The Hidden Injury Risks in Padel (And How to Avoid Them)

Tom, there's normally 3 ways that people get injured. They either don't warm up, they don't do what they should do before when they go on court, or they have poor technique, or they are using the wrong equipment. So why don't we do an episode on the safety on the court, both them personally, like how they feel safe on the court, but also the exterior surroundings, the weather, the conditions, the equipment. When should people know when to play and when not to play?

Because we, we go around a lot of clubs, don't we, across the world, and we're always seeing injuries. We're seeing players getting injured, and I think for everyone listening out there as well, it's not uncommon, is it, to, to go to your local club and you see someone with an ice pack on an Achilles, or someone's gone over and injured themselves. And so Obviously a big part of what makes padel great is having fun on the court, but there is the reality of padel that it is a sport that people can get injured with. So let's talk about how we can prevent players getting injured.

Well, I think if we look at the journey a little bit, like people go from not having ever played it to 3 weeks later playing 5 or 6 times a week and playing a lot, like people are playing for 2, 3, 4 hours sometimes on court and They are basically— their body is not used to that amount of repetition. Like you and I, we came from a professional tennis background, so our body is kind of used to the action, but even still, padel is a slightly different movement. So people, when they play more padel, they have to be aware that they need to take precautions if they don't want to get injured.

It's deceptive, isn't it? Because padel is so enjoyable, it's so addictive, and so players start They start playing and they think, oh, I'm suddenly going to start playing every single day. And the body, the mind is up for it because it's enjoyable. And we see it as well, how many times the players say, I've played 4 hours today. And you think, what other sport could you actually do that in? You're not going to say suddenly play football for 4 hours and especially not expecting to be injury-free after 4 hours of football. But in padel, there's this idea that because it's so fun, The time flies and you can play for hours and hours on end, but the body, it catches up with you.

I think padel is deceptive as well. When you play, you think, oh, this isn't that strenuous. Like, I can play for 3 or 4 hours, you know, I'll be fine physically. But actually, there's the movement, multi-directional movement. You're running up, like jumping up and reaching for some shots. You're crouching low, turning in corners, trying to react off the fence, receiving volleys in towards your body. Like, there's loads of reactive nuances to paddle that you probably don't realize if you're just playing it on a recreational level.

Yes, the jolting and jarring, isn't there? Of— and even I find that when I play, is that if a ball comes off the fence at an angle, suddenly you're, you're having to bend down. You're probably doing a movement you've never done, especially not in the gym, but you're having to put your body into lots of different positions to try and retrieve this ball. And so yeah, definitely, if your body's not up for it, then it can cause injury. So why don't we start with preparing before the match, because that's one of the most important things.

Yeah, I mean, we're always talking about doing a good warm-up, and actually on our Faster Feet for Padel course, we have a 5-minute follow-along warm-up, and it's a combination of mobility, a little bit of strength exercises, you do some core exercises, a little bit of rotation, and the idea is, is you just do that, that 5 minutes before you get on court, and then when you get on court, you start playing with control, playing slow, and you get yourself into the match. I think gone are the days when you used to jog around the court. I remember that as a kid in tennis, like jog around the court 5 times, okay, let's go back and let's hit some balls. Now it's a bit more specific to the sport, and so there's mobility in there and there's core in there, but something like that before you go on is just preparing the body for about, for what's about to take place on the court.

And preparing your mind, right? Because we hear this a lot from players saying, I had a slow start, or whenever I play this certain pair, I always lose the first set, then I win the second, you know, the second and third set. And then our follow-up question normally is, well, what did your warm-up look like? That's the first thought that comes to our mind is, okay, well, how did you prepare for that going on to it? And usually we find that those players that have slow starts are not doing a dedicated warm-up. They may be arriving to the match court 5 minutes late, dropping the bag down, jumping on court, We know everyone has busy lives, but at the same time, if you do want to start strong and play consistently, that warm-up time is not only about injury prevention, which is what we're talking about in this episode, but preparing your, your mind for the game. And like you say, that Faster Feet for Padel course, so many members on our platform are using it, loving it, and they're making it part of their routine because it is only 5 minutes, but it's a moment that allows them to ground themselves get mentally in the right space to go onto court, but also physically be sharp so that first ball is hit, they're ready.

