Basic Stance in Table Tennis

Very good video.  Without the proper stance and balance one is unable to execute in table tennis.

good

One thing I often see with some young or new players in our club, is that they do bend their knees, but they keep their upper body mostly vertical instead of bending it slightly forwards from the hips and lower back. The opposite is also seen often, where players only bend their upper body forwards, but barely bend their knees. In both cases it messes up their balance, strokes and mobility/speed. I myself 'feel' how to stand low and balanced (although I sometimes forget it when I am getting tired or distracted), but I found out that there are a decent amount of people who just don't feel this naturally at first and need some guidance. They get down when you ask them, but one can immediately see that the stance is unnatural and unbalanced. It is however pretty difficult to pinpoint exactly what is going wrong (bending knees vs. bending the hips/lower back).

You demonstrate the forward/backwards stability in the video, but especially for the younger players this concept is sometimes a bit difficult to get through to them. When I try to correct someone's posture, I ask them to get lower first, then fall backwards until they feel their weight is completely on their heels, then fall forwards until they feel all their weight on their front feet. Then I ask them to get right in the middle where the weight is distributed evenly between their heels and front feet. I sometimes then offer them my hand and ask them to reach out halfway (as you would holding your bat in front of you) and let them pull and push it; when they stand correctly they should be able to do both without losing balance.

I personally tend to put a bit more weight on my front feet than on my heels, although I would love to know what you think is the perfect distribution for table tennis. I got this from playing basketball when I was young, where for example pivoting on your front feet is very important, but I can imagine that it is different for table tennis.

Do you have any other advice, or a simple exercise, that immediately makes it obvious to them how to bend the knees and hips/lower back together and stand balanced automatically, that I can apply to (young or inexperienced) players to help them find the correct posture/stance themselves? Is there a visual guidance for me and/or for them? For example, your shoulders should be right above your knees...?

Hope it all makes sense, keep up the excellent videos

I watch the video and realized you did not include distance from the table as a part of the stance. is there another video or tutorial on that?

Hi coach alois, I am for getting to do the basic stance every time I play.

thanks, This really help me from were i am playing. 

Should I be on the balls of my feet should be feet be flat on the floor?

It's been a long time since I've watched this video the first time.  I now realize that I have forgotten some of the important basic fundamentals.  Thank you for reminding me how valuable it is to revisit the basics.  

You're welcome Paul. We are going to be remaking a lot of our videos covering the fundamentals so stay tuned for more :)

Hello,

I am an adult beginner. What is the standard size of the grip. I have large hands and I can't find a paddle/bat to fit comfortably. I enjoy your tutorials very much.

Thanks

Ed