Ok, now that summer is over, we are back to school, and the chaos of our calendars juggling family, work, school, and sports has officially taken over. If you are like me, I always feel like it is the sports component that sets me over the edge. Why is this? Because it is where we are the least organized. We have our work schedule. We have a “back to school night” to get school scheduled. Now, let’s create a tennis or sports schedule that is in sync with our family calendar.

Before we get started, let’s revisit the first rule of being a tennis parent- your child is in fact, “a child”. They aren’t Serena or Roger, so they don’t need to train like a pro until they are a pro. They are kids who need family first, then education, and then the extras.

Here are the steps to make the right schedule for your athlete

1. Open Your Calendar

• Input all the school dates, exams, vacations, etc.
• Input all the family dates, sibling performances, birthdays, etc.
• Input any big projects you have at work, work trips, etc.
• *Notice that the family and academics come first, before the sports. 😉

2. Meet with the coach

Schedule a meeting with your child’s coach. This is a great place to start with their tennis schedule.

• If appropriate, have the coach make a long term developmental plan.
• Have the coach articulate what they want your child to work on and any technical changes that need to be made in the upcoming year.
• Organize the ongoing weekly lessons and/or clinics.
• Get input from the coach for your child’s tournament level and schedule.

3. Open the tournament schedule or calendar of your Section, USTA, ITF, UTR, etc.

Pause and take a moment, to remind yourself of the purpose of tournaments:

• Fun– If tournaments aren’t fun, your child won’t want to keep doing them. Yes, as stated above, they are still children.
• Improve their skills– Tournaments are a way for the kids to improve and assess their skills in matches. The keyword is “improve” – they won’t be perfect, so please don’t expect it to be perfect. Tournament play gives the coach an accurate gauge of what they need to work on in practice.
• Sportsmanship- Tournaments are where the kids learn sportsmanship, along with your family values and expectations while on court.
• Socialization- Tournaments are where kids learn how to socialize and be friends while competing against their peers. It a great skill in life and critical if you are going to survive the high-level junior competition.
• Compete- Tournaments are where your child learns to compete. They should be winning approximately 65% of their matches. They should play tournaments at their level, below their level, and above their level. They learn and improve in ALL these areas! If they are losing early in all the tournaments, throw in a lower level and if they are winning everything, bump them up a level for a tournament.

4. Now for the tournament schedule:

• First, input the tournaments your child LOVES to play, the ones that are the most fun. Could be a team event, could be ones where their friends play, near Grandparents, or in a fun city.
• Second, input the essential tournaments that their coach feels they should play.
• Look at the calendar and make sure there aren’t conflicts with school, work, and family. Do not enter them in a tournament the weekend before or after exam week. That is a recipe for disaster!

5. Training Blocks and Time Off

• Training Blocks- Look at the calendar and make sure your child has “training blocks”. These are 3-6 weeks blocks of time to work on technique, make technical changes, and adding skills. These weeks are critical for development. The kids can’t play matches if they are in the middle of making changes. They will revert back to old ways, and all those $$$ on lessons are wasted.
• If there aren’t any blocks of time in your calendar, then go back to the steps above and clear some weeks.
• Time off- make sure they have time off the courts and away from tennis. They should have one day off per week and a full week off every few months, or as needed if they show signs of burnout or injury.

6. Enter the Tournaments

Once you think you have a good calendar, even better if you have a coach to go through it with you, then enter all the tournaments for a 3-6 month period. Enter now- please, don’t play the games of waiting to see who is playing where and where your child can get more points. Point chasing, avoiding competition, or chasing competition does not get your child any farther ahead in the long run.

7. Revisit the schedule

• If your child seems stressed and unhappy
• If your child is struggling with academics
• If the schedule is too much for you. Yes, you, the parent matter too!
• If your child injured or their body is showing signs of not tolerating the workload
• If your child is losing most of their matches, and you need to drop them down a level
• If your child is winning most of their matches, and you need to bump them up

Remember- Your child isn’t earning or losing a scholarship because of how they did in one tournament at a young age. Relax and enjoy your child doing something they love and something that will give them the skills to succeed in life.

I will close it out with a quote I read in a recent article by Ilovetowatchyouplay.com. You can read the full article HERE.

“Do not ever deprive your children of love before or after workouts and races. Hug them, kiss them on the top of their heads, on their cheeks, like you did when they were babies. Because they are your babies for keeps.”

If you found this article helpful, you might also like these articles:

• Competitive Junior Tennis: Is It Worth It?
• What To Do When Your Athlete/Child Wants to Quit?
• 5 Ways Toni Nadal Built a Champion Through Character
• 15 Takeaways for Coaches & Parents from “RANGE”, by David Epstein
• 5 Ways I Avoid Being “That” Tennis Parent: by Debbie Graham Shaffer

Thanks for reading and as always, shoot me an email with any comments or suggestions for future reading.