And I think particularly this is the case if you have like a little niggling injury, like if your shoulder's a little bit sore or your leg or knee is a little bit sore, instead of thinking, oh, I'm just going to jog this off in the first set, it's like, do 5— it's only 5 minutes, it's not a lot, like 5 minutes of warm-up and exercise before you get on. It just means you're less likely to turn that into a more serious injury. And if it is a more serious injury and it is painful and you feel a sharp pain or you feel something that doesn't feel right, it's probably a question then like, should you actually even play?

Play at all?

Yeah. I mean, you and I are, I would say, very fussy when it comes to when we train and we play. If we're feeling ill or we're like injured or something is sore, like we won't play. We won't play if the conditions are bad, like if it's wet conditions or it's really windy or it's something that will put us off the game in terms of how we play, we won't play. If we don't have Good balls, like the, the right racket, shoes. We would never play if we don't bring the right shoes. Like, these are all things that, yes, you could probably say that, that we're fussy when it comes to that, but also, like, we've been injured between us many, many times, right? So we, we don't want to be injured again.

Yeah. So let's talk about the conditions on the court. We talked about what players should do before they go on the court. Let's talk about safety on the court and when a player should play and when a player perhaps shouldn't play.

Yeah, I think general safety is— but like, for me, immediately my mind goes, like, as a coach, to balls on the ground. Like, I just— players, like, kicking the ball into the glass behind them thinking that they're kicking it out of the way, or they just kick it, hit it into the corner, and it— we see it as the coach, we're watching it rebound and then come right behind their feet again. And all it takes is for you to roll your ankle once on a ball for you to never ever do that. But we don't want you to roll your ankle at all. So instead of putting any of the balls behind you, just roll them into the net. Roll them into the net in front of you. Ideally, put them close to the net as well. If you roll it into the net and it rolls out by another meter, then that's really within the field of play. So put them up against the net, get them right out the way. Like that for me is probably the primary.

I also feel like as a player, we would always do this in our matches, but I feel like other players have a bit of a duty to, if you spot a ball on the opponent's side, to say something and say, right, let's move this ball. Like if I was playing against you and I noticed the ball, let's say was in the corner or it wasn't close enough to the net to perhaps be something that you could stand on, I would say, okay, before we start this point, let's move this ball because also it's a bit of a distraction for me. If I'm playing and that ball is in a corner, not only am I thinking, well, potentially you might slip on it, but it's kind of distracting for me.

Well, you would stop the point immediately.

Yeah, I would say that.

If you noticed it during the point, you would like be, stop, Yeah, let's move the ball. Like, and that, that's how I think it should be. Now, now players at a club are not used to that. They'll see the ball and think, oh, well, I know it's there, I'm not going to—

Yeah, I don't want to disrupt anything, I won't say anything.

But you and I, like, we would stop the point immediately and go, let's move the ball, let's just play again, play a let. And I think that's, you know, that's an important thing. I think the same is with a lace. If your laces came undone during the point, you didn't notice, I would stop immediately and go, hey Tom, like, just let's Tie your laces up, let's go again. And these are things that the players are probably just not quite aware about. And I think that anything that could lead to an injury, like, you should really just stop, immediately stop. And the worst is that you replay the point.

Yeah. And going back to this idea of when, especially when you're serving with balls, is that if you come and play with shorts that don't allow you to hold a ball in your pocket, If that's the case, we recommend obviously wearing shorts that allow you to have a ball in your pocket. It's just, it's just easier just to do that. But if you don't, then just have one ball that you serve with and leave the other one like safely in the net. Don't— I see this a lot where someone rolls it behind them, so they go, oh, if I miss the first serve, it will be there just behind me so I can pick it up. But again, it goes back to this idea of if you do make your first serve, then you've got a stray ball behind you that you're potentially going to trip up on. So Yeah, do wear shorts that have pockets, and if you don't, then only use one ball, and if you miss your first serve, go and get another one from the net.

