Today Coach Ryan gives credit to all the HAT families!  Especially those families who are going through the HAT program together.  There's nothing better than seeing players and parents improving and supporting each other through the process. As we all know achieving something that is worth while will often times be difficult and that is what makes it fun and challenging.  What gets us through the frustrating times are those who around us who give us support.  

Ryan next gives a shout out to Eric Kwiatkowski who won 3 matches in only his second sectional tournament ever!  Eric has been a consistent hard worker and deserves every bit of success he gets.  At HAT we are all excited for the what is to come for Eric.  Keep up the good work. 

Lastly Ryan talks about how improving has very little to do with the person across the net from you, it is up to the individual.  If the player is motivated and wants their dream badly enough they will find a way to improve under any circumstance.  Karen Barbat did just that in practice last night.... One of the best team practices of the season!  

Have questions?  Let us help!  Submit your questions below and Coach Ryan would be happy to answer them for you!  

This week coach Ryan gives you a little behind the scenes info on happenings at HAT including a new addition, current and upcoming visitors and finally how competing will help you get your head right!  Enjoy and if you have anything you would like to have addressed by Ryan or any of the HAT staff please leave your comments below.  See you at the courts!!!

Tennis Tips: Tips To Improve Your Tennis Footwork
By: Michael Farrington


Move Those Feet!!

Footwork is one of the most important components of your tennis game. If you are not in proper position, you will not hit a clean shot, even if your swing is perfect. Working to improve your tennis footwork is no different than improving your strokes, it simply takes practice. Here are a few ways to increase your foot speed and agility on the court.

1. Jump Rope – Jumping rope is a great way to get your legs and feet accustomed to moving at a quicker pace. That’s why all great tennis players’ carry around a jump rope in their tennis bag.
2. Speed and Agility Drills – When on the tennis court allow yourself time to focus on your tennis footwork. Take time to do a proper dynamic warm up with exercises designed to increase foot speed, including high knee lifts, hopscotch, crossover steps and sprints. It might not be the most exciting part of the game, but it is extremely beneficial.
3. Proper positioning - When rallying or hitting on a ball machine, you should be active with your feet at all times, concentrating on taking big steps early to get to the ball, and then little steps to position yourself before executing your swing. Squeaking shoes are always a good sound. At the end of a hitting session or match your legs should be worn out!

Michael is the Head of Strength and Conditioning at High Altitude Tennis.  He oversees the training programs of all the tennis players on site and also trains our training professionals and juniors abroad.  If you would like to have your tennis fitness training questions answered, message him at Michael@HighAltitudeTennis.com.  


Michael is available for tennis fitness training and sports performance training, so please look for details here.
High Altitude Tennis is conveniently located in Parker Colorado and serves the entire Denver metro area.

A Quick Tactical Tennis Tip!
By: Ryan Segelke


Control the Court

·       Federer arranges the ball boys to certain positions in the back of the court.

·       Nadal sets his drinks in the same precise position after every sip of serum.

·       Djokovic bounces the ball for what seems like a week before he serves. 

 The best tennis players in the world are creatures of habit and it’s all about controlling their environment in order to make things as comfortable as possible during battle! They plan on staying on the court as long as it takes to dismantle their opponent.  So next time you step onto the court arrange the surroundings how you see fit and get ready to dig your heals in for the battle ahead.


Ryan Segelke has national and international tennis coaching experience.  From coaching on tour at the French Open and US Open to training China's up and coming juniors, he has seen the top tennis professions up close and personal.  If you have would like to have your tennis questions answered, make sure you follow him and the rest of the High Altitude Tennis Staff on Facebook and YouTube.  

For your own private tennis lesson with Ryan, click here!

A Technical Quick Tip To Improve Your Tennis!
By Ryan Segelke

Ready…Aim…Fire... It all starts with a perfect ready position.

Whether you are trying to improve your forehand volley or your backhand return the stroke emanates from a perfect ready position.  We certainly use the term “perfect” somewhat loosely, but as Vince Lombardi said, "If we chase perfection we can catch excellence"!  A tennis swing is very much like a swing set at the playground.  If it is twisted at the beginning, it will be twisted in the middle and twisted at the end.  Therefore it is crucial that we start the swing correctly from the ready position and here's how:

1. Be in a composite/forehand volley grip (between 2 and 3 on the bevels of the grip/between continental and eastern grip) so you can always look to move foreword first!  If you are waiting on your forehand grip in the ready position you won't be looking to move forward when you have hurt your opponent during a rally thus letting them back into the point instead of finishing them off.

