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

What's Cooking in the Kitchen This Week:

• WIN $200 Just In Time For Christmas! Survey Contest Is Live

• How to Actually Win Fast Hands Kitchen Firefights

• This 30-second Test Predicts Injuries – Two Weeks Before They Happen

• Fitness Expert Glenn Dawson: Hip Mobility For Pickleball

• Strategies For Doubles Play - How To Dominate The Court

• The Science of Paddles - A Peak Inside The Just Paddles Lab

• UPA Shuts Down 'Sorry Not Sorry Pickleball' After Cease-and-Desist

• Want A New Washington State License Plate? Choose Pickleball!

• Tennis Stars Are Taking On The World Of Pickleball

• Inside an $85 Million SoCal Desert Compound With Indoor and Outdoor Pickleball Courts

• Coach Mary: Return Of Serve

SURVEY CONTEST

We Need Your Help!
Please take 3 Min. to fill out our
Survey! On Dec. 18th we will
choose TWO Winners
from the survey submissions
EACH Will Receive a $200 Amazon
Gift Card Delivered To Your Email

Help us help you! Every year we survey our readers to find out what is important to them. Not just content in the Fit Pickler but in your day to day life. This information helps us bring you the best content and allows us to keep The Fit Pickler newsletter a FREE resource to celebrate recreational play. Thank you in advance!

If you filled out this survey out when you subscribed after Nov. 15th, you are already entered to win! (We will filter out duplicate submissions.)

Go here to fill out the survey: TAKE THE SURVEY NOW

🥷SKILLS

How To Actually Win
Fast Hands Firefights

How to win exchanges that feel too quick to think.

Fast hands battles are the most electrifying moments in pickleball. The ball comes fast, the space is tight, and you barely have time to breathe. But the players who win these exchanges are not the ones swinging the hardest. They are the ones who stay calm, see the cues early, and keep their movements compact and controlled.

Speed helps. Control wins. Anticipation decides everything.

When you understand the real mechanics of fast kitchen exchanges, the chaos slows down and the point becomes something you can shape rather than survive.

Start Neutral and Read the Cues Before They Happen

Many players believe they are in a ready position, but their paddle is off to one side, their shoulders are leaning, or their grip is too tight. This delays reactions.

Start truly neutral: paddle centered in front of your chest, elbows soft, grip relaxed, weight balanced. This keeps both sides available and prevents you from committing early.

Then shift your attention to your opponent’s paddle path. A paddle dropping under the ball often signals a roll or a speed-up. An open face usually means a dink or reset. Shoulders opening early often reveal direction. These cues are readable before the ball leaves the paddle, which buys you reaction time that feels like extra hand speed.

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

This 30-Second Test Predicts Injuries
-Two Weeks Before They Happen

Let’s start with a question you’ve probably never been asked at the pickleball courts:

“How long can you stand on one foot, eyes closed?”

You might think this test is a party game, or some kind of warm-up drill. But doctors who study sports injuries use this exact move to spot which players will sprain an ankle in the next two weeks.

Let’s break it down.

When you stand on one foot with your eyes closed, your body has to work hard to keep you steady. Your brain gets no help from your eyes, so your ankles and the nerves in your feet must do the job. If they can’t, your whole body wobbles.

Why Most Players Don’t Know About This?
For starters, balance training isn’t exactly glamorous. It’s not what people brag about over post-game coffee. But for rec players, especially those of us with a little more mileage on our joints, it’s quietly become the real MVP.

Truth is, we spend so much time chasing the next big tip or piece of gear, we forget about the basic skills that keep us playing. Until an injury reminds us – hard.

Take the Test Right Now 

So stop reading and do this.
Take off your shoes Stand near a wall (don’t touch it) Lift your right foot 6 inches off the ground Close your eyes Count out loud until you wobble or hop Do it now and test both feet.

 🏋️ STAYING FIT with
GLENN & BRIANNA

Hip Mobility For Pickleball

🥷SKILLS

Strategies For Doubles Play
How To Dominate The Court

Doubles pickleball isn’t just about hitting good shots — it’s about communication, movement, and outsmarting your opponents together. This breakdown covers everything from court positioning and smart shot selection to serving tactics, defense, offense, and the mental game.

If you want to level up as a team and actually dominate doubles instead of just surviving it, this guide lays out the essentials.

Keep reading to see the specific strategies that can shift matches in your favor, click here…

🗞️ NEWS

The Science Of Paddles - A Peak
Inside the Just Paddles Paddle Lab

JustPaddles’ Paddle Lab is a dream come true for pickleball gear geeks! It’s a data-packed hub that breaks down every paddle by real performance metrics — think power, control, forgiveness, and spin — all tested and ranked in a slick, interactive format.

