Author: Kevin James, Last Updated: 8th Mar, 2023
Table Tennis (commonly known as Ping Pong) offers several unique benefits that not many indoor sports provide. In foosball, you need to hit the ball to the opponent's goal, while in Snooker, you need to put the ball in the pockets. Both popular indoor sports don't offer as many health benefits as Ping Pong.
On the outset, it's a common misconception that the sport is not physically demanding. But, this is a myth!
Table tennis is one of the fastest indoor sports and requires a great deal of stamina and quick reflexes.
In this post, I'll be highlighting the various benefits of playing this beautiful sport.
1. Health benefits that go beyond ‘it’s a sport’.
Unlike other sports, Table Tennis is quite gentle on your body, almost injury-free, and does not require any special skills at least until the beginner level. And the best part is, it's relatively easier to learn and a great way to de-stress yourself.
People of all age groups can play and enjoy this sport. On average, you burn 500 calories per hour while playing table tennis. Say goodbye to your good old treadmill. Table tennis is a high-Intensity sport that helps you improve your stamina, reflexes, hand-eye coordination, and your focus.
The sport is all about reflexes, and you need to be always on your feet, constantly moving and chasing the ball. During the play, the blood circulation to your heart increases, giving your vital organ a good exercise. As per this study, table tennis is also highly beneficial for kids with ADHD.
Table tennis as a sport has more to offer than you think. This all-round sport provides immense health benefits, which not many other sports do.
2. Table Tennis is fun socially too
Table tennis is a great game to gel up with friends, family, and colleagues. Simple rules and ease of playing make table tennis the perfect recreational sport. Moreover, the game is not very demanding physically and at the same time is very engaging.
The sport is a great ice breaker and helps you connect with your peers better while bringing the best out of everyone. You may even find out the funnier or competitive side of your colleagues or loved ones.
Looking to get even with your friend or had a bad day at the office, just play ping pong, and you sure are going to feel better.
3. The Brain Game
If you have ever been to a game of table tennis, you’ll know that it is incredibly swift. While the game itself is pretty simple, it demands all your focus and reflex.
From a naive perspective, it may look like you just need to hit the ball over the net. However, the sport is extremely demanding. You will always need to be alert of the ball and your partner’s moves.
No doubt, playing table tennis regularly will keep your body and brains sharp and accurate.
Table tennis is often referred to as a ‘super-sport’ – one that covers all aspects of healthy living and social interaction. Coordination and balance are also areas which the sport covers. After all, you are hitting a small ball over a small net!
Table Tennis is quite an enjoyable game too. While you relish a game of table tennis, your brains produce serotonin – the brains ‘feel good’ chemical. That’s your brain’s way of saying ‘thank you’ to you and your body.
Thus, you can definitely opt for the activity, when you are looking to entertain yourself as well as connect with people!
4. Helps develop and refine strategic thinking
Just as much as table tennis helps in developing mental alertness, it also improves hand-eye coordination, motor skills, cognitive function and the flow of blood to the brain. As per Alzheimer’s Weekly, table tennis helps improve overall human physiology.
Since you have to study your opponent’s moves and devise your strategy within a fraction of a second, the sport can also help improve your tactical thinking and mental conditioning.
For younger players, table tennis is a great way to know and learn strategic thinking. For the older ones, it helps in further bettering the same.
5. Table Tennis and the Reality of Today
Table tennis is perhaps one of the best-fit games in modern society. People are short of time, and always on the run. They often cannot afford to spend a lot of time playing complete outdoor games, until of course, they’re passionate about it.
But table tennis can be easily played anytime and anywhere you want to. In fact, many offices these days have a table tennis table in their breakout area for the employees. You can just as well take a break from work and treat yourself to a game of table tennis for as little as 15 minutes! And this will surely make you feel better at work.
In today's active lifestyle, it can become quite challenging to take out time for your kids and family members. But table tennis can help you bond with your family members and at the same time provide you the much needed physical exercise.
Conclusion
As you can see, table tennis offers several unique benefits compared to any other sports. So, what's stopping you from picking up this wonderful sport? Let's play!
