table tennis for wussies?

if you can play table tennis for hours in basketball for 15 minutes you're not training table tennis you are playing ping pong and you should throw away your racket.

kukamonga said:

in basketball we played 2 vs 2 which is more tiring than 3vs3 or 4vs4 or 5vs5.

Click to expand...

That is so funny. Just shows you never played Basketball. Wussies, well you have to decide that on your own

Siva Schopenhauer said:

If this is semi pro level, The future of US table tennis looks bleak

Click to expand...

It is hard to imagine Rich is as good as he is. But, he is. He spent a year training in Sweden in the 1990s when he was in good shape.

And table tennis is just like that. There are lots of guys who look like they can't play, and yet they ar pretty high level. And there are plenty of guys who look awesome but they are not great at game skills and so they are not very high level even if their technique is good.

Everyone knows how solid Dan looks from the standpoint of fundamentals. In his product reviews it seems he can make any piece of equipment look like it is the next thing.

But Dan's actually playing level right now is probably very close to Rich's level. At Dan's highest level, when he was able to train all the time, and his back was healthy, he was closer to Damien's level. But he was still probably 1 or 2 levels lower than Damien. And it is interesting that someone can look that bad and be as good as Rich is.

Table tennis is a complicated game.

And kukamonga has a point in what he is saying. Whether us TT addicts want to realize it or not.



Sent from Deep Space by Abacus

Mtcollins said:

Creatine phosphate, ATP, and glycolysis (different recovery) vs. glycolysis and lipolysis. Different muscles. More needless CNS chattering for a sport you're not as used to. And you must be dilly dallying too much between points

Click to expand...

Hey are you the Bio Tech guy? I just know that lactase production in muscles lead to fatigue. Can you explain how it works?

Back in high school where we learned about Adenine Diphosphate and Kreb's cycle. Interesting to see these words in real life conversatinos

UpSideDownCarl said:

It is hard to imagine Rich is as good as he is. But, he is. He spent a year training in Sweden in the 1990s when he was in good shape.

And table tennis is just like that. There are lots of guys who look like they can't play, and yet they ar pretty high level. And there are plenty of guys who look awesome but they are not great at game skills and so they are not very high level even if their technique is good.

Everyone knows how solid Dan looks from the standpoint of fundamentals. In his product reviews it seems he can make any piece of equipment look like it is the next thing.

But Dan's actually playing level right now is probably very close to Rich's level. At Dan's highest level, when he was able to train all the time, and his back was healthy, he was closer to Damien's level. But he was still probably 1 or 2 levels lower than Damien. And it is interesting that someone can look that bad and be as good as Rich is.

Table tennis is a complicated game.

And kukamonga has a point in what he is saying. Whether us TT addicts want to realize it or not.



Sent from Deep Space by Abacus

Click to expand...

That guy seems to have a very good block. I have to lost to some 75 year old guys in that fashion. Also Damien doesn't look that fast in my eyes and his backhand loop is not that powerful. How much is 2600 USATT in international ratings?

His height, 2700, is a little out of the top 100 in the world. But you have to understand. A player like Rich Dewitt can take you out of your game and make you look bad.

Here, this is Damien Provost vs Eugene Wang. Eugene is the highest rated player in North America. I don't know what his current world ranking is. But he has been in the top 80. In the North American Olympic trials, he did not lose one game.


How did Damien look in that match? Again, at his best he was a shade out of the top 100 in the world rankings.

But without playing someone like that, you can't really understand it. And video really doesn't always make people look as good as they are.


Sent from Deep Space by Abacus

UpSideDownCarl said:

His height, 2700, is a little out of the top 100 in the world. But you have to understand. A player like Rich Dewitt can take you out of your game and make you look bad.

Here, this is Damien Provost vs Eugene Wang. Eugene is the highest rated player in North America. I don't know what his current world ranking is. But he has been in the top 80. In the North American Olympic trials, he did not lose one game.

How did Damien look in that match? Again, at his best he was a shade out of the top 100 in the world rankings.

But without playing someone like that, you can't really understand it. And video really doesn't always make people look as good as they are.


Sent from Deep Space by Abacus

Click to expand...

