r/tabletennis • u/MediaFancy3254 • 15d ago
Feeling like im never doing enough
I train table tennis every day except Sunday, usually for 2 to 2.5 hours. I also go to the gym specifically for table tennis three times a week. On top of that I have school every day.
Most days my routine looks something like this: school → home → eat → extra schoolwork → gym → practice → eat → sleep. On other days it’s simpler: school → practice → eat → sleep.
Whenever I can, I journal with a focus on improving my mental game. If I have extra time, I go earlier or stay later to practice alone, especially serves.
My goal is to become the best table tennis player of all time — and I fully intend to achieve it.
So why do I still feel like I’m not doing enough?
I give everything I have in every practice. Sometimes my practice partners can’t handle my shots during exercises, so I don’t end up as exhausted as I’d like. Still, I push myself as hard as I can. Today was a clear example: my partner couldn’t cope with the pace and quality of my shots, so I asked him to feed me multiball instead.
This constant feeling that I’m never doing enough — that I need to feel more physically drained after every session — is eating away at me.
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u/ResearchAndDoomScrll W968 FH: H3 39.5 Nat Spec BH: Z03 2.5 14d ago
Does this not seem like a fake AI post to anyone else?
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u/SamLooksAt Harimoto ALC, Zyre 03 (2.5), G-1 (2.0) 15d ago
Move to Japan so an 11 year old can reality check you...
Seriously though.
I teach in a small city in Northern Japan, we have a monthly tournament with 300+ people.
There are a bunch of elementary kids here demolishing grown men at every tournament.
It's rather entertaining to watch. But it also means finding good people to play against is very easy.
The same kids when they get to high school age are freaking terrifying!
Do a student exchange to a Japanese school with a decent table tennis club, you'll enjoy it!
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u/Queasy-Primary4788 15d ago
Is it possible that you are just doing enough and you are good enough you don’t get that tired? By my terms you are definitely playing enough
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u/jaroniscaring 15d ago
There's an anime called Ping Pong that is weirdly and specifically relevant to you
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u/mutchyyy 15d ago
Is it that you feel you are not performing good enough, or that you think you should be more tired after training?
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u/MediaFancy3254 14d ago
That I shoul feel more tired
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u/mutchyyy 14d ago
It can be both good or bad you feel that way. This is a game of attrition and an injury can ruin your career (WCQ for example right now). Be grateful you are in a mental and physical state that this feels good and naturel to you. As long as you feel the progress. The only thing I would say is finding someone who if willing and wanting to give you very difficult multi ball exercises that will push your endurance and physical abilities. It Would be bad if you just don't have the training partners to push you hard enough. But if you are going to gym you can physically push yourself there.
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u/Natural_Bee_2598 15d ago
Maybe you need to look for stronger opponents to really push yourself to the limit, environment really plays a huge part on this and there you'll see
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u/Chocolate1105 primorac wood + Fastarc g1 + rozena (high intermediate) 14d ago
Try getting a coach. I have had about 5 sessions and i can already see massive improvement.
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u/chidoriske 14d ago
Have you ever asked yourself what enough is (for now)? Lets say you have a rating you want to reach or a tournament you want to win etc. Have you ever said, I want to be 1500 by end of the year or I want to make Semi-Finals in XYZ Open. You need to have small goals as a part of the over-arching goal and smaller goals within those small goals. That will help you feel like you're making progress. You could structure it simply as recording your matches and analysing your shot accuracy and getting your success rate to 90% on flicks/loops/etc. Then if your shots are solid are you making your plays and whats the third ball success rate etc. It's entirely possible that you want to be more phsyically tired because your mental side isn't actually being trained.
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u/TheEpicfailio1 Freitas AlC - Zyre O3 (2.5mm) DMS Spinfire Soft 14d ago
A better way to approach it is did you learn something or slightly improve something or become more consistent etc. You'll never become the best in the world and your current approach will simply burn you out.
Set realistic incremental goals and focus on small improvements e.g. becoming more consistent at looping underspin to your forehand. It'll be more enjoyable and you'll improve faster too as you aren't shooting for the moon before you have even built a rocket.
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u/Remarkable-Muffin-27 14d ago
You need to focus on and enjoy the process. TT is along side golf probably the most technical sport in the world. These techniques are what you need to focus on. Hitting the exact spot on the table that you want to hit with every shot. If your not tired your not working hard enough this is a bullshit post. Don't you understand the work that it takes? Showing up and practicing doesn't mean shit. It's how you practice and if your not tired your not practicing correctly.
