This presentation overviews the basics of modern tennis physiology and highlights two key field tests for the assessment of both the aerobic power and anaerobic capacity in elite tennis athletes.

1. How to Test the Energy
Systems of Elite Tennis
Athletes
A Field-Based Approach
Cristian Villafana Carpio
Owner of Carpio Physical Performance
W www.carpiophysicalperformance.com
www..linkedin.com/in/cristian-villafana-carpio

2. ü Physiology of tennis
ü Rallies intensities and durations
ü Typical tennis match
ü Field v laboratory tests
ü Field tests key points
ü What to do before testing energy systems
ü What is ‘aerobic power’ and ‘anaerobic capacity’
ü The 30-15 Intermittent Fitness Test (IFT)
ü The Repeated Sprint Ability (RSA) test
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance
Overview

3. • Elite tennis involves a
combination of different
rallies’ intensities and
durations
• Each of which rely
upon different energy
systems…
ü ATP-PCr
ü Glycolytic
ü Oxidative Metabolism
Ferrauti et al, 2011
Physiology of Tennis
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

4. Example of Rallies’ Intensities and Durations
Fernandez et al, 2014
• Sporadic short and
moderate duration high
intensity bouts lasting
between 2-10s.
• With recovery periods
between 10-20s
between points.
• Between 60-90s
between change of
sides/time off.
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

5. Typical Tennis Match
• Lasts an average of 1.5hr
and some can prolong up
to 5hr.
• 3-5m per shot during a
single point and 8-15m as
total distance.
• 3-5 change of direction
COD manouvers.
• 1300-3600m covered per
hour of play depending on
surface and level of
athlete.
Kovacs MS. Applied physiology of tennis performance. British Journal of Sports Medicine 40: 381-386, 2006.
Kovacs MS. Tennis physiology. Sports Medicine 37: 189-198, 2007.
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

6. Field Tests v Laboratory
7/4/17
Winter et al. Sport and Exercise Physiology Testing Guidelines: Volume I–Sport Testing: The British Association of Sport and
Exercise Sciences Guide. Routledge, Taylor and Francis, 2007.
• Laboratory testing
has a greater degree
of control hence can
produce more
reliable and sensitive
results
• However, it is more
expensive, time
consuming and lacks
ecological validity.
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

7. Advantages of a Field Assessments
• Inexpensive
• Easy to administer
• Usually performed
under natural
conditions
Baechle TR and Earle RW. Essentials of strength training and conditioning. Human Kinetics, 2008
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

8. Reliability and Validity of Field Tests?
• On field tests are
subjected to:
üTypical error of the
measurement (TE)
üCoefficient of variation
percentage (CV%)
ü Specificity of test
selection.
Winter et al. Sport and Exercise Physiology Testing Guidelines: Volume I–Sport Testing: The British Association of
Sport and Exercise Sciences Guide. Routledge, Taylor and Francis, 2007.
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

9. Why Test the Metabolic Domains?
• Evaluation of genetic
factors
• Training Status
• Strength &
Weaknesses
• Training Outcomes
• Monitoring
Svensson M and Drust B. Testing soccer players. Journal of Sports Sciences 23: 601-618, 2005
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

10. Where Do We Start Before Assessing
the Cardiovascular Capacity?
• Anthropometrics
and Body
Composition…Why
???
• Reliability
• Comparison
• Relevance
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

11. • Allows us to compare
our athletes to the
norms or simply
against a team or
group.
• We can then
prescribe and or
modify our training
regimes.
Baechle TR and Earle RW. Essentials of strength training and conditioning. Human Kinetics, 2008.
Anthropometrics: Weight, Height, Girths
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

12. • Callipers are a good
way to measure an
athletes’ skin folds for
both comparison and
monitoring purposes.
• DXA is good way of
measuring muscle
mass estimation but
not the most reliable
for fat predictions.
Ackland et al, 2012
Kim et al, 2002
Body Composition (Sum of Skinfolds, DXA )
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

13. Reid et al, in: Physiological tests for elite athletes, 2nd edition. R Tanner, C Gore, eds.: Human Kinetics. 2013
Anthropometric Data: TA National Academy
Female and Male Tennis Players: Mean ± SD
(Range)
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

14. More on Anthropometric &
VO2Max Data (Elite)
Ranchordas et al, 2013
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

