The Inner Game of Tennis: The Classic Guide to the Mental Side of Peak Performance by W. Timothy Gallwey Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Inner Game of Tennis: The Classic Guide to the Mental Side of Peak Performance
Book Review: Highly Recommended
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm in my late 30's and have been playing tennis my whole life. I'm a self-rated (USTA) solid 4.5, maybe even a low 5.0 for singles, 4.5 for doubles.
I read this book when I was 14 or 15 and it changed my tennis game first, and then it gradually impacted other areas of my life. I've just purchased this relatively new edition because I lost my original copy long ago, and also I'm teaching my daughters to play tennis now and wanted to apply the techniques for the first time as a coach.
I tend to be long-winded but I'll try to put this succinctly: Before the book, I had the shots in my aresenal but they weren't frequently surfacing in my matches. I lost many matches against players with lesser skills. After applying the lessons learned from the book, I started consistently winning against these same players, and sometimes winning against superior opponents that I should not have been able to beat.
More importantly, tennis became much more enjoyable for me, and at times even like an out of body experience during which it seemed like part of me was kicking back in my mind and just enjoying watching myself play. I never self-destruct anymore, and I generally have a feeling in tennis that there's nothing I can't accomplish when I'm feeling well.
It's not always that perfect, and sometimes my "Self 1" imposes its will on my game, but it's fairly easy to pick up on when that's happening and there are some techniques in the book for bringing myself back on track.
For competition purposes, I've been trying to find ways to merge the faith in "Self 2" that this book teaches with the strategies outlined in Brad Gilbert's book "Winning Ugly," which is almost an opposite approach to the game. Anyone else out there have this challenge? My approach has been to think strategically like Brad suggests between points (i.e., employing Self 1), then try to apply Galwey's "bounce-hit" exercise at the beginning of each point so that Self 2 takes over during actual play. I'm having mixed results with that but improving over time.
Book Review: Must Read
Summary: 5 Stars
This book has had a very positive impact on my life. I have suffered with concentration problems for all my life and was recently diagnosed with ADD. I was always told at school that i was intelligent but didnt "try hard enough" and thats why I was failing. But funnily enough trying hard seemed to make things worse for me. My difficulties have led me to being fired from several jobs due to lapses of attention. After reading this book I have been putting the ideas in to practice through the medium of chess (I am an expert level player) and have noticed an improved abiltity to focus my mind. I hope now to move forward in life and repair my shatterd self esteem and gain confidence to take on new challenges. This is a great self help book!.Book Review: THE LEARNING PROCESS
Summary: 5 Stars
This book is excellent.As a great believer in learning new things, this book interested me greatly.My tennis has improved enormously,on the mental front firstly.Because of this i can make changes to my game rapidly and without frustration.This advice in the book also helps in other areas of learning.Recently i started to learn spanish and using the inner way of learning i have progressed quickly.Great book you must read it.Book Review: How to experience freedom in tennis
Summary: 5 Stars
The main point of the book is that neither mastery nor satisfaction can be found in the playing of any game without giving some attention to your inner game. This game is played against such obstacles as lapses in concentration, nervousness, self-doubt and self-condemnation. The goal of the inner game is to overcome these obstacles which inhibit peak performance.
As my journey of a tennis coach began I started looking for more and more books on this topic. It doesn't take much searching before you find this extraordinary book. I read it in two days and many pieces of the mental puzzle finally came together.
We have to agree with him that most problems with players of any level are not technical or tactical. Even a total newbie to tennis quickly realizes that when he passes the local courts and overhears many inappropriate words and emotional outbursts.
Gallwey masterfully explains his concepts of Self1 and Self2; there is an inner dialogue in our mind - and it's usually not the friendliest one. When we learn to find harmony between both parts of our mind is when we discover the harmony in our mind - body connection.
His next very powerful concept is ?letting it happen? vs. ?trying hard?. It comes very counter intuitively since that what we believe that we have to do when things are not working yet. We try harder. In tennis that translates to tension, narrow awareness and emotional hitting.
I've personally discovered this fact before reading this book and called it ?less is more?. When you learn new things in tennis whether they are a technique, tactics or movement your first tries rarely succeed. But instead of trying harder try less. Hit slower, grip your racquet lighter, move more lightly and don't try to be good or even perfect. Accept your current level and stay with it for a while. Suddenly you'll experience improvement which happens by itself.
This approach is closely tied to his final concept of non-judgment. It means seeing things as they are without adding our labels of good and bad. The biggest problem is the consequent thinking which comes after the label ?bad?. It spreads like a virus from a bad shot to the bad stroke and then to the bad player and finally to the bad person.
If we investigate our thinking we realize that there is no logical connection between bad backhands and our inner self. And the best way of investigation of our thinking and making yourself free from these concepts is Loving what is by Byron Katie.
Tomaz Mencinger
http://www.tennismindgame.com
Book Review: Highly recommended, for tennis and beyond!
Summary: 5 Stars
This book is simply a gem. I would highly recommend it for anyone seeking to improve their tennis game, but the scope of its content goes far, far beyond mere tennis. In fact, I picked up this book after several of my colleagues recommended it to me. As a professional musician, I find myself confronted by the same mental games Tim Gallwey brooches here. Though "The Inner Game of Music" was inspired and written in conjunction with Tim Gallwey several years later, I find "The Inner Game of Tennis" infinitely more inspiring. It is direct in its approach, highly concentrated, and easy to make the leap from tennis to any other discipline. In no uncertain terms, this book changed the way I make music, and changed my life. For anyone who, despite all your best efforts, all of your hardest "trying," still doesn't manage to get the ball over the net, hit the high note, or otherwise succeed at something because your own mental noise is getting in the way, this is the book for you.
After reading this, I became engrossed with the philosophies behind Gallwey's experiences, and I continued to pursue other books in the same vein: "Zen and the Art of Archery," "Effortless Mastery," etc. None of them hold a candle to this one, however.
It is earth-moving in its simplicity and has the power to change how you approach almost any discipline.
I continue to re-read and refer to it on a regular basis.