Cardio Tennis ranks among our most popular classes.
Our exclusive Cardio Tennis Pathway program, which matches your skill level to the most appropriate Cardio Tennis class we offer, delivers a terrific new member experience.
If you haven’t checked yet checked it out, here’s why you should:
We offer four different Cardio Tennis classes for players with NTRP rankings between1.6-5.0, as well as a new TRX Cardio Tennis class (think cardio class on caffeine).
Midtown features 34 classes, totaling more than 40 hours of Cardio Tennis per week.
Our starter Cardio Tennis class is for 1.6-2.9 players and is held on a 60 foot court using three different balls: foam, transition, and red felt. The slower balls result in more confident strokes, better repetition, longer point play, longer exchanges and an overall better workout. Because pace of play is slower, beginners are allowed ample time to work on their swing shape.
Starter cardio has also proven a great experience for new tennis players because they no longer have to worry about getting whacked with the ball, which often happens when mixing different levels of players on the same court.
Drills stay the same throughout the levels and instead, it is the ball and court sizes that changes to meet the players’ needs. Best of all, as skills improve, players have a Cardio Tennis “ladder” to climb.
Tennis is our history, and we’ve spent over 40 years perfecting the teaching of the game. If you haven’t given Cardio Tennis a try, now is the time!
Have you tried a starter Cardio Tennis class? What did you think?
Will you be in town this Thanksgiving weekend?
If so, spend it with us!
On Thanksgiving Day, Midtown will be open from 7AM to 1PM. Invite your friends and family to join you on Thanksgiving Day – no guest fee required.
Here are ways to ”pre-burn” some calories before you enjoy your Thanksgiving meal.
Cardio Tennis Class Schedule
8-9:30am and 9:30-11am
Group Fitness Class Schedule
Cycle 7:10-8am
Yoga 8:10-9am
Group Sculpt 9:10-10am
Zumba 10:10-11am
Cycle 11:10am-12noon
Tennis Camp
Junior Competitive Camp 9am-12noon
Since we don’t have regular tennis programs on Friday, November 25th, we will have Tennis Camp and Clinics.
Tennis Camp and Clinics
Junior Development and Competitive Camp 9am-12noon
Adult Clinics 1-5pm
What are you doing to stay active this holiday weekend?
It’s 2pm and you are three hours away from being done with your work day. 
If you’re hungry, low in energy, or feeling lethargic from a heavy lunch, then a healthy afternoon snack can give you that extra energy to finish your work day and avoid overeating at dinner.
Snacking has had a bad rep in the past because the word “snack” conjures up images of chips or candy bars.
However, snacks can and should be healthy and one of the most important parts of your day.
When choosing a snack, try to include carbohydrates, protein, and fat. The carbohydrates will give you immediate energy while the protein and fat will satiate you. Aim for about 100-to-200-calorie snacks to give just the right amount of energy without making you feel too full.
Snacks are a good way to add more nutrients to your diet as well. Fruits and veggies are hard to fit in throughout the day so incorporate them into your snacks.
Here are some healthy, 200-calories-or-fewer snack ideas from Midtown’s own Registered Dietician, Jenny Maloney:
What’s your healthy go-to mid-day snack?
Congrats to all Chicago marathon runners!
You’ve achieved something great. Beyond the race itself, all the time spent training and the dedication you put in to be able to run this past Sunday are incredible accomplishments.
Was this your first full-marathon?
If so, I know your feelings firsthand.
Last year, I turned 30 and after many years of not understanding why someone would ever want to run 13.1 miles, I signed up for my first half-marathon, the Chicago Rock and Roll Half-Marathon. This was a major change to my life’s bucket list. Halfway through my training last summer, I decided to run a full marathon. I thought, “If I’m already running part of the mileage then I should go for the full-marathon…26.2 miles!”
They say that some people complete an item on their bucket list and move on. There are others that try something new and get hooked. I guess I caught the bug after successfully finishing my first half-marathon.
For the next few months, I put my heart and soul into full-marathon training. I daresay I had little social life and I became best friends with my trainer and my chiropractor (thanks Midtown trainer Justin Moore and Wrigleyville Chiropractor Dr. Andrea Butt). Let me tell you, it was one of the most fun, ‘new’ experiences I have ever had.
I had some of the most amazing support from family and friends. I couldn’t have dedicated my time and energy without their help. Race day came and I was one of the crazies I had always secretly made fun of.
I ran 26.2 miles on purpose and loved it!
I have since raced in another half, run with a team for the Madison to Chicago Ragnar Relay, raced with colleagues in a super sprint triathlon and signed up for another half with friends in December. I guess you could say I caught the racing bug.
Did you?
Want an insider’s look into the US Open?
Vasiliy Guryanov, Master Stringer in our Pro Shop, strung racquets at the Open with the Wilson Stringing Team, and shares his experience with you here.
Take it away, Vasiliy!
The greatest tennis players live for Grand Slams – the four tournaments a year that put the players through their paces with long matches and grueling conditions.
And none are bigger than the US Open.
It comes at the end of the summer and the athletes are not only fighting each other, but also fatigue from the long professional season. The atmosphere at this event is simply electric – each match is a “Do or Die” test for both players, and all competitors fight to the very end.
As a member of the official Wilson Stringing Team for the US Open, I felt like I became a part of the entire process. When Rafael Nadal comes in to drop off six racquets for his match, everyone in the room knows that his on-court success lies partially in our hands. 
Professional tennis players are fine-tuned machines, and even the slightest change to their equipment will make a difference in the length and control of their shots – tennis is a game of inches.
That is why all members of the Wilson Tour Stringing Team go through hundreds of hours of training and fine-tuning to our stringing technique, to make sure that each racquet we string is perfect.
