Benefits of Badminton

Looking for a fun team sport that has tons of health benefits, is easy to learn and can be played by everyone from primary school children to 90-yearolds? It’s time to try badminton…

The benefits of badminton

Badminton can help to improve your agility, balance and flexibility. It’s great for your bones and lungs, can burn up to 500 calories an hour, and can ease stress, depression and other mental health issues. Plus, you can play in twos or fours, inside or out. While badminton can be high energy, the speed of the shuttlecock depends on how hard you hit it and which type you chose (they come in fast, medium and slow), so it’s a very versatile sport. According to the British Heart Foundation, that versatility makes it a great sport for people with heart conditions (although do check with your GP before starting). Para-Badminton is also growing in popularity and became a Paralympic sport in 2020.

Where to play

One of the joys of badminton is that it can be played in most open spaces, from gardens to parks and beaches. A shuttlecock is much less likely to break a window than a tennis ball, and you can buy pop-up nets that can be set up in minutes. However, if you want to play properly (and don’t fancy battling the wind and rain), you’ll want to hire a court. Doing so usually costs £5-£10 and many leisure centres will also loan you rackets and shuttlecocks. If you can’t persuade a friend to join you, or you fancy meeting some new people, Badminton England’s No Strings Badminton sessions are well worth a look. You’re teamed with other players at your level, there’s no annual fee and the focus is on fun rather than competing.

How to learn

The basics of badminton are pretty easy to pick up, as there are few rules to memorise. As with any sport, the key to improving is to practise regularly. However, if you do want to up your skills, you’ll want to consider getting a coach. One-to-one and group lessons are available across the UK.

What you’ll need

Racquets come with different balance points, weights and levels of flexibility. Luckily, most sports shops can point you in the direction of rackets that are suitable for beginners. As mentioned, shuttlecocks come in slow, medium and fast. You can also buy ones specifically for playing outdoors. You don’t need any specialist sports gear to play badminton. A T-shirt and shorts are fine to start with, although you might want to invest in nonwicking ones pretty quickly as you can really build up a sweat playing badminton. If you’re hiring a court, you’ll need trainers with non-marking soles.

Next steps

You can book a court, look for a coach, find out about competing and much, much more at:

www.badmintonengland.co.uk www.badmintonscotland.org.uk www.badminton.wales www.badmintonireland.com