Play better Stay on court
Padel coaching & Personal trainer in Franschhoek. I work on your game and the body that plays it, so you improve without picking up the shoulder or knee problems most players get in their first year.
Most coaching stops at the racket
You can have perfect technique and still lose the third set because your legs went. You can be the fittest player on court and still pick the wrong shot at 4-4. Neither of those is a technique problem, and neither gets fixed by hitting more balls. That is why I coach the whole player.
The game
- Technique and contact
- Court positioning
- Reading the point
- Using the glass
- Movement and recovery
The player
- Strength for rotation
- Shoulder health
- Lateral movement
- Conditioning for long matches
- Injury prevention
Both matter. Most players only ever train one.
Seven ways onto the court
Padel coaching and injury prevention
I am Joel Meyer, a padel coach and qualified personal trainer based in Franschhoek, coaching out of Groot Drakenstein Games Club. I am on court as a player every week myself, so what I coach is what I am working on in my own game.
Padel is my passion. I came to it for the competitive side and stayed for the social one, which is what makes this sport different. You can walk onto a court having never played and be in a proper match within an hour.
Padel is harder on the body than it looks. Sudden changes of direction, overhead loading, a lot of stopping and starting. Most players pick up something in the shoulder, knee or lower back within their first year or two. My personal training background means I work on the strength and movement behind a shot, not just the shot itself.
- QUALIFIED PERSONAL TRAINER
- INJURY PREVENTION & CONDITIONING
- ACTIVE COMPETITIVE PLAYER
Home base is Groot Drak
I coach at Groot Drakenstein Games Club in Simondium, a fifteen minute drive from Franschhoek and twenty from Stellenbosch. Founded in 1895, the club runs padel alongside cricket and a full clubhouse.
Before your first session
None at all. A lot of the people I coach have never held a padel racket. The court is small, the walls keep the ball in play, and most beginners are rallying properly within their first session. If you have played tennis or squash you will pick it up faster, but it is not a requirement.