SQUASH’D BEEF Athletics

Of course, introductions. We can't really learn unless we establish some kind of connection. It comes naturally for me to be interested in what people have going on on and off the court, so I like to level with my students and let them know that I am also very human. I like to get a feel for what they know about the game from a language standpoint and in motion. The three keys I look for in the first few practices are athletic capabilities, especially flexibility and lateral movement, overall foundation for the shot and attention to detail. Tennis is a sport of minutia, so the little stuff matters!

I've been playing tennis for 8 years and I've been trained by tennis pros for the last 3 years. One day I plan on getting a degree in sports psychology, but short term goal is to find a position with the Youth Tennis Advantage, an organization in Oakland that teaches tennis to kids ages 8-18 for free!

For private lessons, my rate is 50 an hour. That's regardless of location, so even if I'm kind of far away, It won't affect your rate! I also have group rates, the more people in your group, the cheaper it is per person (2 people is 45 an hour per person, 3 people is 40 an hour per person, so and so forth.) I like to think of the compensatory factor simply as a lifeline for the growth of my tennis students. You get out what you put in, and I always put in 100% effort!

I started off just teaching my partner, Felicia, how to play. She's a very natural athlete with some background in soccer, so we just built off of those skills and transformed them into tools for tennis! She's been playing for two or three years now and has become a very consistent hitting partner with potential for more. As I was teaching Felicia, I was approached by a passerby who noticed how I spoke about the game and was interested in hiring me as a coach. This was just over a year ago, and I've been coaching pretty consistently since then. Word of mouth has gotten me a few more students. I feel like I found my calling, which is why I will never be satisfied with what I know. There's always something new and there's always something that can be improved!

Most of my work has been with young adults. I'd like to expand my coaching to people of all age groups, young children and seniors included. Of course who doesn't want a prodigy? The dream is to have a couple of prodigies throughout the duration of my coaching, but the goal is to create a really comfortable environment where people with ranging familiarity to the sport of tennis can come and learn and have fun and build community!

Living in California, we don't get exposed to much clay court action locally unfortunately. I've had my eye on Roland Garros for that exact reason! Rafa's been having a monster season which is encouraging to me because he proves that consistency and good decision making are the keys to successful tennis, no matter what new up and comers might have hidden up their sleeves.

I'd tell students of the game to look for fellow students of the game. There are only a select few that have earned the title of "master" or "expert" and it takes years of practice and commitment to get to that level, even if you are born with the innate talent and physical gifts. One of my favorite quotes is "hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard". So for those seeking someone to teach them the game, look for a hard worker.

Students, first and foremost, should evaluate how committed they feel they are ready to be. If you've got things in your life that you feel like might out prioritize learning a sport, then wait until you have the bandwidth. Tennis is a baby, like I said, a sport of minutia, so you have to work on the details. Students should also be honest about where they are physically. Am I well conditioned? How flexible am I? Is this level of output sustainable for my body? Be honest, be kind, be gentle. Then, be ready! Ignite the fire!