page title icon Top 14 Benefits of Playing Table Tennis (Why You Must Play Ping Pong?)

Do you know that there are various benefits of playing table tennis?

Table tennis is a very important sport to keep you fit and healthy.

Table Tennis is a retro and fast-paced competitive sport

It is the world’s best brain sport.

Besides being a fun activity to spend a healthy time with your family and friends, there are many health and other benefits of playing table tennis which you may be surprised to know.

Table of Contents (Benefits of Playing TT) :

    1. Enhances Mental Acuity
    2. Playing Table Tennis Improve Reflexes
    3. Improves Hand-eye Coordination
    4. It is Easy on the Joints
    5. Table Tennis Helps to Burns Calories
    6. Playing TT is Social
    7. It Keeps Your Brain Sharp
    8. Playing Ping Pong Helps to Prevent Dementia
    9. Stimulates Different Parts of the Brain
    10. Improves Balance by Playing TT
    11. Improves Your Focus and Mental Acuity
    12. Improves Couples Bonding
    13. Helps You Calm Down
    14. Ping Pong Teach You How to Win and Loose

As compared to many other sports, the risks of getting an injury while playing table tennis are very low. When it is played intensely, it is a great way to get fit and burn calories.

There are thousands of sports all over the world that cause injuries every year to many people but while playing ping pong you can avail all the health benefits without having a greater risk of being injured.

Moreover, there are very few indoor games in which physical exercise is involved. Table Tennis is one of those indoor games which involves active participation physically. You can say, it is just like aerobic chess.

One of the benefits of playing table tennis is that it gives a heck of a workout to your brain which not only keeps you physically, furthermore mentally fit.

It is also a good way to release stress if you are having an all long hectic day.  

In fact, Ping Pong helps you build strength, speed, and agility.

It is scientifically proven that if you play table tennis for just 10 minutes a day, it boosts activity in the prefrontal cortex and cerebellum.

Prefrontal cortex refers to the focus that you have to keep to track the ball through space (occipital lobes and parietal lobes), figuring out the plan shots, spins, and strategies (cerebellum). Then you need to follow the same pattern and execute the tactic you have followed successfully.

You don’t need to get nervous on game point, you just need to stay calm and relaxed while playing. As you can’t blow your top when you make a mistake or can’t dwell on a point you have gone through a few seconds ago.

Cerebral, Emotional & Physical Benefits of Playing Table Tennis

1) Enhances Mental Acuity

The spin, placement, and speed of the ball are crucial elements in ping pong and ping pong players are highly skilled and qualified in these three attributes when it comes to creating solving and creating puzzles in practical life.

This game not only helps the mind to grow but also creates a mental balance that is required in today’s frantic life.

While playing this game, you need to figure out various strategies to compete with your opponent and your brain has to be trained to know how the ball is coming your way and the way to line up the perfect hit.

2) Playing Table Tennis Improve Reflexes

It is a valuable sport when we talk about how to increase the speed of reflexes.

In professional tournaments, when this sport is played by professionals you hardly ever get a chance to stand as it requires very fast reflexes. Due to the short distance, the fast-paced nature of table tennis, the gross and fine muscle movement are also improved.

This sport is categorized by bursts of hard work and recovery which leads to fast-twitch muscle development.

3) Improves Hand-eye Coordination

It stimulates mental vigilance, attentiveness, concentration, and tactical strategy.

You have to strike the ball at the precise moment to make sure it does not go out of the bounded area. This will happen only when your brain will send signals to your hand which tells it about the perfect time and range of hitting the ball.

4) It is Easy on the Joints

One of the major and probably the biggest table tennis benefits is that no one is too old or too young to play table tennis, which means Table tennis has no age limit.

There are some sports that require an individual to be highly flexible, but this game can be played easily even if you are old. It is indeed a great way of improving your arm, leg, and core strength without accentuating your joints.  

5) Table Tennis Helps to Burns Calories

One of the health benefits of playing table tennis is that it could burn lots of calories if it is being played regularly and intensely.

You have to catch the ball from the edges and have to run back and forth as the ball can come to you in any direction. This physical workout while playing can cause your heart rate and breath to be increased, this physical workout is called Cardio. And cardio is commonly known to lose weight.

It is observed that a person with an average weight of 70 kg can burn up to 272 calories if he or she plays ping pong for an hour.

Playing ping pong is addictive and entertaining, apart from that it can be an effortless and amusing way when it comes to burning calories.

6) Playing TT is Social

In today’s world, people are getting more connected with technology and are getting disconnected from each other.

Whether you play at home with your friends or at some sports complex, this game enables you to interact with new people and become friends. Irrespective of age, all the kind of age groups play this game, which does not imply any social barrier to any kind of specific age group or society.

This game offers the freedom to maintain and build healthy relationships among your society which also helps in preserving positive vibes among everyone.

7) It Keeps Your Brain Sharp

According to Dr. Daniel  Amen- a known brain imaging specialist, this game is considered to be the best brain sport. It uses both upper and lower parts of the body and is super beneficial for reflexes and eye-hand coordination. In short, we can say it is highly aerobic and stimulates the brain which keeps it sharp.