K, We are now speaking about Eugene Wang, who took 2 sets from Fan Zhendong at Grand Tour finals. The best player from Americas. And Damian gets to play him. So that is pretty much 100th percentile. And a patzer comes here with his analysis on Backhand skill level. What the ****?

There is always the camera angle and the opponents who spoil the party. Last game of Damian looked above average pretty much like 2nd-3rd division over here. In table tennis, it is so visible na whenver the opponent is slow, the player adapts as well to the tempo.

But again in patzer mode, his serves are little high for elite level. From all the discussion we had to improve my stroke, there are some technical flaws in his backhand and forehand which could cause injury which you have repeatedly spoken about.

On the other side, every other factor of his play especially game sense( Timo is the best) at it, blocks, he conserves so much energy just by redirecting those FH loops with precision. What rights do I have to comment? Everything elite. Does Eugene and Damian play on the same league?

Like Koki Niwa, it seems he doesn't have to extend his whole body extension executing FH loops maybe that comes with height na.

UpSideDownCarl said:

Here you go:

This is Rich Dewitt vs Damien Provost. Damien's rating used to range form high 2600s to low 2700s when he was playing in the USA. Rich's level fluctuates between 2100-2400. Look for Rich's footwork! See how often he moves his feet at all. Look at his waistline. Name another sport where someone as out of shape as Rich Dewitt could play at a semi-pro level.

Now, the truth is, I think this is something that makes this sport great.

Click to expand...

I don't think it is possible to conclude anything meaningful from match between players with such different levels. Watching this game from the same match makes me think that Damien was just bored in previous four. Or you can compare that match with the one against Eugene. The quality of Damien's shots in those two matches are totally different.

kukamonga said:

wasn't aware the undertaker could play tt.

Click to expand...

You should try stand up. You got it

I think nothing to do with the Damien vs Rich Dewitt match. RD knows how to block and that's it. Every time when Damien spun the ball a little bit more, RD missed it. Yes, DP made more mistake than we expected from a similarly high level player, but that's it.
What first comes to my mind is Klampár Tibor.
He can play, but due to his physical limits, he played Hungarian third league.
He won in this match, but he was playing with guys like his opponent (okay, a little bit better) and lost.
Rich's level is 2100-2400 (and I'm surprised by the 2400) and the match against Damien doesn't mean anything.

The point of the video with Rich Dewitt vs Damien Provost is, Simone who is totally out of shape and can barely move can actually play table tennis at a reasonably high level.

It wouldn't be possible to play basketball at that level without having to move.

In table tennis you can have a high level of skill without having, even, a reasonable level of fitness.

For certain positions in baseball that is also the case. Like there are enough pitchers who can throw the ball well but aside from that, are clearly out of shape. But in table tennis you clearly can be not so physically fit and still be pretty high level.

He Ziwen is 54 and still in the top 80. Think about it.

Sent from Deep Space by Abacus

UpSideDownCarl said:

The point of the video with Rich Dewitt vs Damien Provost is, Simone who is totally out of shape and can barely move can actually play table tennis at a reasonably high level.

It wouldn't be possible to play basketball at that level without having to move.


Sent from Deep Space by Abacus

Click to expand...

Boxing and upto a certain level of MMA is possible. George Foreman AKA Big George won the WBA title again at the age of 45.

I play tt, go to the gym, ride bicycle often.... you'd think that somehow would protect you and keep you fit.
but this was not the case.

Click to expand...

That is of course true for Basketball. It is very enduring. I played basketball last year and felt exhausted by 45 mins as well. I was playing some 6 to 7 hours without proper nutrition around 18 -19. Maybe the body withered or didn't maintain fitness at all.

Yeah, it is visible how weak you are when you play that 2 on 2. LOL, mankind is ****ed

Ironic thread when last night Paul Drinkhall was pushed against the wall by Aleksandar Karakaševic who is 40 years old. From 9-3 winning 6 consecutive points, tying the score and Paul couldn't be quick enough with the T sign to call a time out the first round. 10-12 what a come back. And if you thought you saw everything, 2nd game Paul is up 10-4 and the Serbian comes back at 10-10. The excellence in those kill shots! The point here is Table Tennis can be played competitively from 12 to 60 years of age and yes most club the top players are not the 20 year olds but the 40+ premier players. The only people who can show a shade of brilliance at young age are those who got coaching. Also Karakaševic will be right up your alley guys since I know you love to whack your ball bag over Waldner and his more lazy style of play. Unlike Basketball in Table Tennis you don't need a make up artist to pretend for a commercial a grandpa is kicking the ass of young kids at the court. You can actually do it at that age......