15. Determining Aerobic Power
(VO2Max)
Sahlin K, Tonkonogi M, and Söderlund K. Energy supply and muscle fatigue in humans.
Acta Physiologica Scandinavica 162: 261-266, 1998.
• Aerobic Power is
defined as the ability to
sustain low to moderate
intensity exercise of
long duration.
• This capacity relies
primarily on the
oxidative energy system
and to an extent on the
slow glycolysis.
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

16. VO2Max and its Association with
Tennis
Little T and Williams AG. Measures of exercise intensity during soccer training drills with professional soccer players.
The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research 21: 367-371, 2007.
• Largely dictates
distances covered
during a game.
• Number of sprints
attempted during a
game.
• Rate of recovery
between high intensity
efforts.
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

17. Examples of Common Fields Tests for
Determining VO2Max
Spencer M, Bishop D, Dawson B, and Goodman C. Physiological and metabolic responses of repeated-sprint activities.
Sports Medicine 35: 1025-1044, 2005.
• Cooper 12m run test.
• 20m-MSST (also
known as Beep test)
• Reproducibility, validity
and specificity ?
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

18. More Reliable and Valid Tests
Bangsbo J, Iaia FM, and Krustrup P. The Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test. Sports Medicine 38: 37-51, 2008
• Yo-Yo IR and 30-
15IFT
• They simulate the
sporadic stop-start
tennis nature and
hence are considered
semi-specific.
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

19. My Choice (30-15IFT) and Why?
Buchheit M. The 30–15 intermittent fitness test: 10 year review. Myorobie J 1, 2010.
• 30-15IFT reproduces
and evaluates the
physiological and
physical abilities
including:
ü Maximal aerobic
capacity
ü Anaerobic velocity
reserve (AVR)
ü Neuromuscular, COD
and inter-effort heart
rate recovery
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

20. The 30-15IFT Test
Buchheit M. The 30–15 intermittent fitness test: 10 year review. Myorobie J 1, 2010.
• Consists of 30s shuttle runs interspersed with 15s of
passive recovery
• Subjects run back and forth between cones set at 40m
apart at a pace managed by a pre-recorded beep which
helps adjust running speed within 3m zones.
• At the end of the recovery period, subject goes to the
nearest cone for the next sprint.
• The test is terminated when: Athlete can not longer
continue or athlete is unable to reach the 3m zone on 3
consecutive times.
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

21. 30-15IFT Reliability and Validity
Buchheit M. The 30–15 intermittent fitness test: 10 year review. Myorobie J 1, 2010.
• SWC (<1 stage or 30s) a
change as small as
0.5km/hr in the final
velocity obtained (VIFT)
can be considered
significant.
• The VIFT can be used to
prescribe HIIT as it elicits
more accurate and
homogenous
physiological responses.
• ICC: r=0.96
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

22. Determining Anaerobic Capacity
• Anaerobic
capacity is
defined as the
maximal amount
of high intensity
work that can be
performed <60s.
Martin D. Chapter 14: Generating Anaerobic Power,
in: High-performance training for sports. J D, L D, eds.: Human Kinetics, 2014, pp 71-84.

23. Determining Anaerobic Capacity
The work completed is dependant upon two
factors:
1. Ability to resist fatigue and its associated by-
products
2. Overall amount of high energy phosphates
stored in the muscle fibres.
Martin D. Chapter 14: Generating Anaerobic Power,
in: High-performance training for sports. J D, L D, eds.: Human Kinetics, pp 71-84. 2014

24. Examples of Anaerobic Capacity Tests
Martin D. Chapter 14: Generating Anaerobic Power,
in: High-performance training for sports. J D, L D, eds.: Human Kinetics, 2014, pp 71-84.
• 10 x 20m RSA test
• 30s Wingate Cycle test
• 100-400m sprint tests
• These usually last
between 10-60s and
tend to deplete the
anaerobic energy
reserves

25. My Choice (10x20m RSA) and Why?
• It assesses the ability of the
athlete to maintain high intensity
efforts with short rest intervals
• It depicts two performance
parameters:
1. Overall test performance
(e.g. total sprint time in sec).
2. Percent decrement
scores (mean sprint time/best
sprint time)x100-100).
Reid et al, in: Physiological tests for elite athletes, 2nd edition. R Tanner, C Gore, eds.: Human Kinetics. 2013
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