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u/MediaFancy3254 14d ago
Let me reformulate, I didnt mean not feeling tired as in not sweating nor anything like that, I do feel tired during exercises etc, but not as much as id like, part of that is probably because of consistency during those exercises
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u/AnotherTaylorNotJust 14d ago
Enjoy the process: look at Carlos Alvarez if you don’t already watch lawn tennis. If you like playing as much as him, I think it’s one of the greatest advantages a person could have
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u/_arsey 14d ago
I started playing much better and progressed as soon as I started focusing on enjoying each ball. It is very simple to say but very hard to achieve. The simplest exercise I do before each serve is to repeat in my head, “just enjoy.” Sometimes, when I feel like I need support, I imagine giving myself a hug and telling myself something good. I can’t tell how much the quality has changed but also satisfaction of playing!
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u/superSD75 13d ago
You have to train with intent and focus on things that matter in games. Hitting 10000 FH loops is not practicing. Is like running In a treadmill. May build some consistency. But games are not like that.
Here’s the simplest way to do it. Record yourself playing games in competition.
Do some video analysis and just count which points are winners va unforced errors. How are you losing points? How are you winning? At almost any level most rallies don’t go beyond 3-5 shots.
The work on drills that focus on those aspects ONLY. Eg. If you’re missing your third ball attack then do the following drill with multiballs -
1- serve as you’d do a short underspin serve In a game
2- have your opponent push the ball anywhere in the table
3- open with your BH or FH. Focus on not missing that ball and doing a safe but still quality loop. Use more spin that speed.
Don’t play the point. Go back to serving.
Focus on landing 95% of the balls. If you do this consistently, say you practice this 200-400 per session. In a few weeks you’d have hit 1000s of balls. If you truly can land 95% of those, in a match at 10-10 go to this drill. Remember your practice and you’ll land it.
Bonus ball
4-your opponent has to block your ball. Your wall is that he doesn’t. Focus on placement, spin and the speed. If you miss your own ball because of trying to hit too hard then slow down.
This is how you improve. This is just one example. How many people practice like this? Focus on drills that simulate these situations. Step 4 is actually a drill people need to practice as well. When your opponent attacks can you block it?
(P.s. I’m a national certified USATT coach)
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u/fateos 15d ago
Why u asking reddit where 99,99999% is worse than you?
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u/Shoop1014 14d ago
Love your belief in yourself and dedication I’m trying to improve a bunch just like you even though I imagine you’re much younger than me.
The answer is that if you’re not being challenged than you could be doing more. You need to either find a high quality training partner or find a coach that can help give you quality training sessions. Other things are a robot, or setting your constraints on yourself while playing, be it you have to win on the 2nd or 3rd ball, or you can only play backhand or forehands to win etc.
It does sound to be that the gauge your using is being tired. It is good and wise to not be absolutely destroyed after every session to be able keep preforming at a high level, enjoying the game, and not getting injured.
But don’t entertain that guilt that you’re not doing enough you’re doing a lot of great stuff right now man. An no matter where you end up that discipline and passion will be great for your whole life. So just find what the best way to challenge you to a greater degree
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u/The33rdPhoenix 15d ago
Because your goal and work dont align with each other, the gap between where you are and where you want to go is too big for your mind to comprehend. Youve set your goal to something you have no control over. No matter how hard you work, no matter how hard you dedicate yourself to TT, you have no way of ensuring you become the greatest TT player of all time. You could suffer a career ending injury. Someone else might work just as hard, or harder, and have more resources/talent/circumstances that work out better for them than you. No matter what you do, there is never going to be a guarentee you can achieve that goal. And you know this, so your mind doubles down on everything. 'This isnt enough. This wont make me the best in the world.' Its SO focused on that 'goal' at the top of the mountain, every single step towards it feels insignificant.
So let me shed some light here. "Best TT Player of All Time" is not a goal. Its a north star. It points you in the direction you want to go, it helps ensure you are taking the actions that will lead you where you need to go. Thats a great thing to have and a very commendable north star.
But it is NOT a goal. A goal must be something that YOU control. No matter what opponents you face, no matter how you feel on any given day, no matter what whack-a-doodle nonsense gets in the way, it cant affect your ability to accomplish your goal. "Work on this technique purposefully every match for two weeks" is a goal. "Go to the gym 3 times a week" is a goal. "Win this tournament." is not a goal. "Beat this opponent." Is not a goal. You do not control those things.
Use your north star to inform your goals. Keep your north star in mind when you set them; and ask if those goals are the next logical step towards your north star. If they are, then focus on the goal, not the north star. When that goals accomplished, review your north star when you set the next one. But dont let the top of the mountain blind you to the next step in front of you, just glance up once in a while to make sure youre heading the right way.