Daily Table Tennis Chit Chat

[NextLevel]

Same struggle for me:

This is how I dealt with it:

1. Actually warm up and get your body going at least 20-30 Minutes before your first match.
Not Just drives on the table.
Get your Heart rate to the level where it will be at in the match - for me it's around 150-175 bpm if it's really intense and requires my full focus.

2. Then, have at least around 5 minute cool down sometime before the first match - for me it's getting down to 110-120 bpm.


3. Gather confidence in practice and early in the match.
If it's 3rd Ball Forehand Loops, do that.
If it's backhand looping rallies, do that.
You don't need to hit them all, but have the confidence and trust in yourself to do it reasonably well in the "heightened" state that you'll be in, in the match.
Something that you can rely on in the match, and don't need to "fix" once you're in the match.
Minor adjustments are obviously fine and sometimes necessary, but nothing big.
The more things you want to have confidence in, the more you should practice them before / test them early in the match, but it's not always a requirement.


For me: If I'm confident in my serves + 3rd Ball attacks, it's often enough to beat my opponents at our current level.
I adjust to my opponent and the game, but ideally I don't have many thoughts "inwards".
My focus is on the match and how to win.
The rest often follows.


4. You can't deny the adrenalin / cortisol from happening, only minimally, so try your best to control yourself under it's influence, don't have any "expectations" that you have to meet,
don't hesitate - "He who hesitates is lost."


5. Some controlled breathing with longer exhales than inhales helps, but again, it won't deny or get rid of the adrenalin / cortisol, but it helps.

Hope it helps, I'm open for Questions.

Breathing is very underestimated, it can take you from missing serves to returning them calmly.

 

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

elbow injury got worse in August while in vacation. (1month without TT).
physio recommended some modest exercise for recovery but i suspect I played too hard with a rowing machine (it seemed no pain at all at the time). 2 days later i felt new enhanced pain from flexing / extending the arm, not only the (pronation)/ supination move whose pain was slowing receding.

that new pain doesn't go away at all. Thursday was the last day i could play (almost) normally.
but the next day, Friday, i tried to play 5 minutes it was too painful. This Tuesday i tried again, but had again to give up after 5 minutes. I couldn't hit a slow gentle forehand on the table.
in daily life, i can't carry heavy objects, or get quickly tired from "normal" activities such like computer keyboard, mobile video game, playing piano...

I think I really f*cked up and i've tried already many things: creams, patches, massages, physio, electric stimulations, laser, corticoids, anti-inflammatory, acupuncture, stretching, sauna...
dunno what to do...seek another opinion from another specialist ?
some of the above can provide very short term relief, but thats about it.

a friend told me to stop any sugar intake for 3 days. don't know if its reasonable and if anyway the problem reappears as soon as the diet stops...

 

[Tyce]

Yes, you need a second opinion (well except if your current physio doesn't completely adjust the plan based on the new information).
Preferably someone with experience in racket sports

 

[latej]

elbow injury got worse in August while in vacation. (1month without TT).
physio recommended some modest exercise for recovery but i suspect I played too hard with a rowing machine (it seemed no pain at all at the time). 2 days later i felt new enhanced pain from flexing / extending the arm, not only the (pronation)/ supination move whose pain was slowing receding.

that new pain doesn't go away at all. Thursday was the last day i could play (almost) normally.
but the next day, Friday, i tried to play 5 minutes it was too painful. This Tuesday i tried again, but had again to give up after 5 minutes. I couldn't hit a slow gentle forehand on the table.
in daily life, i can't carry heavy objects, or get quickly tired from "normal" activities such like computer keyboard, mobile video game, playing piano...

I think I really f*cked up and i've tried already many things: creams, patches, massages, physio, electric stimulations, laser, corticoids, anti-inflammatory, acupuncture, stretching, sauna...
dunno what to do...seek another opinion from another specialist ?
some of the above can provide very short term relief, but thats about it.

a friend told me to stop any sugar intake for 3 days. don't know if its reasonable and if anyway the problem reappears as soon as the diet stops...

I'm not a specialist, but I can recommend fasting to you. I believe the mechanisms triggered by it (or enhanced many fold), like autophagy, stem-cells production, are real... We are not the youngest, we need to use this trick ;-)

Limiting sugars I think is a really good advice. I mean long-term... Some substitutes are handy, like seeds, nuts...

Wish you it gets better.