26. 10 x 20m Repeated Sprint Ability Test
Reid et al, in: Physiological tests for elite athletes, 2nd edition. R Tanner, C Gore, eds.: Human Kinetics. 2013
• Consists of 10 maximal straight line sprints of 20m
interspersed with 20s rest
• Subjects run from point A to B (20m apart) and await 20s
until the next sprint.
• Every subsequent sprint starts where the preceding
sprint finished (i.e., at the 20m mark)
• The test produces two scores, the absolute (total time in
sec) and relative (% decrement scores)
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

27. RSA Reliability?
Reid et al, in: Physiological tests for elite athletes, 2nd edition. R Tanner, C Gore, eds.: Human Kinetics. 2013
• Total accumulated sprint time
has a TE of 0.7%
• Decrement scores has a TE of
14.9%
• Interestingly, Buchheit, 2012
explains that total RSA time is
almost perfectly correlated with
best sprint time, therefore, a
single 20m sprint may be more
practical and reliable…
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

28. More on RSA Performance…
Dawson B. Repeated-sprint ability: Where are we. International journal of sports physiology and
performance 7: 285-289, 2012
• Anaerobic power scores are
key determinants of the total
RSA time performance
• Aerobic capacity is strongly
related to percent decrement
scores between the sprints
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

29. RSA Data: TA National Academy
Reid et al, in: Physiological tests for elite athletes, 2nd edition. R Tanner, C Gore, eds.: Human Kinetics. 2013
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

30. Practical Recommendations Before
Testing Your Athletes
• Competency/familiarization with the tests
• Time devoted to the tests
• Equipment needed
• Ecological validity (e.g. temperature, humidity)
• Running surface (e.g. rubber tracking/grass)
• Time required for recovery (e.g. 30-15IFT may
take up to 1hr for full recovery)
• May be best to administer RSA before the 30-
15IFT
Baechle TR and Earle RW. Essentials of strength training and conditioning. Human Kinetics, 2008
© 2017 Carpio Physical Performance

31. Conclusions
• In the anaerobic RSA test, male athletes should aim
for total sprint times of ~32.9 ± 1.2s and females for
38.5 ± 2.4s
• In the 30-15IFT, male tennis players should aim for
19.5km/hr and 21km/hr for their final velocity (VIFT).
And estimated VO2Max of 53±3ml.kg.min-1
• DXA scan and sum of skinfolds are a good way to
monitor body composition
Reid et al, in: Physiological tests for elite athletes, 2nd edition. R Tanner, C Gore, eds.: Human Kinetics. 2013
Ranchordas MK, Rogersion D, Ruddock A, Killer SC, and Winter EM. Nutrition for tennis: Practical
recommendations. Journal of sports science & medicine 12: 211-224, 2013.

32. • My name is Cristian Villafana Carpio
and I am a:
ü Tennis Performance Specialist/Massage
Therapist
ü 2016 - 2017 worked at the Australian
Open with ATP player Saketh Myneni
ü 2012 - 2015 worked at National
Academy of Tennis Australia and Tennis
NSW
• Some of the elite tennis athletes I
have worked with include :
ü Alex De-Manuir (ATP)
ü Jordan Thompson (ATP)
ü Matt Reid (ATP)
ü Jake Delaney (ITF)
ü Patrick Davidson (ITF)
ü Justin Barki (ITF)
• Some of the High Performance Tennis
Coaches I have worked with include:
ü Jaymon Crabb
ü Jospeh Sirianni
ü Wayne Miller
• Certifications:
ü ITPA - Certified Tennis Performance
Specialist (CTPS)
ü NSCA - Certified Strength and
Conditioning Specialist (CSCS)
ü ASCA - Accredited Professional Pro-
Scheme Level 2 Coach
ü AWF - Weightlifting Sports Power
Coach
ü FA - Exercise Professional Level 3
ü TAFE - Sports Massage Therapist
ü TAFE - Certificate IV in Fitness
• Major Interests:
ü Tennis-specific strength and
conditioning training
ü Periodisation models for strength
and power development
ü Agility/change of direction speed
(CODS) training
ü Athlete/Training monitoring
ü Corrective exercise for enhancing
tennis/sports performance
ü Recovery models for maximising
adaptations and tennis performance
Cristian Villafana Carpio
+61(0)405 806 929
info@carpiophysicalperformance.com © 2017 Carpio Physical Performance