Tennis is one of the healthiest sports in the world. The Copenhagen City Heart Study has drawn attention to this fact. The results show that playing tennis regularly can increase life expectancy by an impressive 10 years. No other sport analysed surpasses this value. This means that tennis is not only a very entertaining hobby, but also a valuable one in terms of health. But what exactly makes tennis so healthy? This article takes a closer look at the positive effects of tennis on body and mind.
Physical health
Tennis is good for our cardiovascular system and reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease. This is because tennis is an interval sport with many intense rallies and at the same time several phases between rallies in which the body is at low to moderate activity. This promotes both aerobic and anaerobic fitness.
Aerobic fitness is the ability to absorb oxygen over a longer period of time during low to moderate activity and convert it into energy - in other words, our cardiovascular endurance. This not only strengthens the cardiovascular system, but also promotes fat burning, improves lung function and increases endurance for longer and more intensive activities.
Anaerobic fitness, in turn, describes our body's ability to provide energy for intensive activities of short duration. Anaerobic training also improves heart function. It also increases muscle strength, speed and bone health and burns a lot of calories in a short period of time.
The combination of aerobic and anaerobic training is therefore ideal for our physical health.
Neuronal health
Tennis not only promotes physical fitness, but is also excellent coordination training. Constantly weighing up the right position in relation to the ball, the right point of impact, tactical thinking and the timing of shots creates neuronal connections in the brain and stimulates cell production in the hippocampus, which is important for learning and memory. This keeps our brain healthy for longer and protects us from diseases such as dementia. It also improves our cognitive functions such as attention, concentration, reaction and problem solving.
Mental health
Tennis also offers excellent benefits for mental health.
Firstly, there is the fun factor that tennis brings. It gets us moving in a playful way and releases endorphins. In addition, tennis allows us to socialise, come into contact with people and make or deepen friendships, which significantly increases our well-being.
The stress-reducing effect of tennis should also not be neglected. The endorphins released have a stress-reducing effect and our stress management improves through regular play. In addition to stress management, other valuable qualities such as consistency, discipline and self-confidence are also trained.
As you can see, tennis has an incredibly positive effect on health in many ways. Physical, mental and emotional health are promoted and influence each other. Whether beginner or advanced, young or old - tennis has a positive influence at every stage of life.
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