The Tennis Files Podcast

On Episode 185 of The Tennis Files Podcast, I spoke with ATP Pro Marcus Willis about how he went from teaching tennis lessons for 30 pounds an hour (about $40) to playing Roger Federer on Center Court at Wimbledon in 2016. Marcus has reached a career high ranking of #322 in singles and #209 in doubles on the ATP tour. He was also ranked as high as 15 in the combined junior world rankings. But Marcus struggled to breakthrough on the pro tour until he decided to work harder than everyone else and had a support system that held him accountable. Then in 2016 his hard work paid off; he got through pre-qualifying, qualifying, and his first round match to face arguably the greatest player of all time on Center Court at Wimbledon.On the show, you’ll learn the in-depth story behind Marcus’s incredible run at Wimbledon, how he was able to win against much higher ranked players, the key to transforming his career in 2016, the biggest mistakes that amateur players make, Marcus’s huge win in doubles against the defending Wimbledon champions the following year, how to succeed on the tour, and much more!I hope you enjoy my interview with Marcus! Let us know what you think about this episode in the comments below!And be sure to subscribe to Tennis Files to receive the latest tennis content to improve your game straight into your inbox!Will’s InstagramWill’s TwitterIlya Marchenko's YouTube Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Episode 184 of The Tennis Files Podcast, I interviewed Kevin Garlington, the founder of Total Tennis Domination, on how we can go from being stuck and frustrated to rapidly improving our games.Kevin is the Head Tennis Pro at Cedar Ridge Country Club in Oklahoma and also churns out online tennis instruction content at Total Tennis Domination. He previously worked with my friend Ian Westermann at Essential Tennis, one of the biggest and most well-known online tennis businesses in the world. Kevin is a 5.0+ player and competed at the Division I level at Oral Roberts University, as well as on the Pro Circuit in the US and Spain. Both Kevin and his wife Megan have been teaching tennis together for many years and have helped improve thousands of players with their top quality instruction. Kevin has also been a featured coach on my online Tennis Summits.On the show, you’ll learn why players get stuck for years at the same level, what to focus on in your game to make big improvements, Kevin’s systematic approach to developing adult tennis players, what part of the serve players struggle with most and how to fix it, winning singles strategies, Kevin’s tennis journey from a late start in his teens to Division I college tennis baller and eventual world-class coach, and much more!I hope you enjoy my interview with Kevin! Let us know what you think about this episode in the comments below!And be sure to subscribe to Tennis Files to receive the latest tennis content to improve your game straight into your inbox!Total Tennis DominationTTD YouTube ChannelTennis Summit The Tennis Files PodcastTennis Files YouTube ChannelBOOKS:The Inner Game of TennisPrinciplesPoor Charlie’s Almanac Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Episode 183 of The Tennis Files Podcast, mindset development expert Joey Johnson will reveal the 8 steps to transform your mindset and level up your performance on the court.Joey is the author of the book “Worthy to Win” which outlines an 8-step mental training process to help people achieve a breakthrough in their performance. He has worked with many sectional, national, and world-ranked athletes over a 20 year period, including ATP and WTA professionals. Joey has also been a consultant for amateur, professional and Olympic athletes from many different sports. He is a great tennis player as well and competed on the ATP Tour and played Division I tennis at Ole Miss University.  On the show, you’ll learn why players engage in self-sabotage and how can they stop doing it, why a process-based mindset is critical for improvement, how to tap into the power of pressure, key mental toughness principles from “Worthy to Win”, how to achieve peak performance, and much more!I hope you enjoy my interview with Joey! Let us know what you think about this episode in the comments below!And be sure to subscribe to Tennis Files to receive the latest tennis content to improve your game straight into your inbox!WorthytoWinMental IQ TestThe Tennis Files PodcastTennis Summit Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Episode 182 of The Tennis Files Podcast, I’ll reveal my top 8 strategies to help you transform your tennis fitness.A lot of us struggle with creating a consistent tennis