Will make a more formal training update but I record my lesson everyday and upload the full unedited on my personal YouTube, so you're welcome to see for yourself - I think it's gotten much better but probably is still army LOL yeah the 88d and 99 are like pretty identical tbh, except 99 has shuttle hold imo. I've used it before, am considering the 88d pro as it seems to be more user friendly.
Listen to your body. Believe me, you want to avoid injuries from overusage , such as golfer/tennis elbow. I have already several setbacks from golfer/tennis elbow in my sport history (almost 50yo, so long history), which makes your arm almost useless for half a year atleast. So, a stiff racket needs a lot more muscle power to generate a powerful stroke than a more flex one. Your body needs to adapt in several ways (legs, arms, fingers, core), this will not happen in a few weeks. So, be more kind to your body and avoid unneccessary injuries which will cost you a lot of progression.
Actually technically it's not more muscle power, but more explosive stroke that is required to bend the shaft properly for effective energy transfer onto the shuttle. Sent from my SM-G988W using Tapatalk
That should improve with practice. The racquet preparation position can be done better though. In the basic ready position, the shaft is at an angle. If you look at ratchanok, her racquet is beautifully prepared with the racquet shaft vertical pointing up to the ceiling. These weeks of training are an excellent opportunity to correct such details. That’s going to help more than changing racquets.
Yes that means he's always a bit late and rushed to pull back his racket for winding up. Then he doesn't have enough time to throw his elbow forward to lead the stroke. Sent from my SM-G988W using Tapatalk
I talked to an online coach who's word I probably regard the highest out of all the coaches I've met and his recommendation was for me to stick with the ax99, and just improve through practice. He said he'd only recommend a medium/flex racket for someone who isn't looking to improve. And yes, I do agree. I've noticed when racket is vertical it helps me hit higher, and shots are more powerful. Training will help with that over these months, not weeks lol
No don't stick with AX99. That's horrible advice. It's too stiff for anyone other than pros. Heck even most pros don't use this! You won't last a week with it before your shoulder and elbow gets injured. Just use the 4U 88D Pro as you mentioned. Sent from my SM-G988W using Tapatalk
Lol... And then if/when injured, it'll take you at least a few weeks off to recover, which you don't time have for... An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure. Sent from my SM-G988W using Tapatalk
I disagree. It’s very much up to the individual. I play with stiff racquets though not ultra stiff. The injuries I had were more due to excessive and incorrect use of squash racquet in training. I also had golfers elbow during one period. The physio helped me by diagnosing muscle imbalance (that time I wasn’t doing any strength and conditioning). I haven’t had it for years now. I am more likely to think injuries will occur due to lack of stretching pre and post training, incorrect technique ( this includes holding the grip too tightly and incorrectly) and over enthusiastic use of the 150gram training racquet. Appropriate rest days are also very important. The good things that I see on the videos are time in the gym, agility exercises, footwork routines. Obviously the proportion of time has not yet been described but not all the time is spent on power strokes. There’s also that easy and affordable accessibility to Thai massages! Those definitely need to be fitted in on the rest days. On an intense program like this, I would be more ultra sensitive to listening to my body. There are some things you cannot macho through and need to come back to a couple of days later.
I would suggest to use 1 racquet model for the regular training - different from just playing regularly. Different rackets needs an adaptation time, short or long depends on the individual. Personal experience, long time ago I was using the Carlton 3.7X. It felt great when I transitioned to the Yonex 8100 Blacken, a lighter racquet. Initial hour was great for everything, clears, smashes more powerful, interceptions, etc. Came the multi shuttles drills and was often mistiming my shots or missing completely. I needed time to learn to use the new racquet. I feel that beginners should avoid stiff rackets initially. It's harder for them to generate the power and could be discouraging. At this point when the priority should be acquiring the technical skills, I believe a more flexible racket might be of better use. Just my thoughts.
Yeah I actually have ended up growing fond of the ax99 and have actually bought a second one today - so I'll always have something to play with in case the strings get cut or something
There is definitely a third one on the way and probably a fourth one by the end of your trip. Don’t hesitate about adding additional AX 99’s - it’s normal behaviour when you realise the primary objective of playing better is more important than winning or losing in practice sessions. In the heat, do you find your hands perspiring a lot and the racquet subsequently a bit difficult to hold?.
Im thinking about it fr lol - BTY is sponsored by Yonex so I just bought that second one for $125. Freaking crazy. Luggage is my only concern so unfortunately don't think I'll be able to buy more. And as for your question - I would like to try towel grips. I find my whole body sweating, but my hand/racket seem to be holding up okay. Still would like to buy towel grips but will have to find out where I can lol Also had to play with my 88s pros today as the 99 was getting strung. I could find myself liking this as well, just it's easier to learn technique with the 99 as all of our drills are "singles" drills. Will keep them for recreational or doubles play
Before you buy your 3rd AX99 , check your shoes first. From you training video it doesn't look like some proper badminton shoe. Proper badminton shoes should be the highest priority, a tennis/golfer elbow could throw you back some month, but a nasty injured foot or knee could be a lot more problematic.
How so? They're literally Yonex's latest models (of their stability lineup) that I bought a week before I left for Thailand Edit: I wear blue Nobull's (gym shoes) in the am training session which is physical. Anytime I play badminton, I wear Eclipsion Z's
