Badminton Is So Much Fun!
I love playing Badminton! I currently play every week as part of
a sports club at my work place. In order to help newbies and for current
players to improve their skill, we are also going to take badminton coaching
sessions. It is so easy to pick up bad habits and adopt dodgy techniques so it
is definitely beneficial to gain tips from the experts. In turn this will
improve the games we play and give players more sense of achievement as they
will see their game play improve dramatically.
If you want to get involved and play Badminton, courts are
readily available in your local schools, colleges or sports centres. Playing
Badminton does not break the bank either. On average a court could cost about
£10 (about $15) and if you're playing doubles this obviously works out to be
only £2.50 (about $4) per player. Of course, as an additional cost you have to
buy rackets and shuttlecocks but these do not have to cost that much. The best
thing to do is set a budget and stick to it.
Badminton rackets
They have all have the same basic parts such as the handle, the
shaft and the head. What they are made of differs; generally they are made of
steel and aluminium, the lighter the racquet the better. Over the years the
weight of a racket has reduced and you can now find top of the range rackets
that weigh as little as 70 grams. Most rackets are 80-100 grams. They are made
of carbon fibre composite. Carbon fibre is stiff and offers very good movement.
Before carbon fibre, rackets were made of wood, can you imagine the weight of
those!
Head-heavy rackets versus light-heavy rackets
You can get more power out of a head-heavy rackets in comparison
to a head-light racket when smashing. However, the speed of the shuttlecock
correlates to the racket swing speed. Some people find that they can produce
faster smashes with a head-light racket than a head-heavy racket. However,
smash power also depends on a number of other factor including the strength of
your wrist, your technique, racket stiffness and the aerodynamics,the racket
string type and string tension. I don't want to get too technical here but
don't rush out and buy a head heavy racket as it will not improve your smashing
speed and power dramatically. If you're strong enough to use the shaft on a
head-light racquet it would benefit you more since a head-light racket also
helps during defence.
In your local sports centre or college where you can hire badminton
courts, you may also be able to hire rackets. Therefore, you can try out
different ones to find out which one works best for you before buying one.
Badminton shuttlecocks (shuttles for short)
Plastic or feather
If you are a beginner, I would go for the plastic ones, they
last a lot longer. I would recommend the Yonex Mavis shuttles. The feathered
ones are very good; they are normally used by professionals.
Choosing speeds for nylon or plastic skirt shuttles
Fast speed - shuttle has a red strip cap on the cap for playing
in cold conditions.
Medium speed - shuttle has a blue strip on the cap for playing
in Normal conditions
Slow speed - shuttle has a green strip on the cap for playing in
warm conditions
Cork or Rubber
I would go for the cork ones, the rubber ones are heavier and
this affects the flight of the shuttle.
Enjoy your Badminton!
Kris Matthews, a new author whose focus is writing sport,
fitness and health articles.
http://www.badminton-court-dimensions.com
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