Saturday, December 13, 2008

Last Lesson with Niki for 2008

I'm trying to remember what was good and bad about the last lesson. The sets seem shorter for some reason, but I distinctly remember better height and depth from my gets to the boasts.  I can't remember how my drives were, but I think I got to them and kept them relatively straight even if they weren't deep.  The boast drive, boast drive, drive drive (boast boast drive) drill definitely bore out a weakness moving through the T.  Niki wants me to stop on the T before springing backward for the drive, even if it means I am late to the ball.  I'm also aware I occasionally meanders back to the T from the front corner.  I notice when I take a bigger step back to the T, I am getting there earlier and my legs are more prepared to move to the next shot.  I have to remember to do ghosting and trying different ways to visualize moving and chasing a fast ball while bending really low and taking big steps.

I just had a thought. Bending my knees is not about how low my stance should be, but whether my quads are compressed and loaded to spring up quickly.  I think I will try jumping exercises from bended knees position.

A final note. Every lesson ends with a quick game with NIki. This time, I pushed the score all the way to 9-8 by missing fewer of the half court boasts, capitalizing on a few of NIki's errors, and generally keeping my shots deeper.

Niki also said I am keeping my stamina up and breathing under control during the rally and only stop to breath hard between points. A good sign!

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