fitness plan that delivers the physical improvements we need to play better tennis and prevent injuries. There’s no doubt that fitness can be the difference-maker between outlasting your opponent and losing because you are out of shape, or even worse, sustaining a career-threatening injury. So on this episode I have put together a list of the 8 ways you can level up your fitness in 2021 and beyond.In this episode, you’ll learn how to be more consistent with your workout routine, specific exercises to improve your strength and speed, how to stay committed to your workouts with accountability strategies, the importance of getting enough sleep and how it impacts your fitness, how to record your progress and much more!I really hope you enjoy the show! If you learned something useful from it, let me know in the comments below.And be sure to subscribe to Tennis Files to receive the latest tennis content to improve your game straight to your inbox.The Four TendenciesLeg Strength Workout for Tennis Players (NO Equipment Needed!)10 min TENNIS STRETCH ROUTINE for Flexibility and Injury PreventionHow Much Sleep Do You Need - GuidelinesTennis SummitThe Tennis Files PodcastTennis Files YouTube ChannelSubscribe to the Podcast and Leave a Review Here! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Episode 181 of The Tennis Files Podcast, I spoke with ATP Pro Nathan Pasha about how you can elevate your training, mindset, routines and technique.Nathan has been ranked as high as #119 in the world in doubles and #507 in singles on the ATP Tour. Before turning pro, Nathan played college tennis at the University of Georgia where he reached #19 in the nation and UGA was ranked as high as #2. Nathan is now focusing his efforts exclusively on mastering doubles and is poised to crack the top 100. He also maintains a website at nathanpasha.net where he shares his tournament results, travel experiences, achievements, and tennis insights.On the show, you’ll learn how to prepare for your matches like a pro, what to do in-between points to stay focused, how self-awareness plays a huge part in your tennis development, how Nathan analyzes his matches and creates practice plans based on his observations, technique fundamentals for the flex volley, the key change that Nathan made to his serve technique to gain more spin and power, one of the most important principles to being a good tennis coach, and much more!I hope you enjoy my interview with Nathan! Let us know what you think about this episode in the comments below!And be sure to subscribe to Tennis Files to receive the latest tennis content to improve your game straight into your inbox!Nathanpasha.netNathan’s Instagram The Tennis Files PodcastAtomic HabitsFinding Your ZoneMindset: The New Psychology of SuccessFlow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Episode 180 of The Tennis Files Podcast, you’ll learn 7 ways to improve your focus during your matches and practices in 2021.I get a lot of questions from tennis players on how to stay focused when playing, which is one of the keys to success in tennis. When we lose our focus, an avalanche of mistakes can creep up in our game and matches that are going well can quickly turn around in our opponent’s favor. A myriad of problems from nerves to deviating from winning strategies, losing discipline, and negative emotions can all happen as a result of losing focus and not being able to refocus in time.If you struggle to play your best tennis because you can’t seem to stay focused on the court, then you won’t want to miss this episode!I really hope you enjoy the show! If you learned something useful from it, let me know in the comments below.And be sure to subscribe to Tennis Files to receive the latest tennis content to improve your game straight to your inbox.LINKSCoach Tennis OnlineTennis SummitThe Tennis Files PodcastCalmHeadspaceOakSubscribe and Leave a Review Here! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Episode 179 of The Tennis Files Podcast, you’ll learn the keys to leveling up your tennis strategy, technique, mental game, and much more from the top 7 episodes of the podcast in 2020!For this special year-end episode, I sorted through all of my interviews with grand slam champions, former ATP/WTA players, world-class coaches and tennis experts, and my solo episodes from 2020. Then I selected the most downloaded episodes and took clips from each of them containing the best advice on how to serve and volley, how to play more aggressive tennis, the best singles strategies and tactics, how to develop mental toughness, and a lot more!If you enjoyed these clips and want to listen to the full episodes featured on TFP 179, visit the