You can compare models side-by-side, see how your favorite stacks up, and even find your perfect match based on play style.

In short: it’s the science of pickleball paddles made fun, visual, and totally addicting.

⚖️ LEGAL NEWS

UPA Shuts Down ‘Sorry Not Sorry’ Podcast
After Cease-And-Desist

The UPA has officially shut down the popular YouTube channel ‘Sorry Not Sorry Pickleball’ by issuing a final cease-and-desist to creator Chris Cali, ending his ability to use PPA or MLP footage and abruptly terminating a relationship that previously included two licensing deals.

The decision has sparked backlash across the pickleball media world, raising questions about league control, creator freedom, and whether policing criticism will ultimately hurt fan engagement.

Read the full breakdown to see why this clash matters and what it could mean for pickleball media going forward, click here…

👏 COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT

Want A New Washington State
License Plate? Choose Pickleball

Washington drivers are about to get their pick of several new specialty license plates — the last batch the state will release until 2029. Designs include Smokey Bear, honeybees, Mount St. Helens, and the new Pickleball State Sport plate.

Each one supports a different cause, with pickleball proceeds going to the Seattle Metro Pickleball Association to help build and maintain courts across the state.

Want to see when each design rolls out and how to get one? Keep reading for the full breakdown, click here…

 🤩 CELEBRITY NEWS

Tennis Stars Are Taking On
The World Of Pickleball

Tennis legends are flooding into pickleball. Andre Agassi is already winning pro titles, John McEnroe is headlining celebrity events, Eugenie Bouchard has become one of the sport’s biggest new stars, James Blake is investing and owning teams, and even current world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka is jumping in at major exhibitions.

Their crossover is accelerating pickleball’s mainstream rise and proving the sport is now a legitimate home for champions.

Want to see who’s joining the pickle wave next? Read more here…

🏠 REAL ESTATE NEWS

Inside an $85M SoCal Desert
Compound With Indoor
& Outdoor Pickleball Courts

This $85 million La Quinta mega-estate is pure desert decadence — a 35,000-square-foot private resort with indoor and outdoor pickleball courts, five kitchens, four pools, 32 fire features, its own nightclub (“Da Club”), and garage space for more than 20 cars. Built as a personal playground inside the ultra-exclusive Madison Club, it even hosted a billionaire family wedding.

Want to see how jaw-dropping this place really is? Dive into the full photo tour here…

RALLY RUNDOWN:
LOCAL HIGHLIGHTS

OCEAN CITY, NJ: Pickleball Players Fight Back Against Proposed 275% Court Fee Hike
DAYTON, OH: Picklers Rejoice: Black Barn Pickleball In Riverside Is In Full Swing
PLAINFIELD, NJ: 40,000-Square-Foot PickleRage Facility With 18 Courts Set To Open in Plainfield
SANTA MONICA, CA: Affordable Housing Site Becomes Home To $600K Pickleball Court
NANAIMO, BC CANADA: Pickleball Tournament Raising Money For Loaves And Fishes Food Bank
PHOENIX, AZ: Valley 13-Year-Old Taking Pickleball World By Storm
CARMEL, CA: There's Gonna Be A Problem': Wealthy Calif. Town Moves To Permanently Ban Pickleball
LONG ISLAND, NY: Have A Jolly Old Time At Aldrich Sports League’s Inaugural Christmas Pickleball Tournament

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

  💪 Return Of Serve

Summary: if you are on your back foot on the return, it is more difficult to get to the net. Move back, so that you can be moving in on contact. Do not give up hip rotation, shoulder rotation and follow-through. Make your preparation small and quick, with a short backswing, to generate more depth with your follow-through. Do not just execute with your arm!!!

· What do we want to accomplish with our return of serve? Get to the net! You have the advantage that you move right away to the net, while the serving team must let it bounce.

· The return of serve is unlike any other shot in Pickleball. You do not “pose” and get back to a ready position. It is not a hit, plant, get ready shot. Rather, you move back and stroke the ball while moving to the net. Watch the demo!

· If your opponent has a big serve, and you and your partner have missed 3 in a row, it is time to adjust. You just lost 27.5% of the points!

· Shorten your backswing, engage your hips and shoulders, and move back so you can move forward as you contact your return. You will stroke through the ball as you move to the net.

· Note: With rally scoring, the serve return becomes even more important than the serve to score points!

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