 

[SleepyMaster]

Damn, my back injury in a lot worse stage that I thought it would be.
I have done MRI and visited two of the best neurologist in the country, both of them are telling me that I need an operation.
Herniated disc is so big it pressed on a spinal nerve and if it keep doing so I can lose my legs.
Last three weeks I can barely walk because my one leg in constant pain when I’m walking or just standing for some time. I can sleep only if I’m taking some pain killers.
But it is what it is. I even don’t know would I be able to play table tennis in future. Anyway I will go through it if needed.

 

[Wrighty67]

Damn, my back injury in a lot worse stage that I thought it would be.
I have done MRI and visited two of the best neurologist in the country, both of them are telling me that I need an operation.
Herniated disc is so big it pressed on a spinal nerve and if it keep doing so I can lose my legs.
Last three weeks I can barely walk because my one leg in constant pain when I’m walking or just standing for some time. I can sleep only if I’m taking some pain killers.
But it is what it is. I even don’t know would I be able to play table tennis in future. Anyway I will go through it if needed.

Sorry to hear that - 10 years ago I had the same for the second time, and the X-ray showed my disc had sequestrated/broken off and lodged in my sciatic nerve. The pain then stopped and became numb and they chose not to operate, but I have never recovered the nerve / feeling to my right calf and over the last 10 years the right side of my calf has disappeared and I can not stand on my toes.

I am grateful I didn't have surgery and I can still move well and even run (slowly) but my TT movement is not 100% when pushing off my right hand side.

The surgeon told me that if he operates, the likely outcome in 5 years is not different to the outcome if he doesn't - he also said that surgery very often leads to another surgery. If you need it to reduce pain then it may be the only option, but I found ways to reduce pain over time with movement and later with strength training to build my core (squats/deads etc)

Good luck - you have my sympathy.

 

[NextLevel]

Damn, my back injury in a lot worse stage that I thought it would be.
I have done MRI and visited two of the best neurologist in the country, both of them are telling me that I need an operation.
Herniated disc is so big it pressed on a spinal nerve and if it keep doing so I can lose my legs.
Last three weeks I can barely walk because my one leg in constant pain when I’m walking or just standing for some time. I can sleep only if I’m taking some pain killers.
But it is what it is. I even don’t know would I be able to play table tennis in future. Anyway I will go through it if needed.

Disc herniation is a nightmare, so sorry. I have quite a few, but I have stopped playing and rested (I think one knocked me out of TT for almost 6 months, but it was the same period as when I had my kids, so I probably wasn't going to be able to play much anyways. If they say rest can help, it is better to try to wait it out, let the body heal somewhat (use very basic sleeping pills to get deep rest - they call it Unisom here), and then figure out how best to do something like what @Wrighty said. If deep rest/sleep isn't possible or hasn't helped, then you are stuck with the surgery option. Most of my herniations begin when I refuse to rest. And they tend to get better when I get a lot of deep rest.

 

[SleepyMaster]

Sorry to hear that - 10 years ago I had the same for the second time, and the X-ray showed my disc had sequestrated/broken off and lodged in my sciatic nerve. The pain then stopped and became numb and they chose not to operate, but I have never recovered the nerve / feeling to my right calf and over the last 10 years the right side of my calf has disappeared and I can not stand on my toes.

I am grateful I didn't have surgery and I can still move well and even run (slowly) but my TT movement is not 100% when pushing off my right hand side.

The surgeon told me that if he operates, the likely outcome in 5 years is not different to the outcome if he doesn't - he also said that surgery very often leads to another surgery. If you need it to reduce pain then it may be the only option, but I found ways to reduce pain over time with movement and later with strength training to build my core (squats/deads etc)

Good luck - you have my sympathy.

The pain is not the main problem - the main problem is that my spinal nerve canal is functioning on 15% and other 85% is occupied by the herniated disc - so it can be lead to a death of a nerve canal - that can lead to getting me paralyzed.

Im not the first day meeting this problem and in many cases you dont need surgery with herniated discs - but in some cases that can lead to immobilization - there is only one way. Unfortunately this is my case. Like i was talking to the best of the best doctors in this area of medicine ( 3 doctors ) - if there were be the way to just leave it and waited till i will be okay - they would be telling me.

 

[Wrighty67]

The pain is not the main problem - the main problem is that my spinal nerve canal is functioning on 15% and other 85% is occupied by the herniated disc - so it can be lead to a death of a nerve canal - that can lead to getting me paralyzed.

Im not the first day meeting this problem and in many cases you dont need surgery with herniated discs - but in some cases that can lead to immobilization - there is only one way. Unfortunately this is my case. Like i was talking to the best of the best doctors in this area of medicine ( 3 doctors ) - if there were be the way to just leave it and waited till i will be okay - they would be telling me.