links below or go to the episode number in your favorite podcast app or at tennisfiles.com/podcast. I really hope you enjoy this episode! If you learned something useful from it, let me know in the comments below.And be sure to subscribe to Tennis Files to receive the latest tennis content to improve your game straight to your inbox.Tennis SummitTaylor Dent - TFP 128Emilio Sanchez - 129Rick Macci - 143Gregg Le Sueur - 150Mehrban Iranshad - 160 Jorge Capestany - 161Edgar Giffenig - 164The Tennis Files Podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Episode 178 of The Tennis Files Podcast, I interviewed current ATP and former collegiate coach Peter Smith about how to overcome adversity and develop a winning mindset.Coach Smith has one of the most prolific records in college tennis history. He guided the University of Southern California Men’s Tennis team to 5 NCAA Championships and has notched over 600 wins in his college coaching career. Coach Smith was also a 2-Time ITA National Coach of the Year and 5-Time PAC-12 Coach of the Year. He now coaches top American ATP pros Steve Johnson and Sam Querrey. Coach Smith is one of only two coaches to guide three different schools to the NCAA quarterfinals and top-5 national rankings (USC, Pepperdine and Fresno State). On the show, you’ll learn the principles Coach Smith uses to guide his players to the top of the rankings, why it is more important to develop great people first and top tennis players second, what he is currently working on with Steve Johnson and Sam Querrey, routines that you can implement in your day to perform your best, what sports besides tennis you should play to become a better athlete, the toughest moments Coach Smith has had to face and how he has overcome them, and much more!I hope you enjoy my interview with Coach Smith! Let us know what you think about this episode in the comments below!And be sure to subscribe to Tennis Files to receive the latest tennis content to improve your game straight into your inbox!LINKSThe Score Takes Care of Itself - Bill WalshEleven Rings: The Soul of Success - Phil JacksonThe Inner Game of Tennis - W. Timothy GallweyBeyond Basketball: Coach K’s Keywords for Success - Mike KrzyzewskiPeter’s Instagram Page Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Episode 177 of The Tennis Files Podcast, you’ll learn about the best fitness and sleep trackers of 2020!With technology evolving every day and the increasing importance of having statistics and metrics on our performance, a discussion about the best wearable devices is overdue. Using one or more of these devices can have a very positive impact on your health, sleep, and fitness if you are willing to use the data to make changes in your life. In this episode, I'll reveal the top wearables of 2020 and let you know which one of them I'm using and why!I really hope you enjoy this episode! If you found it helpful, let me know in the comments below!And be sure to subscribe to Tennis Files to receive the latest tennis content to improve your game straight to your inbox!Apple WatchFitbitGarminWhoop StrapOura RingTFP 137: How Using Tennis Technology Can Improve Your Game with Alex Johansson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Episode 176 of The Tennis Files Podcast, I spoke with one of the top athletic movement specialists in the world, Lee Taft, about how to become faster and stronger on the tennis court.Lee is known as “The Speed Guy” and has devoted over 30 years to training and teaching his multi-directional speed methods to athletes, top performance coaches and fitness professionals around the world. He’s been a Strength and Speed Coach at the Bollettieri Tennis Academy, conducted workshops for MLB and NBA teams, and consulted for NFL teams. Lee has created tons of programs and books to help you improve your speed, strength and agility, including the Certified Tennis Speed Specialist certification.On the show, you’ll learn a simple and very effective speed workout, the best exercises to become a stronger and more powerful athlete, the biggest mistakes we make when training our speed, how we can improve our lateral and multi-directional movements, tools we can use to get faster, how to divide our training on the court and in the gym, and much more!I hope you enjoy my interview with Lee! Let us know what you think about this episode in the comments below!And be sure to subscribe to Tennis Files to receive the latest tennis content to improve your game straight into your inbox!Lee’s FacebookLee’s TwitterLee’s Instagramlt@leetaft.comwww.LeeTaft.comwww.CTSS.co - Certified Tennis Speed Specialist certification Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices