day when a fellow player decided to vent their frustration to me. This happens a lot. I’m cool with it. Usually, what I do is listen to the rant, and then offer my thoughts, if I have any. With some players, I just nod along.

In this case, this person was upset with another player who has a habit of crashing games that aren’t at their level. And, funny enough, this was a repeat performance. I distinctly remember the same player ranting about the same court crasher a few months prior. And, I probably offered up the same piece of advice: “Can I put myself in the other player’s shoes?” I asked. “Sure.”

“Maybe it isn’t easy being the other player because they are often rejected by so many other people.”

“Yes, that’s because they are crashing everyone’s court,” the person replied.

I said, “Yes, but, you’re never going to change how that player operates. You are only going to change how YOU react to that player’s actions.”

It’s the same thing in real life. Sure, we’d like to change people. All the time, we want to change people, lol. But, in most cases, we can’t, and it’s just a waste of our energy to try. I repeat: We can only change our reaction to those that push our buttons and, maybe, through our own change, we affect the other person in a positive manner. Or not.

What I do, when the button pushers arrive, is I just pack it in, and go to another court. Or, if another suitable court isn’t available, I just go home, rather than fight against the tide of trying to achieve the perfect pickleball day. That’s par for the course: We’re not always going to have the PERFECT PICKLEBALL DAY, or the perfect day in our life. And, guess what? That’s life! And you can either kick, and scream, and complain to people on the sidelines that so-and-so f’d up your precious pickleball day (guilty!), or you can move forward.

I think we have a clear choice of either playing the “victim” card, or we can be Adults. An Adult accepts that life isn’t always going to go the way they want it to. Learn to roll with that, and you may find a more peaceful easy feeling in your soul and, funny enough, your game!

HOW TO USE PLAYFULNESS TO BREAK OUT OF YOUR PICKLEBALL BOX

NOTE: This subject was covered in more detail in the last Bite Size Pickleball podcast titled “The Art of Playfulness.”

Typically, as I get out of my car and head to the courts, I set an agenda for my day. Examples might be: “I am going to hit more backhands today.” Or: “I am going to practice my shot placement.” Or, last week, the agenda I stuck with, the whole week, was: “I am going to have fun!”

Whatever my agenda is, I focus on holding it close, and I return to it whenever I might get blown off course. While on my recent Fun Course, an interesting thing happened. I discovered a new shot!

I typically hit my 2nd shots pretty hard and deep. And, recently, just before an opponent was about to serve it, I noticed their partner backing up several feet behind the baseline, lining up for what they thought was going to be my deep 2nd shot return.

Of course, I was playing with a mischievous grin on my face (fun), and, out of the moment, right before the serve, I had a thought: “What about trying a 2nd shot drop?” Be bold, right? I did try it, and it worked masterfully. I cut it hard with some back spin, it landed in the kitchen, and my opponent didn’t have time to get to it. My partner goes, “A 2nd shot drop?” I am thinking: “Hell yes, it worked!”

However, I would not recommend hitting too many 2nd shot drops, because if you’re hitting your 2nd shot short, you’re giving your opponents an easy lane to the NVZ. But I would recommend having it in your repertoire, and if your opponent is standing well behind the baseline, and especially if they don’t move well, try it on for size.

Then I got to thinking: How many other cool shots had I discovered when I was just out having fun? And, I came up with several instances. Many, many shots that came out of the moment, and surprised me. All, when I was playing with a light disposition. Most of those shots have become regulars in my tool kit. There’s the “look-away” hit, or the fake windmill, in which I swing through the air, like I am hitting an overhead, but I miss the ball on purpose, then drop it short. I could go on.

When we’re out playing loose, and fancy free, that is the time when we tend to break out of our confined boxes. And, by “confined boxes,” I mean that tense place we often play from, mainly because we want to win so badly. What wanting to win so badly does, is tighten everything about our game up, right down to the way we strangle our paddle, scrunch up our faces, and display crappy body language when our partner makes an error.

Do a field exercise, and observe your fellow players the next time you are out, and recognize how many people carry an overly serious demeanor when they play. I think you’ll see that a vast number of players do.

And then there’s the oddball I once saw trying a behind-the-back shot on a game point. Pay attention to that person! Why? Because they’re having fun, and experimenting, and discovering stuff. They’re surprising themselves. And, guess what, if you’re surprising YOURSELF when you play, imagine how much harder you’ll be for your opponents to read!

When you come from too serious of a place, you’re typically not going to be trying out any new shots, or breaking any new ground. You’re going to be playing it safe. I want to say that “safe,” is one of the things that keeps us from getting off our own plateau. (Lack of practice is another.) And, I want to encourage you to adopt a more playful attitude, because I think it is a magical way to grow your game.

Lastly, you might think about playing for “the process,” not the wins and losses, and you’ll probably end up winning a lot more. Putting focus solely on the end results, stunts our growth, and is the cause of far too many emotional ups and downs. Those emotional ups and downs are not how to earn passage to THE ZONE. By embracing the process, you’re going to be able to tap the FLOW so much better. Mastery is in putting in the work, and then letting go and enjoying the mysterious process that unfolds. Like this guy.

A SIMPLE EXERCISE IDEA

If you’re at all like me, sometimes it gets really challenging getting the cross training in. Because it’s hard to be motivated on pickleball days, which are aplenty.

So, check out what I got to stay a little bit active in my downtime.

It’s a balance board. And, yeah, I know, I need a pedicure, but TBH? It’s kind of fun, and it is definitely a challenge. It works great to strengthen the leg muscles, while also working the core. Note: I am not standing properly balanced on it, as pictured. I wanted you to be able to see the brand if you wanted to check one out.

You can balance on it a couple of minutes a day and work up from there. Start by just getting to a point where you can steady yourself in the middle. Then, once you’re confident with that, you can go from side to side, and backwards to forwards, in sets.

Bonus if you are a skier, surfer or participate in another sport that requires excellent balance.

“Dude, it’s all about balance.”

Mind. Body. Life. Pickleball. “You’re all I got tonight.” Had to finish with one last classic rock riff. And a shout out about my new book How to Play Better Pickleball available at Amazon.