Sweat and humidity have been my arch nemesis ever since I started tennis. The months from May till September are the worst ever, cuz there is sweat everywhere and gripping the tennis racquet can get extremely tedious. I can empathize with the people living in humid areas because I have lived in them and it feels like there is sweat everywhere. You try and wipe it with a towel, you get greeted by it in minutes, sometimes even during the points.
I was very annoyed by all of this and wanted a semi-permanent solution. Just changing up the grip on the tennis racquet won’t work as you have to take some other steps before it becomes somewhat playable. This took me a while to figure out, I’m not even kidding that there were some days when the weather was killing. 105 in the shade with 70-80% humidity makes you want to sleep forever and never leave the AC. But tennis is my passion as with most of the people reading this post, so I got up every evening 7 days a week just to fulfill that passion. This guide does not only give the best grips for humid weather, but I will also go over other things that you can do to survive the humid weather.
First of all, let’s talk about the best grip that will get you through the summers/humid weather. There are two that I like the most. The Wilson Pro Over-Grip(Amazon) is the one that I use and it is by far my favorite of any grip that I have tested. The dry feeling and the thinness of the grip make it an instant sell for me. I have been using it for almost 3 years now and they last more than a month for me sometimes because I layer two of them over my replacement grip.
The second best, which probably more people enjoy is the Tourna-Grip(Amazon). It was made by accident as shown in this video here and it has been endorsed by a lot of pro players, including the great Pete Sampras.
If you want to know about the difference between an Overgrip and a Replacement Grip, read our detailed post on the topic here
It pretty much comes in one color though unlike the Wilson ones. I have only played with it once because my local sports store does not get it very often, but I did enjoy the feel of it. It gets starts getting tacky the moment a little bit of sweat drops on top of it. So, if you sweat a lot you can get this one as it is made with the whole purpose of gripping in sweaty conditions.
Either of these grips should help a bit but this is not the only solution as sweat can cause the grip to slip. I made a little guide for the people that are struggling like I used to before. I am going to go over this now and hope you can learn something from it.
Get Some Wristbands
This is my saving grace after getting the grips. I used to get annoyed by any other accessories while playing tennis. Sweatbands are extremely important for me now, I avoid playing tennis if I have them in the washer and it rained or something.
The good thing is that they are cheap and you can buy a bunch of them in pretty much any color you want and from whatever company you want. I personally am a big fan of Adidas only because of their three-stripes logo, and partially because I like wearing their shoes.
If you want to get your own wristbands they are pretty easy to find on Amazon, the Adidas Interval Reversible is the one I use because it was very highly reviewed on Amazon and it fits me quite well and they should for most people too.
What I recommend doing is buying a bunch (three or four pairs) of them with different colors, so you can keep track of which ones need washing and you can even try different color combinations. Some people like to get the long ones but I like the small ones because they feel a little lighter. I know it’s all in the mind, but the small ones keep my mind at peace.
Wear an Undershirt or a Sweat Absorbing Shirt
Just wearing a cotton shirt on a humid day can be good for cooling down but it will be total when you try and play tennis. It will become in like 15 minutes and it will stick to your body. Trying to hit a tennis ball when the shirt is sticking to you is a nightmare. I can’t even serve right when my shirt is sticky with sweat.
But, I love cotton shirts because of their breathability and light and floaty feeling. What I did this summer is that I started wearing an undershirt, it is made of cotton too but the sweat absorption is a night and day difference. It felt so good that my shirt was not getting wet, instead, most of the sweat was getting absorbed by the undershirt. I bought mine from a local store but you can find them on Amazon here. They come in a three pack, so they can last a good while if you keep them washed.
If you are not the under-shirt kind of guy, then you can buy some branded shirts which I don’t personally like. It feels like I can’t breathe in them but a lot of people wear them, so you can get them too. This one on Amazon has a lot of good reviews, but hey it’s a shirt that absorbs sweat. If it does its job well, then it is awesome.
Always Bring a Towel with You
Towels are your best friend when it comes to dealing with sweat. I have been using them for two years now after I relocated to a very humid place. Once you start sweating, all the water starts leaving you.
Towels are cheap and easy to acquire, just go to the nearest Walmart or Target and get them. Just keep them wherever it’s easy to get to them in between points. On a chair by the side or behind the court works pretty well. There is no excuse to not get a towel and use them other than just being lazy.
Get a Grip Enhancer Lotion
This is something I have not tried but I have heard that it works very well. This year’s US Open was very, very wet and hot. Juan Martin Del Potro had to use something like this because his hands were slipping a lot.
The one made by Prince has pretty good reviews on Amazon. Just put a few drops on one palm and rub it like a normal lotion, it dries up instantly and helps your hands with gripping the racquet.
I do not particularly enjoy lotions of any kind so I stay away from it, but if I get to try it I just might. If you are the type that enjoys lotions, then, by all means, enjoy it. It is supposed to be great.
Always Keep Water with You
Not particularly sweat prevention but the effect of excessive sweating; dehydration. I sometimes get a headache in the humid weather because I am very susceptible to getting dehydrated.
Always keep a water bottle on you as you should be hydrating yourself for peak performance. If you forget this, then you are in for a bad time as the water starts leaving your body you start feeling hot, lazy and lethargic.
A Rosin Bag Comes in Handy
I can’t comment on these I have never really come in contact with them. Forums and people on the internet are talking about how good it is. You can try it if you don’t like the lotions, as this is supposed to act like sawdust as a drying agent.
