online edition - PRO Sports Club

tennisBy Raheena CharaniaAfter winning 58 Grand Slam titles, Martina Navratilova hasn’tquite finished with her tennis career. Making a comeback as adoubles player in 2000 after retiring in 1994, she’s still going strongat age 50. “All I can say is that I’m damn good,” says Navratilova.“I’m sorry, but I really have to blow my own horn here. I’m still thatgood. The ball doesn’t know how old you are.”The ball doesn’t know how old you are. That’s all there is to it.When asked why she’s still playing professional tennis, she replies,“Because I still can. A lot of athletes would compete longer if theycould still compete at a level that’s acceptable, that’s exciting, that’scompetitive with the rest of the field. Most people leave becausethey just can’t do it anymore. I left because I’d had enough. Andthen I thought, ‘Well, maybe I can play a little again.’ I had so muchfun doing it again, I wondered, ‘Why did I leave?’”What’s the magic behind tennis that draws so many people to thecourts? Quite simply, as Navratilova re-discovered, it’s pure fun! Andwhen you’re having fun, you don’t feel as if you’re “working out.”Sima Ehsan has been playing tennis offand on since her early twenties. “Sincewe joined the club in 1981, we play ona very regular basis,” says Ehsan. “Itmaintains our health, our shape, andkeeps our limbs very supple and flexible.Generally, I don’t feel a day older thanwhen I was 39 years old.” Ehsan hashad two arthroscopic surgeries on her knees due to tennis injuries.Yet she continues to play. “The key to all the pains and aches ofyour body is really exercise,” she believes. “If I’m not active, theknees can tend to stiffen up. But as long as I continue playing,I’m comfortable with no pain whatsoever. I owe my health and myyouthful attitude all to tennis. There isn’t enough I can say aboutit. There’s also the spirit of competition. That too is good for youryouthfulness. It gets your blood moving faster. The day that you giveup being competitive, is the day you start to grow old. ”Bob Davidson played tennis when hewas younger, and took up the gameagain 12 years ago when he joined thec lub. “It’s a nice diversion for a semiretiredperson,” says Davidson. “It’sgood exercise and it’s social. I try tokeep my reflexes sharp just so I can playtennis because I enjoy it so much.”So, get your game on! If you want to have so much fun at an exerciseprogram that you don’t want it to end, try tennis. Whether you’rereturning to the game you once enjoyed years ago or want to learn anew, easy-to-learn sport with great health benefits, tennis is for you.There are even national championship tournaments for players age90 and over! So, you can truly enjoy the sport for a lifetime!Talks About Turning 50“As I approach that milestone of 50, I’ve been asked hundreds of times, ‘Why can you still move the way you do? How do you stay in such good shape? What’syour secret?’ My ‘secret’ has been a combination of things. I follow a healthy, delicious diet. I pay attention when little aches and pains pop up, and I take careof them. I work out and play lots of different sports. I take time off from my workouts. Along with all that, there’s hard work, a little common sense, and somegenetic luck thrown in for good measure. My formula, lifestyle, philosophy, or whatever else you want to call it has evolved from more than 30 years of trialand error, fortunately more successful trial than error. I’ve worked with nutritionists, trainers, coaches, doctors, osteopaths, chiropractors, homeopaths, andkinesiologists.” --- Martina Navratilova“I can outrun many women who are half my age, still play tennis competitively, and do all the other sports I love: basketball, hockey, and skiing, to name a few.I’m not ashamed to admit it: I do feel young.” --- Martina Navratilova36 PRO PULSE SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2006 photos By Gerald Pope