Okay, so the other day I was hanging out with my buddy, and we got into this whole debate about which sport is tougher – tennis or pickleball. I’ve dabbled in both, so I figured, why not put it to the test? I decided to really dive in and see for myself.
First Up: Tennis
I grabbed my old tennis racket, dusted it off, and headed to the local courts. Man, it had been a while! Right off the bat, I remembered how much running is involved. That court felt HUGE. I was chasing balls left and right, and my lungs were definitely feeling it.
- The swings felt bigger, too. I had to really wind up and generate power to get the ball over the net and deep into the court.
- The spin! Trying to control where the ball went with topspin, backspin…it was way more complicated than I remembered.
I played for about an hour, and by the end, I was wiped. My legs were sore, my arm was tired, and I was drenched in sweat. I felt every muscle.
Next: Pickleball Time
The next day, I limped over to the pickleball courts. The first thing I noticed? The court is way smaller. Like, WAY smaller. I felt like I could cover the whole thing in just a few steps.
- The paddle was lighter, and the ball moved slower. This meant I didn’t have to swing nearly as hard.
- The underhand serve was a breeze compared to the overhand tennis serve. I nailed it almost every time.
I played pickleball for a solid hour as well, but it was a totally different experience. I wasn’t nearly as exhausted. It felt more like a fun game of ping-pong than an intense workout. I was laughing and hitting with friends the whole time.
My Verdict
After my little experiment, I gotta say, tennis felt like the harder sport. At least for me. Pickleball was definitely more chill, easy on body. Maybe because of the shorter and smaller court, I found tennis required more energy and technique. I guess that tennis is designed to be more difficult.
Don’t get me wrong, I still had a blast with both. But if you’re looking for a serious workout and a bigger challenge, tennis might be your game. If you want something more relaxed and social, give pickleball a shot. You can’t go wrong with either!