Well, I see people with two balls coming up to the line, serving, getting the serve in, and then just throwing the other ball behind them as the point starts. And so you don't even know where that ball's gone afterwards. I mean, it's just an injury waiting to happen, that, basically.

And let's talk about, as well, rackets, because we talked about balls. I mean, the most obvious, and a rule of the game, is to wear the strap on the racket. Well, you have to. You have to. Well, yeah, but if you go around, I feel like a lot of clubs, it feels optional, but it really isn't. And again, as a player, and I've had this conversation many a time, is that you definitely have the right to speak to another player and say, hey, can you wear the strap on the racket? And this isn't being picky or trying to obey all of the rules in padel, even though it is, it's more like, the amount of times we've seen the racket fly out of someone's hand and hit someone and be dangerous is genuinely something that is like, wear the strap.

Yeah, and you are well within your rights to stop the match and go, look, put the strap on or get off the court, because I mean, it is the rules and it's, you know, it's a safety issue really.

All right, so we talked about rackets, we talked about balls, shoes is a big one for me. Before we go on to the actual court itself, I want to talk about shoes because This is something that I see so much, the running shoes. We've talked about it on a previous podcast, but wearing running shoes on a padel court is not— is going to set you up for an injury because they're not designed for all of the twisting and turning that you're going to do on a padel court. And so often we see players on court with nice-looking running shoes. To be fair, they are nice running shoes, but they're just so not suitable for padel.

Yeah, I think when you've got someone and they come for an intro lesson and it's their first time on a padel court, I think you have to just make them aware. Like, you can't expect people to have paddle shoes, and maybe not even tennis shoes. I think you just make them aware and say, look, if you want to play this sport more, you really need tennis or paddle shoes for the stability in the ankle, right? Like, you know, I think it's something that if you can tell them to bring tennis shoes or paddle shoes when they come— a lot of people don't have those, you know— get them started and just tell them to be careful. And then say, look, you know, if you, if you want to play more, then this is what you need. And I think that's probably the way to to go about it.

Yeah, and what about— I'm curious to know about, uh, goggles and glasses, like what your thoughts are on that, because we see some players wear them. I know that the players that I've spoken to that wear eye protection, usually they've had an accident in the past or they've been very aware of that happening on the court and they've decided to wear glasses as a result, but The amount of times, I don't know if you've had this, but the amount of times where I've had almost like narrow escapes with it, where perhaps a ball is shanked and it's hit you in the face or something like that. Personally, I don't wear them indoors. I'd wear sunglasses for protection from the sun and to be able to see, but curious to know your thoughts on like transparent glasses.

Yeah, I think it's strange that it's not more common. In terms of like people using them to play. And I think it depends on where you are in your, your level. Like a very beginner level, there's almost— there's less risk because people don't have like— aren't able to hit with the power, and, and there's enough time for you to move out of the way of the ball. And it's almost in that, I would say, kind of high intermediate, intermediate level where players can hit power with their smashes, but they don't have full control over exactly where it goes, and therefore it can be unpredictable. And, and added to the fact that you play in a lot of clubs where it's a canopy and maybe it's quite bright outside, or there's a car behind the back glass and there's slight flashing, or you can't quite see like really clearly. And so I am surprised that, that goggles and glasses are not more common. I also use them outside for, you know, for the sun, but not to, to protect my eyes. I think the level that you and I play at I can't think of a time where we've had like a near miss. Sometimes you accidentally get hit because a shot has come towards you and it hits you on the legs, but I don't feel like it's that common. Whereas when I watch recreational club matches, you see it more frequently. You think, "Oh God, he didn't mean to hit there at all." And it's become a bit more dangerous.

