Wrist/hand getting tighter after every forehand

[tabletennismaniac]

I’m curious if anyone else experienced this issue and hopefully found a solution.
In general I consider myself quite stiff person and my natural instinct is always to tense up. Over the years I have developed quite stiff forehand which I try to loosen up slowly. What I have noticed is that I can manage keep my wrist/hand relaxed for a first couple of balls, but as rally progress it keep tensing up to the point that I’m unable to relax even if I’m aware of it. Any tips would be highly appreciated! Thanks!

 

[Tinykin]

Tense the core when playing the stroke.
This is one of those situations where shadow practice is really useful.
Timo Boll did a video on this a few years ago

 

[pingpongpaddy]

hi ttmania
you are in control of your fingers. Take responsibility and hold the racket as though you gently holding a little bird IN your hand which you don't want to crush.
tip to shakehanders: don't grip the handle like your carrying a flag. JUdt allow the possibility of subtley changing racket angle with soft pressure of finger
If you feel your fingers should alwaysl be in the same exact position on the racket, that is wrong thinking.
an experiment:- hold the racket with all four fingers flat on the bh side and practice fh topspin for half an hour. This should prove to you how unecessary
it is to hold tight
good luck

 

[tabletennismaniac]

Tense the core when playing the stroke.
This is one of those situations where shadow practice is really useful.
Timo Boll did a video on this a few years ago

Did you actually find it helpful to keep your hand relaxed?
I personally feel it quite difficult to keep only certain parts of my body tight. As soon as try to conciuosly tighten something, everything else gets tight…

 

[pingpongpaddy]

some recommend hold but tighten at impact then loosen again.
That implies a conscious decision. Danger!
Instead hold soft and loose and leave changes of grip to the LIZARD BRAIN/
Once you get this mental trick your strokes and technique will be more relaxed powerful and less injury prone
Th

 

[TampaBayTableTennis]

can try playing easy with robot/partner/returnboard only holding racket with thump and index finger. agree with point above that using core/body is important, perhaps focus on breathing too

 

[BlotOnPaper]

I had exactly the same problem as OP. Now i'm really relaxed while playing. For me the biggest change was to do rock climbing. But any other high-coordination sport with unique movement would work too. It's just i was too bad at coordinating movement. TT is a sport with really repetative movement coordination patterns. So for me it was impossible to improve my coordination ability while playing TT. Rock climbing solved that issue completely cause of sheer uniqeness of every single climb, so it really challenged my ability to adapt how to move.

 

[Charlesmorris]

You’ll need to learn to fully relax the body between every ball contact. A drill I use on the robot is to return 60 balls a minute. The only way you’ll succeed is if you’re relaxed between each return. If you’re tensed up you won’t make the next ball.

 

[Tony's Table Tennis]

during rallies, focus on your movement - footwork.
don't focus too much on your upper body/arm.

 

[schrodingerskoalabear]

can try playing easy with robot/partner/returnboard only holding racket with thump and index finger. agree with point above that using core/body is important, perhaps focus on breathing too

This.

I was struggling with a death grip but the last 2-3 weeks, I have begun much more relaxed. Two things are working for me:

1. I had a FH grip with only my index finger on the rubber and my thumb on the handle. Because of this, I had to stabilize by holding the handle. During matches, this would really tense up. So I have slowly been incorporating the thumb to be on the rubber too. This helps my other three fingers relax much more as I am not "holding the handle" anymore.

2. Completely let go of the racket between points. It helps me reset but also remember to be relaxed. As a ritual, I also blow on my hands between receives now. This helps me remember to keep the hand loose at the start of the point

 

[tabletennismaniac]

Thank you very much everyone for great tips!
I’m a little bit hesitant to mess with how I hold the paddle (this always end up in disaster at least to me), except for holding it more relaxed. I will try to incorporate this!

 

[Haito]

I had this issue. I got the two balls on a stick. Alternate between them, focus on loosening after a stroke. After a while, you will not have to focus on it; it will become second nature. It takes practice, but it makes footwork easier and consecutive top spins possible.

 

[tabletennismaniac]

I had this issue. I got the two balls on a stick. Alternate between them, focus on loosening after a stroke. After a while, you will not have to focus on it; it will become second nature. It takes practice, but it makes footwork easier and consecutive top spins possible.

Thanks! Not sure about what you mean with “two balls on a stick”?

 

[Haito]

Thanks! Not sure about what you mean with “two balls on a stick”?

https://www.tabletennisdaily.com/forum/topics/training-tool.37549/

 

[Dr Evil]

Getting tighter after every stroke often goes along with holding your breath. Remember to breathe!