13 Reasons Why You’re Not Improving In Table Tennis

It is frustrating to devote hours to developing table tennis skills only to feel like you are not improving. In this article, I will go into detail about why people might incorrectly think that they are not improving along with the most common reasons that hold people back from their true potential. 

My goal is to help you improve your table tennis skills as fast as possible. If any of the topics in this article apply to you than you should be able to improve by addressing them.

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But before coming to the conclusion that you’re not improving, first, you should determine if you truly are not improving. In reality, it’s highly unlikely that if you are training regularly you are not improving at all.

In my experience, usually when someone says that they are not improving they actually are improving, but they either can’t see their improvement or they have unrealistic expectations for how fast they can progress. However, many people do not train optimally for the most rapid improvement possible. 

Read on to learn more. 

You might like our other article here which focuses more on specific technical mistakes and how to fix them: Most Common Mistakes in Table Tennis + How to Fix Them

Are You Truthfully Not Improving At All?

I have noticed these phenomena in people trying to improve at pretty much anything, not just table tennis, and I have noticed these tendencies within myself as well with anything that I am working hard to improve at.

Before determining that you aren’t improving, ask yourself whether any of these scenarios could apply to yourself:

You’re Blind to Your Own Improvement

Many times people will say and truly believe that they are not improving but I can clearly see their progress. It’s actually really hard to be able to notice your own improvements when you see yourself every day, especially when you’re trying to measure something like table tennis skills. 

It’s much easier for me to see their improvement if I only see them once a week or even once a month. 

It is also extremely hard to measure something like table tennis skills. Sure you can get an idea based on how well you do against your opponents, or better yet, your ranking, but this isn’t proof you’re not improving.

 It could just be that you haven’t played you’re best lately or that your opponents have been improving faster than you, or maybe your skills have been improving but your ability to stay calm under pressure hasn’t improved. 

Don’t judge your improvement just on your wins. 

You Have Unrealistic Expectations 

Many people actually improve rapidly but they feel like they aren’t improving or that they aren’t improving as fast as they should simply because their expectations are not realistic.

I am definitely guilty of this myself with pretty much anything I do when I am pursuing a goal. I always like to learn from the best but the downside to this is that I tend to compare myself to the best also. 

It’s easy to forget that the best table tennis players in the world all started playing when they were very young, and have been training and competing full time for many years.

Ma Long, (considered the greatest table tennis player of all time), started playing at the age of 5, this is a pretty common starting age among many top players. 

Try not to compare yourself to players better than yourself as this will always lead to diminished confidence, and diminished confidence will also usually result in diminished progression.

Table Tennis Has A Very Steep Learning Curve – Remember that TT is a sport with a very steep learning curve. It is fairly easy to pick up a racket and play recreationally but due to the precision and spin variations in the game, it is an extremely complex sport that is hard to master.

You’re “Plateauing” 

A plateau is a common term that people use to describe a period of time when improvement stops or is drastically slowed down for a period of time. Sometimes plateaus are real and improvement really is slowed down, but sometimes plateaus are only perceived as such. 

Keep in mind that whenever someone first starts something new the improvements are much greater and more obvious. In contrast, the better someone is at something the more time they have to put in just to see minuscule improvements. 

When you first started playing TT, you probably went from not even knowing how to hold the racket to learning how to hit the ball onto the opponent’s court within just a few hours of playing. Newbies will usually see improvements rapidly. 

Therefore it can feel like improvement has “plateaued” after the initial “newbie learning phase” and excitement are over. 

On the flip side, think about how much time the best players in the world have to invest only to see fractional percentage gains.

You Lack Experience With Competition

If you’ve spent a lot of time training and feel that you’re a good player, but then when you play matches you feel like you lose to everyone, it could just be because you haven’t competed enough. 

Doing drills and practicing shots is important but playing matches is different. In matches, everything is more unpredictable. You might have better technical technique than the players you play against but you lack experience in reacting to the variety of balls when playing matches against many different opponents. 

Remember that just like proper technique takes much practice, so does competing well. Keep in mind you will probably feel more mental pressure to perform well. The ability to play well under pressure is a completely unique skill.

However many people really do experience slow or no improvement which can be due to a variety of reasons which can be addressed and fixed. 

