How to Run Effective Co-Ed Tennis Practice Sessions

with Mike Perez,
Lynn University Men's & Women's Head Coach;
7x National Championship Coach; over 1,000 career wins;
3x NAIA National Coach of the Year; 2006 ITA National Coach of the Year (Men's);
14x Sunshine State Conference Champions; 10x Sunshine State Conference Coach of the Year;
Named the NAIA Coach of the Decade (1990-2000)

Often, tennis coaches at all levels must conduct team practice with a mixture of male and female players. A common challenge is learning how to conduct an effective practice that challenges all players of varying abilities. As head coach of both the men's and women's teams at Lynn University, Mike Perez has developed a method to solve this challenge. Using a variety of fitness, dead ball, and soft ball drills, the Lynn University tennis teams shows how a co-ed practice that is challenging and fun for everyone can be conducted.

In this video, both the men's and women's teams cooperate in a short, intense practice focused on fitness and agility. Coach Perez brings the intensity in a focused, disciplined one hour practice, where players get the most out of individualized coaching and coaches get max effort from players.

Fitness Drills

Lynn University athletes demonstrate a full warm-up and fitness routine. See how Coach Perez combines fitness and skill development to create a high level of energy within a short amount of time. These exercises are an ideal way to begin an on-court session.

Footwork Exercises

Coach Perez is a strong believer in the importance of working on footwork and fitness. He guides his athletes through core footwork exercises, including:

• Agility ladder exercises with emphasis on good technique
• Footwork patterns such as figure 8's where Coach Perez gives his tips on maintaining good form

Dead Ball and Hand-Feed Drills

Dead ball drills are vital to build good fundamentals and are a situation where both male and female tennis players can participate together. Coach Perez shows his favorite practice patterns and guides players through utilizing a large variety of spins and ball trajectories. As practice is conducted, Perez gives his thoughts on how to troubleshoot technique.

Serves and Returns Practices

Coach Perez shows his preferred methods for practicing the serve and return of serve. Along the way, he gives great insight on simple fixes and adjustments that can be made when a player is having serve problems.

Soft Ball Competition

Soft ball competition allows men and women to practice together. The emphasis is on utilizing good footwork and prioritizing technique over power. Coach Perez guides players through a variety of competitive drills which allow males and females to compete against each other while still giving everyone a valuable practice session.

Coach Perez gives you the tools to conduct an effective co-ed practice. Additionally, you'll gain great insight into his coaching techniques, which have led to great success for Lynn University tennis.

53 minutes. 2017.