What Are Your Strengths and Weaknesses?
First of all, I'm going to ask you, dear reader, to name your best two strengths and your worst two weaknesses. Did you have to stop and think for a bit? Or are you able to rattle them off straight away?If you needed a bit of time to work out the best and worst aspects of your table tennis, I’d suggest that you aren’t spending enough time actually thinking about your game. Do you think the top players would need to take a minute or two to come up with these crucial bits of information? How are you supposed to plan your match tactics without them? How can you possibly map out a training program without your strengths and weaknesses firmly in mind?
Training Routine
OK, so now you have your good and bad areas sorted. Now take a minute to consider your training routine. Does it make sense? Are you giving your weaknesses enough attention so that you can plug the worst holes in your game? Are you making your strengths into a dominating factor in any match? If not, why not? Is your training routine too much routine and not enough training? What could you change about your training routine to make it relevant to what you actually need?Match Tactics
Then do the same for your match tactics. Are you using strategies in matches that allow you to use your best shots as often as possible, while covering up the worst parts of your game? If not, then spend a little time adjusting your tactics as well.Conclusion
Finally, here’s probably the number one reason you might not be improving. Did you actually do any of the suggestions I mentioned above? Did you stop for a minute to think about your strengths and weaknesses, or do any thinking about your training program? Or did you put your brain in neutral and just coasted along to the end of the article?I’d bet 99% of your fellow readers cruised along without doing any of the suggestions above. I’d also bet the 1% who actually stopped, thought about what they had read and tried to apply it are the same players who are improving rapidly. Readers, 99% of you don’t need another set of tips – what you need is to spend some time actually implementing one of the tips you have read lately. Why not give it a try? The game you save may be your own!