Common Causes For Lackluster Table Tennis Improvement

Here are the most common causes of sub-par progression in table tennis skills:

Inappropriate Equipment

In the world of table tennis, there is a lot of different equipment to choose from and many of the choices are not correct for beginners or are just poor quality products. It’s easy for someone to choose the wrong racket which can cause them not to improve. 

Avoid cheap hardbat rackets, (unless you are choosing to play this style). Without a racket with a proper sponge layer, you will not be able to learn spin techniques. Learn more in our article: Hardbat vs Sponge Table Tennis Rackets: Which One Is Better?

Avoid rackets that are too fast, especially beginners need rackets that cater to all-round play. Rackets that are too fast or too far on the other end of the spectrum should be avoided. If you use a racket that is too fast you might never be able to develop proper control.

To learn how to choose the correct racket check out our guide for choosing the right blade and rubber along with some recommendations.

Not Training/Practicing

You might be playing regularly but not actually training or practicing. There is a big difference between playing and actually taking the time to do drills and practice specific skills. 

Don’t get me wrong, you still will improve if all you do is play matches, but you’re potential will be limited and you won’t improve nearly as quickly as someone who has structured practice. 

One of the big reasons why China dominates table tennis is because they dedicate so much time to training, they know the best training methods, and they start training young. 

Check out our guides here for learning and practicing the fundamental skills of table tennis.

Not Training Weaknesses

Maybe you are training but you’re only practicing what you’re already good at. If your forehand is already solid, but your backhand sucks, guess what you need to spend more time practicing in order to improve? 

Lacking Physical Fitness

If you only practice shots but don’t train strength, flexibility, and stamina outside of playing, this could be something that could unlock more gains in your game. It’s not secret that top players lift weights and do cardio regularly. If you lack physical fitness, adding workouts into your practice routine could really advance your skill level.

Learn more about physical fitness and how it’s related to TT in our other here

Bad/Incorrect Technique

This will probably only be an issue if you are not receiving coaching. A good coach will teach correct technique and will also spot any problems with technique and fix them. 

Improper technique can stop or hinder development. Consider hiring a coach at least just for one session or at least going through some type of online course. 

Bad Training Partners

If you only practice with one person, or if you only play with people who are worse than yourself then you are not going to improve much. It is necessary to practice/play with many different people so that you can experience a wide range of styles. 

You might have seen really good players play horribly against a long pips player simply because they have never experienced it before. Exposing yourself to all different types of styles is paramount if you want to be a good player.  

Not Training/Playing Frequently Enough 

You’re going to improve much faster by playing and training frequently.  If you only pick up a racket once every week or two, you’re not going to improve much. The frequency of training is more important than time spent training.

For example; someone who dedicates one hour a day to table tennis will see much greater improvement than someone who plays for 7 hours straight but crams all 7 hours into one day. 

The body and mind can forget things quickly, especially new things. When you do something more frequently you are essentially forcing your body and mind to adapt and remember these new things you are teaching it. 

You are also setting yourself up for a more sustainable routine and allowing for better recovery. 

Training is Not Optimal

It could be possible that you have structured training that you do regularly but you don’t improve much. This reason could be because you don’t practice correctly. 

Maybe you practice but you do so on your own without any coaching. If this is the case you might not even know how you should practice. 

It’s difficult to recognize bad habits and weak points on your own that a coach can easily notice and help you fix. 

For all of the benefits that a coach can provide, check out our article: What Are the Roles, Responsibilities, and Benefites of a Table Tennis Coach

The best way to improve will always be with coaching. In person private coaching is the best option, but obviously group coaching will be 2nd best, there are also professional quality online courses, and plenty of free YouTube videos and blog tutorials (like ours here at The Ping Pong Spot for example ;).

Coaching Style Isn’t Ideal

Another possibility could be that you currently have a coach, but maybe your coach isn’t good, you’ve outgrown your coach, or your coach uses methods that don’t work for you.

It’s possible that you have improved to a point that might require a more advanced level coach in order for you to continue advancing. Your coach may have been perfect for you up to a certain point, but maybe your skill has surpassed your coach’s abilities or maybe you have simply changed as a person/player and require a different style of coaching. 

If your goal is to play in the Olympics but your coach has only produced winners at the local level then you might need a more advanced coach. 

Another possibility is that your current coach has a teaching style that doesn’t work for you. Everyone is different and will learn optimally from different styles. This might require you to have a conversation with your coach or to seek a different coach if you receive private attention already. 

