Serve like Andy Roddick: It’s all in the legs

I saw this interesting article and video, ‘How Andy Roddick Hits a 155-mph Serve’, posted on STACK.

Andy Roddick is known for his BIG serve and he attributes his big serve to leg strength and a strong core; not necessarily parts of the body one would initially think of for a massive serve.

There are many other examples of sports or sports skills that are performed at a much higher level when the athlete properly engages the strength in their legs and core. Do you think a baseball pitcher could throw a 100 mile an hour fastball without using his legs? What about a football quarterback? Drew Brees, the QB for the reigning Super Bowl champs, works extremely hard developing his leg strength and core muscles to throw the football accurately and with velocity.

There is a common theme here. If you want to throw the ball faster, drive the golf ball farther or hit your serve harder you must include functional training for your legs and core in your conditioning program.