Yep, understood - that’s what I experienced with nerve damage caused by disc sequestration, leading to muscle loss.

 

[blahness]

Cool trick to control and change serve positioning with FH serves - using the direction of the left foot during the 'stomp' (weight transfer from right to left). If left foot is pointing towards right then it will be a diagonal serve. If it is pointing more towards the front it will be a straight serve. This ensures that you dont betray your placement from your initial preparation position, and still get the advantage of not needing to change the rest of the serve motion for different placements.

 

[dingyibvs]

I'm back from vacation, it was a very relaxing few days in Maui, felt quite recharged. Played TT for the first time in over a week on Fri and boy did I feel out of shape. Adding 5 lbs of weight in Maui didn't help either lol. I've been focusing on different timings and more recently footwork as well and at least the timing part is starting to pay off. I played on Sat at the Pleasanton club, did some practices and then free play and my backhand is starting to feel quite natural. The opening loop started feeling natural a few weeks ago, but now it's feeling almost automatic (at least cross table, still need some work for down the line), and I can adjust to different timings in rallies so much better now.

My FH rubber has been feeling pretty dead, so I decided tonight to give reboosting a try. I'm using much thinner layers, and I measured the weight of the rubber before and after. Two layers added 1.4 grams. I imagine my much thicker layers before added probably a solid 5-6 grams of weight with 3 layers and judging by the dome probably didn't soften it much more (though probably gave it more speed boost.) I think I'm gonna do my initial boost with thinner layers next time around.

 

[Gozo Zyreruna]

TT can be liken to a MMORPG and each game is like a 1v1 or 2v2. As you play you will gain experience and after enough gaining of XP you gain extra FEAT. Some country has a more formal system to chart a player's progress; e.g., USTTA has an official rating system.

But I digressed. The point of my post is to share I have unlock two new FEAT.

FEAT Nos. 1: FH FLICK. This feat allows the player to attack a short ball with backspin.
First ATK +4. This feat require FEAT: NIMBLE FOOTWORK to negate the COUNTER-DRIVE.
In a 2v2 play or doubles, First ATK +4 with (x2) modifier. In 2v2 mode, NIMBLE FOOTWORK is not required.

Feat Nos. 2: FH COUNTER-DRIVE. This feat allows the player to counter an opponent's DRIVE.
Counter-attack + 4. This feat require either NIMBLE FOOTWORK or PIVOT STEP-AROUND.
This FEAT. COUNTER-DRIVE is a pre-requisite to FEAT. COUNTER-LOOP.

Enjoying this game.

 

[NextLevel]

Between my ankle injury, school and the job search, i haven't made am update in a while. I will share some Minor League TT video soon - not perfect but it has been fun.

My coach wanted me to stop using sticky rubber on forehand so that I could get more quality in terms of speed with smaller strokes and I have decided to continue testing Dignics 05 and 80 for a few months but with a focus on Dignics 80 since it is further away from what I am used to and was used on the forehand by Mizutani who played a fairly sharp power based topspin (as opposed to the spin focus of D05). I have liked Dignics 80 a lot so far on both sides as it has a more direct and open angle focus than D05 while still brushing well if you need to brush. I am hoping practicing and taking lessons with it over the next few months will yield more results but the league matches I played today, I felt good enough about what it does well after Friday to use it in the league today.

I went 2-1 in both my singles matches today and in the golden games, we won one 21-19 and lost another at 20-21 (Golden Point). I had match point at 20-19 in both games, converted in one (that was a comeback by the opponent from 20-16) and failed in the other (we got to the table at 18 all, but I racket edged my final backhand opener). Since I haven't had much training with my ankle this was good.

The biggest thing that so far D80 has brought back to my game is killing speed. I have been struggling recently in warm up loop scenarios to just loop harder and eventually kill the ball past my blocker. Hopefully today wasn't a fluke because I was doing it again with D80. Having that speed is going to help a lot.

 

[Gozo Zyreruna]

Between my ankle injury, school and thr kon search, i haven't made am updafe in a while. I will share some Minor League TT video soon - not perfect but it has been fun.

My coach wanted me to stop using sticky rubber on forehand so that I could get more quality in terms of speed with smaller strokes and i have decided to continue testing Dignics 05 and 80 for a few months but with a focus on Dignics 80 since it is further away from what i am used to and was used on the forehand by Mizutani who played a fairly sharp power based topspin (as opposed to the spin focus of D05). I have liked Dignics 80 a lot so far on both sides as it has a more direct and open angle.focus than D05 while still brushing well if you need to brush. I am hoping practicing and taking lessons with it over the next few months will yield more results but the league matches i played this week, I felt good enough about what it does well after Friday to use it in the league today.