And yes it's funny when people post those threads about table tennis + diets and exercise. Nobody has lost a single kilogram from playing this sport as it's not as demanding as many others and it's more about reflex and feel than physicality. This is why HIIT training, resistance training is such important aspect of the sport. If you read some made up interview you get the impression Xu and Ma are at the TT center playing 6-8 hours straight, when reality is they probably have entire morning dedicated to running, gym, conditioning etc. Racing drivers also do the exact same thing, if you ever watched Best Motoring and Tsuchiya running with the JGTC racing drivers and doing sprint burst to keep their concentration on 100% during these long races.
From personal experience when I stopped exercising every day few years ago because life, gained some weight, started playing table tennis again last year, I haven't dropped a single kg. The only thing mostly happens is I feel a sting after long multi ball sessions, a sore in the next morning and 0 grams dropped from the very same night despite the sweat.

Siva, you seem to be familiar with a lot of this stuff.

We have 3-4 main energy systems. The fast energy systems like ATP/CP/glycolysis (burning sugar) are for quick actions like powerlifting or table tennis or sprinting, while the lipolysis (burning fat) is more for slow actions like sustained running. All sports have a combination, but some sports rely on one more than others.

Here's a (admittingly not perfectly accurate) analogy. For heating your house you might have an electric heater and a wood stove. For a quick burst of heat, you'd want to use the electric furnace. But it's expensive, and you run out of money quickly. For long-term heating, you would want to use the wood stove, but it takes a lot longer to light the fire and get the house warmed up. The more you use one energy system, the better you get at using that one. Someone who rarely uses wood heat will take a long time getting their wood cut, split, and get the fire started. A powerlifter, for example, who rarely does sustained activity like running will have a hard time switching to fat metabolism and producing enough sustained energy this way.

The lactate (lactic acid) thing is a byproduct of quick glucose metabolism when the activity doesn't give you time to get rid of it. When you're most used to activity where you do short bursts of energy, you get better at it and are able to deal with it better without getting tired or feeling weak.

Also, the brain controls how much neuron firing goes into the muscle, and with activity you're not used to, the brain is not very efficient in firing. This results in piles of wasted energy, which is another reason you might be able to play one sport for hours and get tired at another sport rather quickly.

In table tennis, you're mostly using that quick energy system, and between points your body gets a chance to recover and build up the ATP again so you're ready for another quick burst.

I noticed some people said earlier that Dima didn't look to be in great shape considering his level in the sport. Ever see some elite powerlifters? Some carry a significant amount of extra body fat, but they can lift weights many of us could barely roll across the floor. Dima's levels of enzymes for quick energy metabolism must be off the charts for the level he performs at. He won't be winning any marathons any time soon, but I'm willing to bet he's got an impressive sprint.

Siva Schopenhauer said:

Hey are you the Bio Tech guy? I just know that lactase production in muscles lead to fatigue. Can you explain how it works?

Back in high school where we learned about Adenine Diphosphate and Kreb's cycle. Interesting to see these words in real life conversatinos

Click to expand...

In TT matchplay, mental awareness and concentration is at least as much exhausting as the physical part.
Sports where you can just run can be exhausting even at lower levels. Basketball football etc. have two main parts.
First you have to reach a good position. This is the tiring part. You also have to keep the ball, what requires skills, but you can run and avoid the confrontation enough to be tired. The second part is the scoring and pass. This isn't dependant on endurance, but this makes someone a good player.

I should point out that to actually get tired playing table tennis, you need to have reasonably advanced footwork and strokes which require a certain level of physical ability. People who don't play won't know how to move, so they will never move fast enough to really use their body and get exhausted.

Meanwhile, anyone who knows how to run can go play basketball and move relatively quickly and get exhausted. It's not so in table tennis.

Archosaurus said:

I should point out that to actually get tired playing table tennis, you need to have reasonably advanced footwork and strokes which require a certain level of physical ability.

Click to expand...

uhh he plays quite a bit
he is just being a troll lol

multiball is friggin tiring T.T