Why You Gas Out by the Third Game (and How to Build Tennis Endurance)
Quick answer
You gas out because tennis is repeated short, explosive bursts with brief recovery, and most players never train that pattern. Jogging for miles does not prepare you for it. Build tennis endurance with interval work that mimics points and rest, use your time between points to actually recover, and your fitness will stop being the thing that loses you matches.
Tennis is a stop-start sport
A tennis point is a few seconds of explosive movement, followed by a longer rest before the next one. Over a match that adds up, but the demand is repeated sprints, not steady jogging. If you only do long, slow cardio, you are training the wrong system, which is why you can be a runner and still gas out on court.
Train the right energy system
- Interval sprints: 5 to 15 seconds of hard, explosive work, then 15 to 25 seconds easy, repeated. That mirrors the length of a point and the 25 seconds you get between them.
- Multidirectional work: side shuffles, sprints, and changes of direction, not just straight-line running.
- On-court drills: live-ball or basket drills that keep you moving so fitness and tennis improve together.
Recover between points
Half of your endurance is how well you use the time between points. Walk slowly, breathe deeply, and relax your shoulders so your heart rate drops before the next point. That is the same routine that steadies your nerves, which we cover in a between-points routine. Better recovery means you arrive at the third game with something left.
Movement efficiency matters too. The better your footwork, the less energy you waste getting to the ball, so good technique is also good conditioning.
The short version
Tennis is repeated sprints, not a jog. Train intervals and multidirectional work, and recover hard between points with slow breathing. Efficient footwork saves energy too.
Frequently asked
Why do I get tired so fast playing tennis?
Tennis is repeated explosive bursts with short recovery, and most players train steady cardio instead, which is the wrong system. Add interval and multidirectional work, and use the time between points to actually recover.
What is the best fitness training for tennis?
Interval sprints that mirror a point and its rest, plus multidirectional agility and on-court movement drills. Long slow jogging does little for the stop-start demands of a match.
How do I recover between points?
Walk slowly, breathe out deeply, and relax your shoulders to bring your heart rate down before the next point. Using your full time between points well is a big part of lasting through a match.
Sources and further reading
Written by
Bolor Enkhbayar
Tennis coach and founder of CoachesNote
Bolor coaches serious juniors and adult competitors. She builds every weekly plan, reviews the video and match notes, and decides the next job, in person and remotely through CoachesNote.
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