Le Padel is experiencing exceptional growth on all continents. But you will see that the padel is a sport that is not necessarily “quiet” physically. 

In this column, we are not going to analyze the type of physical effort that is put into a game. Indeed, our study will focus on the impact of padel on our joints and muscles. Therefore the Padel, impact sport or not?

The explosion

One of the main characteristics of this sport is the work of the players of Padel on their explosiveness throughout the meeting as well to achieve lobs, as for movements, jumps, etc.

  • What is that ?

Explosiveness is defined as the ability to trigger maximum muscle contraction in a minimum amount of time. It can be decisive for the performance of the player because throughout the game, you will need to be explosive.

  • In what situations does a Padel must it be explosive?

If we observe at the simply practical level actions on a field of Padel, this brief theoretical explanation of explosiveness basically translates into accelerations to get to a ball, in jumps, in rapid movements to have a good placement, etc. These accelerations are achieved by means of the succession of strong and rapid presses against the ground which allows the body to project itself forward or upwards at high speed. Also, the explosiveness is found in slower phases, such as deceleration, after a jump or a change of direction.

In the acceleration phase, the impacts are more “damped” since the supports are used in such a way that the body does not suffer any damage (alignment of the joints in particular).

On the other hand, in the deceleration phase, there will be a greater degree of impact, landing on the ground after a jump, for example. The deceleration phase involves a greater eccentric work important muscles of the thigh (including quadriceps) to be able to slow the inertia of the body in a very short time, and little support.

Effects of impacts on the body

These repeated impacts that occur during the practice of padel can be beneficial for the body: a lot of calories expended, coordination work, strength, etc.

But under certain conditions, these impacts can be detrimental to the body.

When we talk about the impacts that the body undergoes, we must take into account the strength of the latter, and the playing surface (carpet more or less worn).

How intense can the impacts be?

The intensity will be determined by the force with which the player will put his supports, traditionally calculated in G (weight of the body of the individual). The stronger the impact, the higher the G generated, so we can have impacts that generate 2 force times the body weight, 2 times, 3 times, etc.

And the accumulation of these high intensity impacts can cause problems for the body (joint, muscles) if the body is not well prepared to receive this kind of impact.

How to prevent these impacts?

To help reduce these impacts that the joints receive, it is necessary to strengthen the muscles that will have the role of protecting them. An appropriate musculature in the thigh in particular can absorb a significant amount of impact. We usually say that muscle fibers are the first to receive the vibrations, and the impacts, and if it fails, for example by inadequate physical condition, the joints will be more vulnerable.

Le padel, a sport with significant impacts

It must be taken into account that the fact of receiving more or less important impacts in terms of intensity, may be beneficial to the human body for consolidation and bone stimulation for example.

We are not talking about the same type of impact that occurs consistently and low intensity running for example. We are talking about impacts that occur at high intensity when the player wants to rotate, brake, hit, land after a jump, etc.

The risk factor we are talking about is to receive a lot of high intensity impacts, and repeatedly throughout the match which can lead the body to suffer some damage such as periostitis, pronounced cartilage wear, pathology to the lumbar, edema bone, etc.

The most vulnerable beginner / intermediate players

Le padel, it's great, but it's also a sport that can deceive us. We can believe we know how to play when in reality we destroy ourselves.

Do preventative muscle strengthening exercises but also try to acquire the right techniques. Because, with a bad grip, a bad placement, the padel, can accentuate the undesirable effects of impacts.

For this, we recommend our tutorials padel but also to get closer to your teacher padel who will be able to help you.

Alexis Dutour

Alexis Dutour is passionate about padel. With his training in communication and marketing, he puts his skills at the service of padel to offer us articles that are always very interesting.

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