Wimbledon is just around the corner. All white outfits! Strawberries and cream! The thwack of balls streaking through the air and vibrating grunts! If one thing’s for sure, SW17 fever is guaranteed to leave you dreaming of playing tennis yourself – even if, like me, you’re crap at it.

You see, I have what can only be described as awful hand-eye coordination. I dreaded the sight of tennis rackets being wheeled out of the equipment cupboard at school, and the few times I’ve been on a court since, I’ve always struggled to predict exactly where my ball is headed after it makes contact with my racket.

However, that doesn’t mean I’m not a fan of watching tennis – especially when it comes to Wimbledon. There’s just something about the annual tournament that draws you in; from the tennis itself to all the pomp and circumstance, it’s hard not to find yourself transfixed by it all. 

It’s the time of year when, despite my rocky relationship with tennis, I channel my inner Little Mermaid and spend my days wondering what it would be like to be a part of that world.

That was, until this week – when Asics invited me to come along to their base in Wimbledon to get a taste of the morning routines its professional players follow in the lead-up to a big match. So, on Thursday morning (29 June), I got changed into my all-white kit (which, as an aside, takes some getting used to) and did just that. Here’s what I got up to.

As you might expect, the first step in any pre-match routine is fuel. To get us ready for the tennis we had lying ahead, we were treated to a mix of yoghurt, low-sugar granola, nuts, seeds and fresh fruit – combining to create a dish which was high in fibre and protein.

The idea behind this combination is that it keeps you fuller for longer – and although I was concerned at first that the portion wasn’t large enough, the added nuts and seeds bulked things out and left me feeling comfortably full (but not so full I wanted to go back to bed). I guess that’s ideal before a big match: you want to ensure your body is energised and ready to perform, but you don’t want your digestive system working overtime to digest everything (and sapping energy away from your muscles in the process).

We also had two drinks – a green goddess smoothie, full of fruit and veg, and a celery and ginger juice. The celery juice, the chef in charge explained, is perfect for upping your hydration levels, which is important when you’re going to be exercising for a long period.

After scraping up every morsel and downing the juice and smoothie, we moved on to the next step of the pre-match routine – preparing our minds for action.  

As anyone who has ever watched a tennis match will know, mental readiness is just as important as physical fitness when it comes to coming out victorious. And so, with that in mind, we headed upstairs to the aptly named ‘zen room’, where we were guided through a mindfulness, breathwork and meditation session.

There was nothing fancy about this session – it combined the classics of gentle stretching, box breathing, body scans and quiet contemplation – but it was interesting to do this with the knowledge that we were going to be exercising afterwards.

By the end of the session, I felt more grounded, and any anxiety I was feeling about holding a racket in my hands dispersed. I was ready to get moving. 

Last, but by no means least, we prepared our bodies for action with a warm-up designed to get our blood pumping and stretch out any stiffness in our muscles.

The warm-up largely consisted of drills, ranging from a light jog to side steps and cross overs to release tension in the hips.

We also did a range of dynamic lunges: in the first drill, we raised our arms up to the sky as we lunged; in the second, we twisted to either side.

The warm-up finished with some calf raises and heel walks, followed by some static lunges and upper-body stretches, including the all-important shoulder stretch.

By the end of the warm-up, I was certainly feeling warm, and my heart rate reached zone four at one stage. My muscles also felt a bit looser – something that was needed after the cross-legged position I sat in during the mindfulness stage

I was surprised by how simple the pre-match routine was, but I guess it makes sense. When you’re gearing up for a day full of movement, you don’t want to do anything too complicated or energy-draining to start the morning.

I found the mindfulness really helped me to stay in tune with my body during the warm-up and push myself to do the exercises to the best of my ability. It’s no secret that our minds can have a big impact on our ability to perform and, equally, that exercise can have a positive effect on our minds.

While I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this experience, it’s safe to say I was pleasantly surprised. In particular, I’ll definitely be adopting the pre-exercise mindfulness practice into my own routine – when I’m heading out for a long run, for example – and I might consider making myself a celery juice if I’m in need of some extra hydration.  

Images: author’s own