Tip of the Day: 'Run for everything' is a non-negotiable habit in tennis 

Agility is a tennis player’s best friend. It combines the mental and physical thirds of the game, challenging only the most determined players to push more than they knew they could.

The pros can chase every ball, play 40-shot rallies, and compete for five hours straight because they built a habit of running for everything. It’s at the very core of what it means to play tennis: challenging each other to return tennis balls from every part of the court until one player fails to do so.

But what does it take to develop this non-negotiable habit? It starts, as most things do, with the mental third of the game.

Choose to turn on the “run for everything” mentality like a light switch. Steel yourself that you're running for every ball, whether it’s landing seven feet behind the baseline, on the other side of the court, or just dropping over the net.

It will most likely take a moment for the body to respond to this new mindset. It may feel as though you’re reacting late, hesitating—acknowledging that you should run but aren’t. All of these are perfectly normal beginning formations of a habit. If anything, it’s a sign that your mental third is aware of a change that needs to be made and is challenging your body to catch up.

What starts to happen next is the body actually running. The timing may still be off—you still may not reach the ball—but the legs are catching up to the determination.

It will become easier and more doable over time as the legs kick into gear what the mind encouraged. More so, three things will begin to happen.

1. You’ll be quicker to react and faster to the ball. It comes naturally with practice and effort and will soon spark the 2. belief that you are in fact agile. Not only will your confidence grow in yourself because of the ability to build an empowering habit, but confidence in your game will skyrocket as you see for yourself what you are capable of on the court.

The belief carries into continuing to build the habit, and as you become even quicker and faster, 3. your endurance will greatly improve. This one might go unnoticed at first, but you’ll find yourself able to play longer points and compete for longer periods of time.

With enough time in front of the ball and a strong belief system at the core of the mental third, you’ll find yourself trying out Carlos Alcaraz's droppers, Serena Williams' splits, and Roger Federer's tweeners, proving once again that agility is a tennis player’s best friend.

Build up this non-negotiable habit to transform your entire game and see for yourself just how competitive you can be.