I went 2-1 in both my singles matches today and in the golden games, we won one 21-19 and lost another at 20-21 (Golden Point). I had match point at 20-19 in both games, converted in one (that was a comeback by the opponent from 20-16) and failed in the other (we got to the table at 18 all, but I racket edged my final backhand opener). Since I haven't had much training with my ankle this was good.

The biggest thing that so far D80 has brought back to my game is killing speed. I have been struggling recently in warm up loop scenarios to just loop harder and eventually kill the ball past my blocker. Hopefully today wasn't a fluke because I was doing it again with D80. Having that speed is going to help a lot.

Old uncle like you still want to use hard tacky rubber. Act your age and use what proper uncles should be using, that is, Tenergy 05.

Coz' Tenergy 05! The rubber that defies age limits(tm)

I believe in some country, the term uncles is interchangeable with boomer / geezers.

 

[NextLevel]

Old uncle like you still want to use hard tacky rubber. Act your age and use what proper uncles should be using, that is, Tenergy 05.

Coz' Tenergy 05! The rubber that defies age limits(tm)

I believe in some country, the term uncles is interchangeable with boomer / geezers.

I have heard you but sorry, I can't push and return spinny serves with Tenergy 05 unless things have changed, the ball release is too fast, and T05H is just a less sticky D09c, so Dignics 80 it has to be - I think @Dan would agree:

 

[dingyibvs]

Old uncle like you still want to use hard tacky rubber. Act your age and use what proper uncles should be using, that is, Tenergy 05.

Coz' Tenergy 05! The rubber that defies age limits(tm)

I believe in some country, the term uncles is interchangeable with boomer / geezers.

I feel like the more often scenario I see is the uncles use spin and placement to win rather than speed. They'd outlast you with those things rather than hitting winners past you, or use those things to create a smashable ball that any equipment can be used to blast past you.

 

[Gozo Zyreruna]

I feel like the more often scenario I see is the uncles use spin and placement to win rather than speed. They'd outlast you with those things rather than hitting winners past you, or use those things to create a smashable ball that any equipment can be used to blast past you.

This video sums up your statement:

 

[blahness]

Starting to really like med high toss serves now which just go above the head. Im doing med high toss FH pendulum, FH tomahawk and hook, FH heavy underspin/no spin serve now.

Some pros:

1) immense spin with less effort or movement when you need it - this can be quite deceptive. Perfect for serves where you vary spin with fingers while keeping overall movement identical.

2) more control in terms of length and placement control. Not too sure why but it feels like you can brush it more and the ball sinks to the sponge better, the dwell time is better. It is especially better for nontacky rubber users because with low toss serve with nontacky bouncy rubbers it can sometimes be really easy to either net it or have it drift long randomly as it is not so easy to control the forward momentum.

3) the higher toss nospin serve is really difficult to control for the opponent because it is in reality mild topspin not even mild underspin - if they push it it is almost gonna be an opportunity ball, and even if you brush it for a very tiny moment it becomes medium underspin. This difference is very hard to detect. You can pretty much prepare to loop the return aggressively after this serve. And they cant use the sidespin against you to control for eg a short push return or make some disgusting spin shot.

4) The serves are quite forcing. For eg a high toss sidetopspin serve is almost unpushable because of the intense spin. You force them to flick so you can simply prepare for a flick to go into a topspin rally.

High toss sideunderspin can also be almost unflickable - you force them to push so you dont need to prepare for any flick return (unless they are really good at it).

Cons:
1) serve spin can really work against you. I was faced with some crazy receives where the ball was curving crazily. Need to be well prepared for the spin.

2) Need to be disciplined about the ball throw and dont throw with the hand but with weight transfer. If your throw is bad then you almost have to move for the serve which is really suboptimal.

3) fast long serves are a bit harder to time compared to lower tosses.

4) serves tend to be a bit floatier (less fast) so it gives opponent a bit more time to react.

5) probably quite bad against pips players except for the high toss heavy under /no spin combo because they can really use the strong spin against me.

 

[NextLevel]

Point of the day (I think), though I lost that game badly:

 

[NextLevel]

Other matches (sometimes unfortunately with worse camera angles than the first not great one either) - you may see a guy in a boot playing from last week: