Health, Fitness, News & Fun for Picklers of All Ages

What's Cooking in the Kitchen This Week:

• 7 Ways to Read Your Opponent’s Next Shot Sooner

• How Your “Body Clock” Sabotages Afternoon Pickleball (& What To Eat to Fix It)

• Fitness Expert Glenn Dawson: How to Prevent Tennis Elbow Pain (Fast Relief & Long-Term Fix)

• USAP Announces Winners of 2025 Play It Forward Court Grant Program

• New Pickleball League For Seniors Attracts 200 'Best Of The Best' Players For Team Tryouts

• HOA Spent $140,000 on a Pickleball Court—Then Hauled It to the Dump

• Who Is Peter Nguyen? "Celebrity Pickleball Coach" Removed From American Airlines Flight For Harassment Caught On Video

• The Unlikely CA Place Where Pickleball Doesn’t Generate Noise Complaints

• The World's First Floating Pickleball Court Makes A Splash In Florida

• Coach Mary: How To Weaponize Your Dinks To Dominate Your Opponent

🥷SKILLS

7 Ways To Read Your Opponent’s
Next Shot Sooner

Gain a half-second head start by learning the subtle cues that predict what’s coming next.

Most players react to the ball once it leaves the paddle. Great players react before that. Reading your opponent isn’t a mystical gift—it’s a trained skill. And that tiny advantage, sometimes just half a second, can be the difference between a clean counter and a last-second scramble.

The best part? Your opponent is giving you signals before they even hit the ball. From their paddle prep to their posture, there are consistent cues that tell you what’s coming next—if you know what to look for.

But a word of caution: no single cue is perfect. Good players mix in deception. So instead of relying on one giveaway, your goal is to recognize patterns—small signals that build a case for what’s probably coming next.

Why Reading Opponents Matters More Than Speed

Fast hands are great—but smart eyes are better. When you learn to spot what your opponent is about to do, you get:
• A jumpstart on resets, blocks, and counters

💪 Health & Fitness Section
Weekly Advice To Keep You Fit & Injury Free

How Your “Body Clock” Sabotages Afternoon Pickleball & What To Eat To Fix It

You know that feeling when you step on the court after lunch and suddenly you're playing like you borrowed someone else's body?

Your timing's off. Simple volleys sail long. And that third shot drop you nailed this morning? Forget about it.

You might blame “afternoon fatigue” or getting older. But here’s what’s really happening – and why one snack combo you’ve never tried can flip the script.

Why Good Players Suddenly Suck at 3pm 
Your body runs on an internal clock that doesn't care about your pickleball schedule. Between 2 and 4pm, this clock dials down your alertness, slows your reaction time, and makes your brain feel like it’s wrapped in cotton.

It's called the circadian dip. And it hits everyone – even 25-year-olds (they just bounce back faster).

The problem? Most of us fight it with the wrong weapons. More coffee just makes you jittery. Power bars sit heavy in your stomach. And that sports drink? You're basically drinking liquid sugar right when your body's trying to shut down.

The Snack That Beats Biology Sports scientists wanted to find a food-based solution to afternoon mental fatigue. They tested various combinations on adults during their natural energy dips, measuring reaction times, focus, and cognitive performance.

 🏋️ STAYING FIT with
GLENN & BRIANNA

How To Prevent Tennis Elbow Pain
Fast Relief & Long Term Fix

🗞️ NEWS

USAP Announces
Winners of 2025 Play It Forward
Court Grant Program

USA Pickleball is putting serious backing behind community growth, awarding its first-ever $50,000 Play It Forward Court Grants to projects in Eugene, Oregon, and South Hadley, Massachusetts. These investments will bring new courts, covered facilities, and championship-ready spaces to life, creating more opportunities for players and communities to connect.

See what these grants mean for the future of pickleball in both towns.

🗞️ NEWS

New Pickleball League For Seniors
Attracts 200 “Best Of The Best”
Players For Team Tryouts

Two hundred of the nation’s top 50-plus pickleball players descended on Richmond for a shot at the US Legend Pickleball League — a brand-new circuit where competition is fierce, camaraderie runs deep, and the nation’s best senior athletes prove they’re far from slowing down.

See why this league is already making waves nationwide, click here…

🏘️ REAL ESTATE NEWS

HOA Spent $140K On A Pickleball
Court -Then Hauled It To The Dump

An HOA in Aurora, Colorado spent $140,000 converting a tennis court into a pickleball court—only to rip it out and pay to toss it in a dumpster when cracks, bad bounces, and even injuries made it unplayable.

With no vendor accountability and little homeowner oversight, residents were left footing the bill.

See how the project unraveled and what every player in an HOA community should know before the next “upgrade” gets approved, click here…

 💼 PRO NEWS

Who Is Peter Nguyen?
“Celebrity PB Coach” Removed
From American Airlines Flight
For Harassment Caught On Video

Peter Nguyen is known in the pickleball world for his coaching, pro play, and tech expertise—but this week, he made headlines for an entirely different reason. A video he filmed on an American Airlines flight, arguing with a crew member over vaping in the restroom, quickly went viral and sparked fierce online debate.

See how the confrontation unfolded and why it’s stirred so much reaction from players and non-players alike, click here…

👏 COMMUNITY NEWS

The Unlikely CA Place
Where Pickleball Doesn’t
Generate Noise Complaints

Outside, pickleball battles neighbors over noise. Inside California’s prisons, it’s battling isolation, addiction, and old grudges — and winning. From rival gang members laughing together to wardens joining games, Roger BelAir’s unlikely mission is turning concrete yards into courts of connection.

See how the sport is rewriting the rules of prison life, click here…

🛥️ REAL ESTATE(?) NEWS

The World’s First Floating
Pickleball Court Makes
A Splash In Florida

Pickleball has gone aquatic in Florida with the debut of the world’s first floating regulation-size court at Mirada Lagoon. Players rally over the water on a stable, netted platform, complete with shaded seating and a splashy backdrop. It’s proven such a hit that its run has been extended through Labor Day—making this your chance to play pickleball like never before.
See more here…

RALLY RUNDOWN:
LOCAL HIGHLIGHTS

SHREVEPORT, LA: Nungesser On $10M Pickleball Complex: “If You build It, They Will Come”
CADDO PARISH, LA: Demand & Opposition For Caddo Pickleball Park Intensifies
MALAYSIA: Solarvest Pickleball Cup 2025 Makes History As Malaysia's First Clean Energy Tournament
NEWPORT, DE: 2025 Wheelchair Pickleball Palooza Brings Fun To Dill Dinkers
HONOLULU, HI: Downtown Honolulu Pickleball Courts Drive Business District Revival
MOAB, UT: After 5 years, Moab Gets Its Pickleball Courts
PAGOSA SPRINGS, CO: Third Annual Bob Howard Memorial Pickleball Tournament

DO YOU HAVE LOCAL NEWS TO SHARE? REACH OUT TO US AT
[email protected] and send us a link to your story!

  💪 How To Weaponize Your Dinks
To Dominate Your Opponent

Check out this great video! Catherine Parenteau demonstrates 4 ways to weaponize your dinks to create errors or weak responses from your opponents.

Aggressive dink #1:  Slice Dink
Catherine emphasizes comfortable and balanced body position. Contact from high to low, on the side of the ball, with a firm grip. Lead with the shoulder and bend down on your paddle side leg to create more control and balance.

Finish with your paddle under the ball. You should see the ball spin backwards, and it will stay low. Don’t forget to use your off arm to help you rotate and follow-through. After contact, recover to a ready position for the next shot.

Aggressive dink #2: Topspin Dink
This stroke is low to high, so unlock your wrist to point your paddle towards the ground, below your wrist. Brush up on the ball, and follow-through. Use your off shoulder/arm to create depth and control.

This ball will kick forward after contact on the ground, putting your opponent on defense. You can do this easier on the backhand side with a two-hander!

Aggressive dink #3: Hit Deeper To Your Opponent’s Feet
If you see that your opponent likes to back up or does not like to take dinks out of the air, move to keep them deep, placing your dinks deeper and to their feet. A bit more hips and shoulders to get the ball deeper, with a bit more follow-through.

You are aiming to land the ball at their ankles (Ankle-biters!) This may force pop-ups or weak dink returns. FYI: to defend against this, use a short hop technique.

Aggressive dink #4: Mix Up Your Locations – Make Them Move!
Keep your opponents off balance. Move your dinks from crosscourt, down-the-line, middle, inside foot, outside foot, right at them, etc. Vary your depth, spin, and height. Use a two-handed topspin dink, then maybe a one-handed slice dink.

This forces them to move, to communicate, and to keep them from anticipating.

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