This year’s US Open was one for the record book! First, on August 23rd, we felt the earthquake that reached us all the way from Virginia. The mighty Arthur Ashe Stadium was swaying from side to side. Then, on the weekend of August 27the, Hurricane Irene threatened the event when it moved up the East Coast and the National Tennis Center was closed for one-and-a-half days.
Little did we know that the worst was yet to come!
Because of Sunday’s NTC closure, players were not able to get their racquets strung for Monday matches. Our 14-member team started the day at 7:30 am and by the time we finished the last racquet at 11:30 pm, we had set a new record for the most racquets strung in one day – 490 racquets!
The previous record was 378. It will be tough to beat our record, because it was created by a perfect storm of events.
It was an amazing experience to be a part of such a well-oiled machine as the Wilson Stringing team. The team is comprised of stringers from all over the world: Czech Republic, Australia, Hong Kong, Croatia, Russia, Japan, France, and the United States. All members of the team are world-class stringers with many years of tour experience. It is at events likes this that I have an opportunity to learn new stringing and racquet customization techniques to better serve our members through the Pro Shop.
Thanks, Vasiliy!
Stop by our Pro Shop and let Vasiliy, Dave, or Sonny string your for your next match.
Have you always been hesitant to participate in a triathlon because of the swim? That was me a year ago when I watched my husband race in his first triathlon. I declared I would never to do one because I’m not a swimmer.
Fast forward to a few months ago. My colleagues and I were trying to decide how to motivate ourselves to stay in shape. I began my running career last year with my first half and full marathons. My colleagues weren’t interested in a long run so I suggested a triathlon. I don’t know why since I said I’d never do it! Well, that struck everyone’s fancy, so we all signed up.
Midtown Athletic Club graciously sponsored the four of us for the race!
A couple weekends ago, Chicago transformed its lakefront area to prepare for the triathlon. It starts with the expo on Friday night where you get your race bib and body paint. Yes, I said body paint. In a triathlon, you cannot have a race bib pinned to you during the swim so they paint your body with your race number and leg with your wave number.
Who knew people were allowed to write on themselves beyond age four?
Saturday morning arrived and I was ready. I had my body paint on, my race bib pinned to my cycling/running shirt, and was ready to meet up with my colleagues. We met and placed our towels, bikes, and running shoes safely in the transition area. Because my husband had completed this race last year, he coached us on the logistics. Then, we put on our swim caps and headed down to the lake.
As we stood in our waves ready for the starting horn to sound, I had the best feeling. Here I was with colleagues/friends ready to race for Midtown: the company I not only work for but also truly enjoy being a part of.
The horn sounded for my colleagues, who were all in the same wave separate from mine. I was able to high-five them as they came out of the water before my wave began.
Throughout the race I was searching for my colleagues and their Midtown shirts because I’ve learned that the best part about participating in runs and now a triathlon is the camaraderie you have with the friends you’re racing with.
We all crossed the finish line (in pretty good time I might add) with huge smiles on our faces excited to have finished a triathlon and to see each other to celebrate our accomplishment.
Thank you, Midtown (and Chip Dell, Membership Director, for coming to cheer us on) for allowing us to have so much fun!
Would you ever try a triathlon?
Ever wondered what it would be like for our tennis pros to participate in Cardio Tennis?
Now you can see for yourself!
Midtown holds Cardio for Pros every other Thursday at 2pm on our famous Court 5, where Andre Agassi won his first USTA Junior Event when he was just 12, and members and associates are invited to come watch the action.
The class brings a high level of energy to the club, giving you a chance to see our pros showcasing their talents and having a lot of fun!
With Cardio Tennis training twice a month, our pros are able to stay in tune with what’s going on in the world of Cardio. We’ve more than doubled the percentage of Midtown pros who are now qualified to lead a class.
By experiencing the same class format that you do, the pros learn many important aspects of Cardio Tennis, especially when it comes to proper lengths for certain drills.
Cardio Tennis has also given our staff a deeper drill- and game-base to chose from, and has reminded them to teach with great energy and passion—two things that are a must when teaching a Cardio Tennis class.
In addition to giving our pros ideas for enhancing the member Cardio Tennis experience, Cardio for Pros also reminds our top-notch instructors of the many uses of the Red ball, the Orange ball, and the Red Felt ball for warm-up, drills/games, and cool down.
These balls stay in play longer, which means the points last longer, and everybody gets a better work out. If these balls are good enough for the pros, they are good enough for you!
I like to think of Cardio for Pros as “Spin Class for Tennis Players.”
Michael Mahoney, Midtown General Manager, believes Cardio Tennis is essential for our pros because he recognizes that it’s making each of them a better teacher. You can see this when observing other tennis classes, such as Adult Instructional classes or Junior Development and Competitive classes.
Join us next Thursday, September 14th, at 2pm on Court 5 to see the pros in action!
You’ve no doubt noticed the workers coming and going from Midtown’s Building II. Have you wondered what they were doing?
The wait is over!
Chicago’s Premier Tennis Club is now Chicago’s Premier Fitness Club.
Our club opened its new Fitness Center on August 10th with the following features:
Along with the new Fitness Center, we’re also redecorating our main building locker rooms, café area, and Pilates studio. In the next few weeks, we will freshen up both our women’s and men’s locker rooms with new lockers, carpeting, and furnishings.
The studio between the two locker rooms in the main building will become the permanent home for our brand new Pilates studio. We’re also remodeling this space to include a new wood floor, comforting furnishings, and all-new Pilates equipment.
What do you think about the changes you’ve seen so far?
One of the best things about working here at Midtown is getting to know all those secret places and insider tips and sharing some with our members. I’ll share some of my favorites. Of course, I’d love to hear about yours.MORE
