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

What's Cooking in the Kitchen This Week:

• Stop Getting Pulled Off the Court In Crosscourt Dink Rallies

• The Cramp Fix That’s Actually Making Things Worse

• DRILL OF THE WEEK: Initiator Attack Game

• Fitness Expert Glenn Dawson: 5 Moves That Fix Shoulder Pain

• Previewing MLP 2026: Assessing Offseason Moves

• Positive Vibes: The Positivity of Playing Hard

• Sewing And Munro Continue Dominance In New Global Sports Alliance International Pickleball Tour

• US Pickleball Firm Hits $3 Billion Valuation Amid Sport's Explosive Growth

• HUMOR: Walking In To Play vs. Playing

• Coach Mary: Return Slow And Deep! Move Through Your Shot!

🥷SKILLS

Stop Getting Pulled Off The Court
In Crosscourt Dink Rallies

It doesn’t happen all at once.

You’re in a crosscourt dink exchange, feeling in control, seeing the ball cleanly… and then suddenly you’re outside the sideline, reaching and off-balance, with no good option left.

Most players think they lost the point on that last shot.

They didn’t.

They lost it a few balls earlier—when they gave away their positioning.

What’s actually going wrong

Getting pulled too wide isn’t about foot speed.

It’s about how you manage space in doubles.

In a crosscourt dink rally, the angle is working against you. Each ball can pull you a little farther off the court if you follow it without recovering. And in doubles, “center” doesn’t mean the literal middle of the court—it means staying aligned with your half and the gap you’re responsible for, alongside your partner.

If you keep drifting outward and never reclaim that space, you’re slowly stepping out of the point.

Once you’re outside the sideline:

• Your angles disappear

• Your balance goes

• The middle opens up behind you

That’s when the rally flips.

💪 Health & Fitness Section

The Cramp Fix That’s Actually
Making Things Worse

Plain water doesn’t stop cramps. For players who sweat hard, it can actually make them worse. 

That sounds strange. But the research backs it up. Once you understand why, you’ll never reach for plain water after a tough session the same way again. 

Cramps Are Not a Muscle Problem 

Your muscles don’t just move on their own. They wait for a signal from your nerves. That signal tells them when to tighten and when to let go. 

 For these signals to arrive you need minerals, also known as electrolytes. Sodium, potassium, and magnesium are the big three. When they’re low, the “let go” message never reaches your muscle. So your muscle stays tight. And that’s a cramp. 

Why Water Makes It Worse  

When you sweat, you lose water and minerals at the same time. When you drink plain water after a sweaty game, you add fluid back. But you don’t add any minerals. So the minerals that are left get spread even thinner. 

Think of it like this. You have a glass of orange juice. You add water to it. It’s less concentrated now. That’s what happens to your minerals when you drink plain water after sweating. 

🥷 DRILL OF THE WEEK

The Initiator Attack Game
When You’re Actually Allowed
To Speed Up

You’re standing at the kitchen, ball after ball coming over, and you feel it, the urge to speed up something that isn’t quite there. This game forces you to wait, to recognize the exact ball that actually earns an attack, and punishes every rushed decision along the way. Turns out most players aren’t missing attacks, they’re choosing the wrong ones.

Run the setup that shows exactly which balls you should be pulling the trigger on and which ones are costing you points.

 🏋️ STAYING FIT with
GLENN & BRIANNA

5 Moves To Fix Shoulder Pain?

🏓 PRO NEWS

Previewing MLP 2026:
Assessing Offseason Moves

Twenty teams, one offseason, and a clear split between contenders and everyone else. Big spenders stacked rosters at the top, budget teams gambled on upside, and a few squads quietly positioned themselves to surprise. The league didn’t just reshuffle, it organized into tiers before a single match is played.

See where every team landed and which ones actually have a path to a title.

👏  GOOD NEWS

Positive Vibes: The
Positivity Of Playing Hard

Winning feels good for a few minutes. The part that keeps people coming back has nothing to do with the score. The movement, the laughs between points, the standing around after games, that’s where the real payoff shows up, long after the final rally.

See why pickleball works so well as a habit and not just a game, click here…

 🏓 PRO NEWS

Sewing & Munro Continue Dominance
In New Global Sports Alliance
International Pickleball Tour

Sofia Sewing and Jack Munro didn’t just win in Vietnam, they ran through another international field and stacked more gold on a growing streak. Across singles and doubles, new names pushed through, local players made noise, and the global side of the sport looked a lot deeper than it did a year ago.

See who won, who broke through, and how the international tour is starting to take shape, click here…

💼 BUSINESS NEWS

US Pickleball Firm Hits
$3 Billion Valuation Amid
Sport’s Explosive Growth

Pickleball facilities just crossed a $3 billion valuation, but not all of them are winning. The rush to build indoor clubs has turned into a land grab, with some locations thriving and others already struggling to stay open. The easy money phase is fading, and the difference now comes down to who actually knows how to run one.

See where the boom is cracking and which operators are still expanding, click here…

🏓 HUMOR

Walking In To
Play vs. Playing

RALLY RUNDOWN:
LOCAL HIGHLIGHTS

THOMAS COUNTY, GA: Homeless Shelter Hosts Pickleball Tournament To Expand Services
VERO BEACH,FL: United Way's St. Paddle's Day Tournament Brings Community Together At Dick Bird Park
JOHNSON CITY, TN: Southern Pickleball Championship Returns To Johnson City, Draws 120+ Players
EL PASO, TX: Pickleball Tournament Draws In Bigger Crowd Than Last Year, Despite Heat
WAHPETON, ND: Wahpeton Duo Takes Second at Minn-Dak Scholarship Fundraiser
NEW ROCHELLE, NY: PickleRage Indoor Pickleball Club to Open in New Rochelle With 13 Courts
MARTINEZ, CA: Council Votes to Permanently Close Pickleball Courts After Neighbor Complaints
APPLETON, WI: Free 'Learn And Play Pickleball Day' Brings Lessons, Games, Prizes And Food Trucks


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

  💪 Return Slow & Deep
Move Through Your Shot

Here are 3 tips to help you hit deeper returns:

·     Start far enough back from the baseline to move forward.
·     Be sure you do not leave too soon, jamming yourself up by being too close to the ball.
·     Use more height, not speed on your return – this will give you more time to get to the NVZ.

Callie Smith gives you 3 tips:

·     Make sure your contact point is out in front.

·     Make sure you are moving forward into the court as you execute the return.

·     Make sure you are facing the court, so you can defend on both the forehand and backhand side.

Tanner Tomasi says the most important part of this shot is that the timing is at the same time for our first step and our swing.  Do not separate these skills into two different motions.  This allows you to use your momentum to move to the NVZ.   Be sure to watch how he demonstrates the correct way, versus the wrong way.

Jill Braverman says: “Leaning, Connecting and Exploding!”

She says moving, walking and leaning into the ball, like you are moving through the shot.  Targets:  deep, to a target.  Center, backhand, or taking them off the court.  Imagine a string at the net that is pulling you into the net.  Right leg sets you up, left leg steps and moves you forward.  She borrowed this from Sara Ansboury!

Be sure to watch each of these video shorts multiple times.  Great hints, great demos!

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