Lousao High Performance Tennis

hilosophy of tennis instruction. Many American coaches may disagree with me, but I do not believe in the “Tennis Academy” system. This system of fitting as many players as possible on one court, basically hitting two or three balls, and going back to the end of the line waiting for their next turn without getting any feedback from the coach on what they did right or wrong is a waste of time. No matter how many hours a day you practice this way, your game will improve at most slowly, and you will develop a multitude of bad habits. It is key in the development of your game, especially as a young junior (8-14 years old), that you are taught the right technique because the body is not fully developed and the joints are still very fragile. At this stage of the learning process, fundamentals are crucial. I am very focused on injury prevention. Players that lack technical skills or have bad technical habits from the start will often develop critical injuries that could eventually slow down their learning curve or even end their tennis career at a young age. For example, 3 years ago I went to a National junior tournament and watched the finals. There were two really good players competing in a very close match. I was sitting next to the coach of the player who won, and I asked him why he would not change his player’s technique on the serve. His answer shocked me: “Why would I change it, he wins every single tournament he plays”. I saw him again a few months ago (only two and a half years later) at an ITF tournament, and I asked him why that same player was not playing the tournament. He responded, “He had to have shoulder surgery and had a stress fracture in his back and has been out for over a year”. I did not make any other comments, but for those of you who know me you know what I was thinking inside. This coach should have seen that the player’s bad technique and form were eventually going to either injure him or slow down his learning curve. I saw it immediately while I watched the player serve. When I began coaching full-time I was coaching a Division I college Men’s and Women’s team, but I found more enjoyment while coaching junior players on my off-time. I devoted myself to working with younger, serious players, and I knew in my heart that this was my true passion. I worked at numerous country clubs, resorts, and academies where I coached many top junior players, including a # 1 ranked player in the country, but yet I wasn’t satisfied with my role at those facilities. At my previous vocations, quantity was still a priority over quality in order to generate revenue for the company. I wasn’t happy with the design and priority of my employers, and I dreamed of a time when I would run my own program based on my personal experiences and philosophies. After almost 15 years of coaching and because of amazing players and parents who have continued to support me, I was recently able to make my dream come true. I am now able to handpick the players I really want to work with and focus on an individualized training program with them while also incorporating supervised match play and conditioning. My dedicated students and their parents quickly realized that my philosophy for tennis training is the most efficient way for their children to reach their full potential. With being my own boss, I now have the opportunity to perform high quality and meticulous work without the pressure of someone above me. I can finally focus on players I believe in and enjoy training. I can finally devote myself to my passion: high performance and the development of junior players. “The Sky Is the Limit”, and I truly believe that with dedication, commitment, and hard work the possibilities are endless.