Tennis anyone?
Believe it or not, playing tennis on clay courts at the Ottawa Tennis Club and relaxing on the lawn afterward with friends could add 10 years to your life!
Photo: OTC Collection
Tennis anyone?
A game that gives you a new lease on life
By Janet Uren
Tennis is a very popular game in Canada, and the passion for it is clearly growing. Some five million people of all ages played the game in 2024, compared to a mere four million or so adherents in 2021.
A Danish study conducted over 25 years with some 8,500 participants found that sports generally increase your longevity, but tennis in particular increases it by almost a decade. The health benefits range from better cardiovascular and bone health to psychological improvements. It turns out that tennis makes us happy.
The study compared the life span of people active in various sports in relation to a sedentary population. Every sport, it concluded, brought significant improvements in longevity. Badminton, for example, could increase your life by over six years, soccer by nearly five, cycling and swimming by over three. But nothing compares to tennis: tennis players can expect an average increase in lifespan of nearly 10 years.
Why? you may well ask. Well, imagine yourself running around a tennis court, stopping and twisting to hit the ball, with arms, legs and torso all engaged in getting that ball over the net. Tennis is a game of start and stop, fast and slow, with the average game including both explosive, quick movements and steady speed all the way to light jogging. In fact, it is a whole-body workout that resembles high-intensity interval training, and it delivers the same kind of benefits, including greater bone density as your strength improves. Only, tennis is more fun. Furthermore, tennis is game that can be played by all ages.
And fun is important. One of the factors that researchers have identified in terms of longevity is the mind. Tennis is good for the brain as it requires strategic thought and demands intense focus. It reduces stress. It promotes good sportsmanship and makes us feel good about ourselves. And did we mention the healthy rays of sunlight? Tennis is often played outside where you can bathe in mood-lifting Vitamin D. Sports that involve more social interaction also tend to make people happier, and happy people live longer.
Getting started
If you have always been sedentary and decide to take up tennis, you need to check a few boxes first. Talk to your doctor and if you get the all-clear, go shopping for good shoes and a racquet. Then look around to decide where you are going to play and with whom.
If you want to belong to a club with all the benefits of connecting with partners and enjoying the social side of the game, there are many choices in the city. The oldest and biggest club is the 144-year-old Ottawa Tennis Club in Old Ottawa South. It has the added advantage of having the largest number of Har-Tru courts at any facility in Canada.
Clay courts matter in terms of longevity because they are very kind to joints. Physiotherapist and past OTC board member Susan Yungblut relies on the shock absorption qualities of the Har-Tru surface to protect her lower body joints and extend her playing enjoyment for years to come. On a hard-court surface, the lower body joints must absorb every abrupt stop, start and change in speed and direction; the soft Har-Tru surface allows players to slide into their shots, greatly reducing the amount of joint stress.
The OTC also has a restaurant and a swimming pool for relaxing those muscles after the game. Club professionals can teach you the game, and a system of ladders and round robins helps introduce you to other players at your level. The OTC also runs summer tennis camps, if you would like to get your children involved in the game early.
If you prefer something smaller, more local and casual, check out the city map at ottawa.ca – it lists all the city’s clubs and courts, including ones that require no membership. There are asphalt or acrylic courts all over the city, including in the Glebe. Two unlighted courts in Chamberlain Park are free on a first-come, first-serve basis; four acrylic courts at the St. James Tennis Club are open to members only.
If you want to live an extra 10 years, you might as well enjoy it. Consider taking up tennis.
Janet Uren is a writer who specializes in local heritage and history and is the author or co-author of four books.