Coordination goes hand in hand with agility. Not only is it important to be in the right place at the right time, you need to coordinate your feet, hand, and eyes, and use your body like a machine – getting all the parts to work together in a way that produces good results (a good shot).
Timing is also linked to the aforementioned points. Precious time can easily be wasted on deciding which shot to play as opposed to actually playing it – and this extra time gives your opponent time to recover from their previous shot, and prepare to receive. If this amount of time is shortened, then your opponent’s chances of hitting the shuttlecock decrease dramatically.
Strengths of the participant / yourself in your chosen sport /activity
I think I exhibit a fair level of skill in badminton and can practice each shot at an average level at present in a closed or open-skill environment. I am able to serve accurately and can continue a stable game. I am familiar with the stroke cycle – ready, prepare, hit, recover – and have not experienced difficulties in putting this into practice.
I understand the basic rules of badminton – and have a fair understanding of each of the shots - net shots, overhead clear, the smash, underarm shots, the (high / low) serve, and the drop shot – and when they might be appropriate: for example, a net shot would not be useful when you desire the shuttlecock to reach the back of the court.
I am beginning to understand techniques such as deception – in which you mock the actions of one shot i.e. the overhead clear and bring your racket down instead, playing the smash. Deception is a very useful tactic which I think I am able to utilise suitably.
Weaknesses of the participant / yourself in your chosen sport /activity
Although prior to this section, I mentioned that I am able to put my learnt techniques into practice in an open-skill fashion – I am not very confident in doing so and occasionally lose focus. I tend to spend vital seconds deciding on which shot to utilise or which direction to move, and as a result of this, I give my opponent easy points. I find my footwork to be underdeveloped – in several situations, I preferred to stretch my arm and give an inaccurate shot as opposed to moving my feet and being able to take control of the shuttlecock and directing it the way I want it to go. This is also the case with my backhand shots. Where I could simple turn my hand and hit the shuttlecock, I instead stretch my arm uncomfortably and hit the shuttlecock – in an uncoordinated, inaccurate fashion.
I currently feel unable to move myself into any position where I could in fact play the majority of my learned shots. I have difficulties with estimation and spatial awareness – and find it hard to predict where the shuttlecock might land. This is my highest priority as a weakness – if I cannot make an estimate of which way the shuttlecock is heading, I cannot move myself into a suitable position where I will successfully hit it.
I lack upper body strength, and this makes it difficult to drive shots such as the overhead clear with the power required. Without force, I am giving my opponent the time that they might need to decipher which shot I am playing or intend to play. Further developing the force of my shots would guarantee an improvement in my game: both the overhead clear and the smash would improve – they would become faster, sharper, more effective shots.
Suggested methods of improvement on identified strengths or weaknesses
In order to improve my general level of skill and performance in badminton; I will focus on the following points:
- Footwork
- Decision making
- Backhand shots (and using a wider variety of shots in a game)
- Increasing my upper body strength
I think practising and consolidating my learnt skills – i.e. the shots – would benefit my game. My backhand shot is the weakest of each of the shots, and I think that practising this in a closed-skill environment would enable me to be more confident and less focused on the initial shot - but would be able to concentrate the positioning of my feet (am I in the ready position?) and my timing. Doing some exercise would probably help this – and give me a higher cardiac output – which would mean my muscles wouldn’t get tired and I would move more readily.
I intend to set myself a 4-week training plan, in order to improve in the aforementioned areas – specifically my decision making/footwork. I think that by pushing myself one step further each week, I will gradually improve and be more confident of my ability.
Identify appropriate training methods and what improvement has been observed
In this section I will identify each of the training methods and try to apply their benefits to the benefit of my skill in badminton.
Circuit training is basically a series of exercises designed to develop any type of skill. The circuits can be adaptable to training of any sport, and therefore, would be useful for improving my skill in badminton. To carry out circuit training, I would ensure I included exercises to increase my general fitness levels (i.e. exercises that require stamina, speed and agility) and also include some closed skill exercises, such as practicing the different shots.
• Continuous training
Continuous training requires the body’s demand for oxygen to match the oxygen intake; and therefore works to improve aerobic capacity. Continuous training helps to improve general fitness and certain aspects such as stamina – however, I’m not sure if this is useful for me as a badminton player. Although you do need to be on your feet and ready to receive and deliver shots, this extensive training would be more beneficial for athletes such as cyclists and swimmers.
• Fartlek
Fartlek is a Swedish word meaning “speed play”; so it seems obvious that this form of training is continuous and speedy - designed to stress the aerobic energy system: much like continuous training. Again, I don’t really think that this is a necessary form of training to use to improve my skills in badminton – it is not a sport which is as physically demanding as something such as long-distance running.
• Flexibility training
Flexibility training – although one would not presume so – applies to all types of sports. Flexibility training ought to be a part of all training programs because it can improve specific joints and muscles in the body. Flexibility is fairly important in badminton – you need to be flexible to get to the shuttlecock and your speed of reaction goes hand in hand with your flexibility. Being able to acknowledge the shot and actually being able to move to carry out the shot are very important aspects of badminton and should not be overlooked.
• Interval training
Interval training is basically training for a specific amount of time, followed by short rest periods. This technique is used to develop speed. However, I think interval training is not useful for badminton, as you do need to be constantly playing – there are no short breaks, as the actual skill and game are not too physically demanding.
• Weight training
Weight training is mainly used to develop strength and muscular endurance, however, it can improve general fitness also. I think weight training would be helpful and useful in improving my weaknesses in badminton – particularly my lack of strength to drive the shuttlecock and follow through a set-up shot. Weight training would improve my upper body strength, and this would mean that I could improve shots such as the overhead clear – where the strength and power drives and completes the shot.
I have devised a four week training plan in which I will consider each of the different training methods mentioned above. However, as some of them are not useful and would not be beneficial for myself to use, I will not consider them when creating this particular training plan. Perhaps if I had more time, i.e. 10 weeks, I would include the ideas of these different methods, however, seeing as I have 4 weeks, I need to concentrate and focus on my weakest points and the best ways to improve the specified areas in my game.
Week 1
Throughout the first week, I will focus on reminding myself of each of the shots. This will be done by firstly revising each shot and then practising as a closed-skill (where there are no factors which may affect my game). I will watch an open-skill game of badminton and analyse what each of the players do and how their bodies move to comply with each shot.
Week 2
During the second week, I will devise a circuit which tests my agility and speed of reaction. This will be a closed skill – however, I think it will improve the way I move. The circuit will include things like running in and out of cones, practising some shots etc. This will also help to improve cardiac output.
Week 3
In week 3, I will attempt to put my practice to the test and rally in an open-skill fashion with an opponent. We will rally for 20 minutes of the session, and then rehearse the backhand shot. I will both send and receive this shot, and be aware of the positioning of my body and arms.
Week 4
I will play short 10-minute games against opponents of different abilities. I will focus on receiving the shots (where are my feet?) as opposed to the accuracy of my own shots (as this has been covered in previous weeks). I will ensure that I follow the stroke cycle – making sure that I ‘prepare’ and ‘recover’ correctly.
It is important to mention that each week; I will warm up and cool down appropriately. This is vital – the body needs to be well prepared for physical exercise and the heart rate needs to be gradually increased: just as it needs to be decreased and be allowed to return gradually to its normal resting state.