If you are being coached in a large group then naturally the coaching cannot be individualized and it’s possible that what is working for the other players might not be working for you. 

Negative Attitude 

This is a common one. If you have a negative outlook towards playing, or if you aren’t enjoying playing as much as you used to this can hinder performance. 

With some people, negativity or anger can actually fuel them to perform better and this can work. This doesn’t work for me though and I think that most people will improve their play quicker when they have a positive attitude. Plus, if you’re not enjoying playing, then what’s the point, right? 

A negative mind also tends to focus on more negative things, so someone with a negative attitude is more likely to feel like they are not improving when in truth, they are. 

Usually when people aren’t enjoying playing, it’s due to my next point:

Only Focusing On the Outcome

If you are too focused on improving and winning, this can counterintuitively slow progress. Usually when people start playing table tennis it’s because it’s something they enjoy. 

However, as people start competing the reason for playing can change. For example; if the only reason you are playing is because you want to compete in the Olympics it can be easy to develop a negative attitude. 

If you are only focused on winning and feel down or angry whenever there are setbacks this can slow down improvement. 

Remember to try and always keep a newbie’s attitude and try and enjoy the process of learning and playing. If you love and have fun training and learning, your training will most likely result in greater, faster gains. 

You’re Focusing on the Wrong Things

It is possible that what you truly need to unlock your next skill advancement is something that you can’t accomplish by spending more time doing drills at the table. Maybe what’s holding you back is not your lack of skill but something else. 

Maybe you need to work out to unlock more stamina or strength.

Maybe you need to practice meditation because what you’re really lacking is mental clarity during competition. 

Maybe what’s causing you not to progress is that you have other issues in your life that are affecting you emotionally and you need to deal with those things first.

You’re Past Your Prime

Another possibility could be that you’re just getting older. 

World champion table tennis players are on average about 25 years old. Out of the current top 5 ranked players for both male and female in the world, (so 10 players total), only one player, Ma Long, is over the age of 29. Ma Long at the age of 35 is an exception, and keep in mind that he is no longer #1. 

25 years old can be considered an average age for peak performance in table tennis. 

Just because you can’t compete at your best doesn’t mean that you can’t still improve though. One of the great aspects of TT is that skill is a much more important factor than athleticism. 

Even though your physical capabilities might not be able to improve there are still many other aspects to the game that you probably can focus on and improve. 

Never underestimate the power and advantage that your experience can have over younger players. 

Ways To Improve Your Table Tennis Game

Now that we’ve covered all of the possible reasons why you might not be improving in table tennis I will list a few ways that you can address this issue and see rapid growth. 

• Get some type of coaching – If you’re not currently receiving any coaching, get the best you can afford, even if it’s just taking free advice from blogs or YouTube videos.
• Have regular, structured practices – If you’re not currently following some sort of training program, then start. TT is a game of technique and precision, the best players practice the same fundamental strokes over and over and over.
• Play/train frequently – If you only play once a week you’re not going to see much improvement, play/practice daily if you can.
• Film and study yourself playing – You might notice areas of improvement you’ve never noticed before
• Focus on changing your mindset – Try to focus on having fun training and playing instead of playing only in order to enjoy victories 
• Switch up your training – Maybe you just need to practice something different in your training sessions, sometimes doing the same routine for too long can offer diminishing returns or simply get boring. 
• Train off the ping pong table – What I mean by this is: maybe the key to unlocking your next gain isn’t practicing your forehand drive more. Maybe you need to do some workouts to improve your strength or stamina. Maybe you need to meditate to help you stay calm and focused during competition.  

Study and learn what the best players in the world have done to reach their level in table tennis and copy what they do. Search blogs, YouTube, or read biographies. 

Check out our guides here for learning and practicing the fundamental skills of table tennis.

Don’t Stress: Play Some Ping Pong and Have Fun!

I hope this article has either helped you feel less stressed about your lack of progression at the table tennis table, or will help you improve your game faster, or both. 

The main things that I want people to take away from this article are that you should have fun and not worry about the end outcome too much. But at the same time if you want to see rapid growth in your TT skills then you should invest time into structured training and work on spotting and improving weaknesses in your game. 

Most importantly; have fun while you smash, spin, and serve, whether or not you win or lose.

Learn about some of the all-time best pro table tennis players in our articles here.