6 Not-So-Common Health Benefits of Playing Ping Pong

There are a lot of reasons millions of people across the world enjoy playing ping pong, and the many health benefits are among them. 

When you engage in this sport, you will find that you enjoy better overall coordination, enhanced reflexes, more joy, and even better brain health. These are just some of the not-so-common health benefits that playing ping pong can bring to you. Learn about these, and more, right here.

Improved Coordination

The sport of table tennis is no easy task. You need to be on your feet, have quick hands, and have eye-to-hand coordination that is competitive. This game teaches you how to coordinate both small and large motor skills at the same time. It’s great physical andmental exercise, even when it feels like you aren’t burning calories.

Enhanced Reflexes

You have to be fast on your feet, with your eyes and your hands when you are playing ping pong. The best ping pong paddle can help, but you need to be able to move it, and your reflexes need to be on point. There are short distances to move and to hit, but you still need your whole body to do it.

After practicing table tennis for a while, your reflexes will become cat-like. The game here is about channeling every fiber of your being into what happens between the ball and the paddle. Focus helps, reflexes will win the game, and they get better with every match.

Low-Impact Cardio

Ping pong doesn’t feel like a cardiovascular sport to spectators. However, it is, for those who play it. You are always bouncing around ping pong. Still, it is considered a low-impact sport that offers good cardiovascular exercise. Those that have joint problems or can’t run and do major athletics will love this sport.

Socializing

Ping pong is by nature a game you play with someone else, and it is a dedicated competition that pairs you with one opponent. This is a social game where you build your individual game as well as your sportsmanship. At the same time, you make friends and develop a new hobby in life that can help you to gain confidence and feel better about life overall.

Improved Brain Function

A number of studies have looked at the impact of ping pong on brain function because the sport encompasses so many parts of the body. Ping pong has you working on your large and small motor skills, your hand-eye coordination, and also your reflexes. This is your brain in overdrive. You have to be able to think ahead, you’ll have many emotions during the game, and your sense of competition is fired up.

Some experts even call this the best sport for the brain because it offers so much for the body. Table tennis has been used to help treat dementia, as it stimulates the brain cortex that helps maintain positive energy flows and states of awareness in dementia patients.

Many sports and athletic activities provide these benefits. However, ping pong is underrated colloquially here. It is often seen as a random thing people do at parties if a table is there. But this is a highly competitive sport with global championships. And people get smarter at playing it.

Superior Balance

Here is a sport that keeps you on your toes. With ping pong, you have to move constantly, change directions, and understand the ergonomics of a ping pong paddle and how your hand moves with it.

Add in high-speed table tennis balls and you need to be equipped to balance the equation of physics and physiology. You have to be ready, and stay ready, and your body needs to be ready to move anywhere, anytime. These skills require trained balance mechanisms.

Play Ping Pong

These are just a few of the many not-so-common health benefits of ping pong. In addition to these benefits, playing ping pong makes people happier all over the world. When you want a sport that helps improve brain function, enhances your reflexes, and provides superior balance to your life, ping pong is a great starting point. Become one with your ping pong paddle, and prepare to start collecting some wins.

 

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