Yeah, I think like you say, at that level it's more a smash going wayward and it's like a direct hit. Onto someone, and at a high level you wouldn't have that. But I've had it a few times where, for example, the ball's gone through the middle and both players go for the volley and it hits almost like your partner's racket on the top and it kind of flies towards you. I mean, again, I guess that's the essence of an accident, but it's, you know, you can have those situations where a ball flies your way, it's a complete accident, but Yeah, it's, uh, I think we'll see, I think we'll see it more often.

I think we will see people wearing goggles more often. I think it won't be long until it's probably recommended, like, particularly given the glass and the way you move the glass and how the ball can react off the fence, and you're in such close quarters with your partner. I wouldn't be surprised to see more regulation out there and actually to see people using goggles and glasses more often.

And what about courts? Let's talk about the court itself, because there are times when a player should and should not play on a padel court. So let's jump into that.

Yeah, and I think again, if we go back to you and I, we're fussy. If we're going to play outdoors and it's rained a little bit and it's a bit wet, then we wouldn't play. But I think that not everyone can be in that situation, and I think you've got to almost weigh it up to say, right, is it going to affect the quality of the game and is it an injury risk? Because if it's a little bit wet, you would say, yes, it's going to affect the quality because the balls will get heavier and therefore they carry a bit of an injury risk when you're playing with them. But also at the same time, we can play to a level. Whereas if it gets wet enough that you are slipping, then that's really for me is like a do not play.

Yeah, the wet balls is a really interesting one because so many players again come to us especially in the UK where they're playing outdoors, damp conditions in winter, and they complain of having elbow injuries and soreness in the arm. And then you speak to them and say, well, are you changing the balls regularly? How often do you use brand new balls? They're saying, well, not that often. And then say, oh, let's look at your racket. Oh, this is a very hard racket. And in a way it's no wonder.

Yeah, but it's Quayos. Yeah.

But you think, well, no wonder then you've got, I mean, probably you and I would have an elbow injury if if we were using that equipment. So it's, yeah, the court and the impact it has on the balls is a massive factor.

It's difficult though, isn't it? Because a lot of people don't have access to indoor courts. Like their local courts, they're outdoors. And so if you're in the UK and you don't play when it's wet, like are you just not playing for 7 months of the year? Like that's the way up there, right? And you can't play in wet conditions and keep the balls dry.

Yeah, it'd have to— well, you, you could start with, with new balls. You'd have to start each time.

Well, it would be such a waste, wouldn't it, to start with new balls and in, in two games they're sopping wet and you need to change? That would imply you need 4 or 5 cans per, per time you play, and those balls are then ruined, right? So I, I do sympathize. I just think you probably— what you would do is choose a lighter ball, choose a ball that, that maybe has less of, you know, less fluff, can, can hold less moisture, and then you would just be, be careful when you play and do a really good warm-up. Yeah, like, that's the key, is if you do a really good warm-up and you do play with heavier balls in slightly worse conditions, you, you probably will, will be fine and get something out of it.

And the racket, that's another factor, is that if you do use— we were joking about Cuero's racket— but if you do use a hard racket that perhaps sounds great when you hit a smash, you've got to remember that actually there is an impact on, on your arm for that. And if, if you are playing in heavier conditions, that's just gonna just maximize the, the load on, on that part of your body. So it's definitely something if, like you say, if you can't access indoor courts, you're having to play in wet conditions, then do think there is something you can control, and that is using a racket that is a bit softer, a bit more forgiving.

And there's something else you can control, which is your technique. Yeah, right. Like here we've talked about like your warm-up, your preparation, we talked about the equipment like on court, but also the equipment you use. And really like a major factor is technique. And, and that is where really we built the platform so that people could build their technique. You could build the foundations of your game by going onto the platform. You've got follow-along videos, you've got exercises, courses that you can do to improve the techniques of your shots, because that is a major cause of injury as well.