2. Place your left hand on the throat of the racket/right hand for lefties

3. Put the butt cap of the racket right up against your belly button, this will center the racket on body.

4. Extend your arms straight out from your belly button. Move your hands far enough away from your body that you can fit a basketball between your hands and your stomach.

5. Elbows should be away from your sides far enough to fit a softball underneath your armpits.

Now your swing set is ready to flow properly, untwisted, from front to back!!!  If your shoulders are sore after correcting your ready position, you are doing it perfectly!!


Ryan Segelke has worked with numerous professional tennis players on the WTA circuit as well as international and national level juniors.

For more tennis tips, make sure to 'like' us on and Facebook, subscribe to us on YouTube.  To get more individualized attention, make sure to sign up for a private tennis lesson!  

By: Ryan Segelke


At High Altitude Tennis we are big on making sure our clients (players and parents) get the most quality and value out of the money they spend with us!  Our primary focus is the three hour team practice we run each weekday with private tennis lessons sprinkled in from time to time.  We do this because frankly I would rather my students spend three or more hours on court for the same price (and same quality instruction!) as a one hour private tennis lesson.  Often you will see a student who has been convinced that they need to take three or more private tennis lessons per week and in some cases they even get persuaded to hire a full time private coach ... Needless to say we do not recommend this for the majority of junior players!  

Before you start wondering if I mis-titled this article, let me get to why and how often I believe private tennis lessons are a necessity to a player looking to develop their game (at any age!).  

The one on one time that a private tennis lesson offers is a crucial part of the relationship between a player and coach.  This is particularly important for younger players who are at a very impressionable age. Having a knowledgeable, trustworthy coach who not only teaches strokes and strategy, but more importantly responsibility and life lessons will be pivotal in their development as a young adult. 

Let's say during the week I see that one of my students is having trouble with their backhand during a three hour team practice.  I don't have an hour to pull him aside and work on his backhand as this would be unfair to the rest of the team members.  So, I put him on video that day and show him exactly what he needs to do to improve it.  He writes it down in his journal and is coached to make sure he goes home to work on improving his stroke.  In my opinion this is a great time to suggest a private tennis lesson to make sure that the student gets the one on one time he needs to ensure that the concepts he is applying during practice and at home on his own are concrete and accurate.  

Determining the frequency of taking private tennis lessons depends on the situation.  If my student is working on his backhand needs a follow up tennis lesson or two to ensure he is staying on track I believe that's absolutely a great thing.  BUT what I would not do is to have him start to come in for multiple private tennis lessons per week.  I once heard a coach say that he would rather give a 1-minute tennis lesson than a 1-hour tennis lesson because he wanted his students to learn how to be independent thinkers and that being an independent thinker was crucial to their success in tennis and in the real world.  I am in this school of thought as well!    

It really comes down to balance and common sense.  I really enjoy teaching private tennis lessons and being able to focus in on one student for an hour or more at a time.  I just have to remember that I have a responsibility to make sure that I am giving the student the proper information so they can go home and improve their game whether it be in the backyard, super market or at the local courts.  Better yet, maybe they go home and help their mom or dad with their backhand or serve!  It's not what I know, but what my students learn! 



If you are looking to get back into tennis or would like help on a stroke or two in particular, sign up for a private tennis lesson!  

What's the key to getting that explosive first step like Novak Djokovic?  PLYOMETRICS!   

Each day there are thousands of tennis players all across the world taking group and private lessons.  If you are reading this you are likely one of those players who partakes in an occasional lesson.  I discussed how trust is critical in the program you attend in this recent bonus fix  http://youtu.be/PhrrnmVAEaw.  Now that you have found that trustworthy program filled with great information the next step is to take responsibility for the new information you are receiving! 

If any pro tells you that they are the secret to your game they aren't being completely honest with you.  The real truth is YOU are the key to your game.  We use a phrase at the HAT Academy called Program-Plus (Thanks Tennissmith for lettings us steal this great phrase!).  There is no program in the entire world that can make you the player you are capable of becoming, it's program-plus what you are willing to do. 

Each year we highly recommend to our players that they play 100 matches in a year.  It doesn't have to be sanctioned or a tournament, just as many matches as they can and to document each one in their journals.   How many students so you think took responsibility for this information?   ONE!!  

I CHALLENGE you, I URGE each of you reading this article to spend even just 10 minutes a day between your lessons working and thinking about the topics discussed.  This is the key element missing from players who are good that want to be great, from that 3.0 players who want's badly to move up to 3.5, even from that college athlete who wants to be a successful professional player.  TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR TENNIS LIFE!!!!!   

Time to build up your leg strength and get ready for the upcoming tennis season!

Just a quick video for you all on the serve!  Post your tennis questions and comments below!