8) Playing Ping Pong Helps to Prevent Dementia

The consistent playing of table tennis is found to be valuable for persons who are suffering from Dementia as it also helps in the prevention of Dementia. As it activates various areas of the brain even which stimulates the awareness and alertness among the players who are playing ping pong.

9) Stimulates Different Parts of the Brain

The prefrontal cortex is used for strategic planning by the players while anticipating the opponent’s shot. Ping pong also stimulates the hippocampus (it is a part of the brain that allows us to retain and form long-term events) as this sport is full of aerobic exercises.

10) Improves Balance by Playing TT

Staying balanced even after quickly changing the direction is not that easy. The key to being successful in this game is to maintain balance. Staying balanced often get difficult for the aged people which they should work upon to accomplish perfection in this game.

11) Improves Your Focus and Mental Acuity

The ball’s spin, placement, and speed are very important in ping pong. The professional table tennis players are very proficient in creating as well as solving puzzles as those players have these three significant traits in them.

12) Improves Couples Bonding

Over a game of ping pong, some couples say ‘i do’.

If you and your partner are playing this game one-on-one, it is an excellent way to improve the love and bond between you both. Some people even keep this game at their wedding to show gratitude and love some couples have for table tennis.

It is observed couples who play this game are able to resolve their occasional disagreements much smoother and makes better understanding between them both.

13) Helps You Calm Down

You need to know when to perform your best possible strokes and when to let go of your thinking. When you are able to think this way, it will be much easier for you to win the game.

This happens only when you have come up in the flow. After bursting out the energy at ping pong, resting out into your daily routine afterward would be much smoother.

14) Ping Pong Teach You How to Win and Loose

It is a magnificent way of getting indulged in healthy competition.

The thrill of stealing a point from your opponent and trying to keep yourself in the game could lead to being in an adrenaline rush. If you win, apparently you will feel good. But if you lose that may be even better for you as you won’t be able to improve and know your mistakes till the time you will not lose the game from your opponent 😉

One of the most convenient ways of improving this game is to have the best ping pong table near you.

As you can see the list of the benefits of playing this game is wide-ranging. Apart from so many benefits, table tennis provides a superlative way to get moving and spark a bit of healthy competition among any age group.

15. Ping Pong trains you How to Analyze and Strategize

Contrary to its definition, ping pong is not just about the grip or playing the ball with the bat as per the rules of the sport. If you wish to improve your game and be at your best, you need to learn the art of analyzing your opponent’s game plan and formulate a strategy accordingly.

Initially, you may take some time to develop your skills for playing the sport. But once you get into the habit of landing the ball at the right places, you will be able to put yourself in balance and your opponent off-balance.

With more insight into the game, you will be able to discover yours as well as your opponent’s strengths and weaknesses which will help you do a SWOT (Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats) analysis and become a master strategist.

FAQs Related to the Importance of Playing Ping Pong

Why the table tennis table must exist in your workplace or office?

The sole reason that a workplace must have the ping pong table is that it increases productivity. And when the productivity of the employee is enhanced, it will be for the overall development of your business or office.

How can seniors avail the benefit of ping pong?

Ping pong not only is beneficial for juniors or youngsters, but it is also favorable for seniors as you can also ask your aged grandmother to play a round or two and participate in this game.

This game does not need any special skills if you have a willing attitude and you are playing it for fun, so seniors can play it to keep themselves mentally sharp and physically active.

How can warm-ups benefit your performance in Ping pong?

Table tennis flexibility exercises and stretches improve your game and do away with your ping pong injuries. Though the chances of getting any injury in this game are quite low even then warm-ups take good care of that.

Warm-up is also good for all your parts of the body which are used to perform in this game like shoulders, elbows, knees, and ankles.

What are the mental, emotional and social benefits of playing ping pong?

Playing table tennis absolutely stimulates your mental alertness, tactical strategies, concentration, and focus. It makes tranquil relations among couples if they are playing it regularly one on one and also help to build the relations among unknowns as this game is dead social.

Wherever you are playing, this game gets you interacted with lots of people leading to a bigger friend circle and this is especially beneficial for seniors as at their age they need to make new friends and they need to interact with people to maintain their activeness.

Is table tennis helpful for individuals to keep them healthy?

Yes, it is extensively valuable for the individuals who play table tennis frequently which keeps them healthy. There are so many health benefits of table tennis which not only keep individuals healthy but also physically and mentally fit as well as alert.

For people who are hefty and have a phobia of joining the gym or who do not want to join the gym due to some other reason and who are willing to get lean here is the best way to get lean. Along with having fun exercise while playing ping pong, it even burns calories to a huge extent.

Is ping pong good for your brain?

Yes, ping pong is very good for your brain. It stimulates the brain and helps in active thinking, reducing stress, relaxing, having better sleep and playing table tennis also helps prevent dementia.

Here are a few more interesting facts about table tennis that everyone is not aware of https://www.99sportz.com/table-tennis-facts-stats/.

Gavin is the Chief Editor at 99sportz. In his free time, he enjoys playing Table Tennis & Pool. Here he pleasures in unearthing Table Tennis & Pool products and sharing unbiased reviews with readers by writing product reviews & carefully crafting buying guides with his acuity in two of the sports. Know more about Gavin Wade on 99Sportz About page.

Leave a Comment