The Pickleball Lab

In this live Q&A stream replay from The Pickleball Lab, we break down real match film and use it to fix the most common problems that hold 3.5–4.5 players back from winning more games.

Using El and Jessica’s gameplay as our case study, we walk through point-by-point what actually creates advantages on the court: smarter returns, tighter transitions, better positioning, and cleaner decision-making under pressure.

What you’ll learn in this session:

- Hit and Run vs. Hit and Watch
Why pausing after your return kills your advantage, and how to use your forward momentum to close the kitchen gap and make 3rd shot drops much harder on your opponents.

- The First 4 Balls Principle
How the serve, return, third, and fourth shots decide most rallies—and what to change in those four shots to play “above your level” without perfect dinks.

- Escalation & De-escalation (Power Management)
A simple framework for handling transition: when to move up, when to move back and how to turn balls that are pressuring you into balls you can move up on and conversely, how to turn balls that you can't pressure into balls you can.

- Volley & Reset Technique
How grip pressure and paddle angle cause pop-ups, and what to change so your volleys stay low over the net instead of sitting up to be crushed.

- Transitioning to the Kitchen
How to move through the transition zone without getting picked apart, including when to “hit and run” vs. “hit and sit” (split step and be ready).

- Handling Bangers
When you should counter back hard instead of trying to softly block, especially if your goal is to reach higher levels (4.0–4.5+).

- Targeting & Court Positioning
Why hitting the returner, aiming around the “feet line,” and adjusting your position to protect your chicken wing creates easier balls and fewer forced errors.

- Drill Structure & Improvement Plan
How to structure a weekly practice plan (serve/return drills, third shot work, skinny singles) so that your mechanics and decisions actually change over time—not just “play more and hope.”

- And a whole lot more...

Timestamps:

0:00 – Intro & Stream Logistics
1:43 – The "Enigma" of the Lob
2:42 – The "Hit and Run" Return: Why you can't pause after your shot.
4:16 – The First 4 Balls Principle: Why these shots determine a 5.0 level.
7:31 – Fourth Shot Strategy: Aiming for the "Feet Line."
9:11 – Volley Technique: Fixing pop-ups with paddle face & grip pressure.
14:15 – The "Spider" Defense: Handling shoulder-high attacks (Gabe Tardio style).
17:36 – Escalation & De-escalation: Using the 12-Point Power Scale.
21:45 – High Ball vs. Low Ball Logic: When to attack vs. when to reset.
25:51 – The "Hit and Sit" Rule: Mastering the split-step in transition.
31:12 – Why you should ALWAYS hit the returner.
35:40 – Two-Handed Backhand Resets for better control.
42:52 – Handling Bangers: Why you should counter hard instead of blocking.
45:57 – The Weekly Drill Plan: How to structure your practice (40/40/50 rule).
55:20 – Serve & Return Drills: Targeting the backhand.
1:02:15 – Skinny Singles for Stacking Teams.
1:08:30 – Grip Recommendations: Eastern vs. Continental.
1:15:10 – The 2,000 Ball Rule: How to actually change your mechanics.
1:22:45 – Tournament Frequency & The "One Thing" Rule for Rec Play.
1:30:00 – Wrap Up & Future Stream Schedule.

This stream is part of The Pickleball Lab’s weekly public Q&A coaching, where any player can join live, ask questions in chat, and get coached—no film required. You can join our next stream live by going to pickleballlab.co/the-pickleball-lab/ and joining for free. Inside the community you will see the next Q&A you can join!

Level up your game with The Pickleball Lab, the only pickleball community that combines structured video lessons, specific practice plans, and direct coaching feedback to help you truly get better at the game: https://thepickleballlab.co/the-pickleball-lab/

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The Weekly Public Q&A Stream is a live coaching session where you can ask questions in the chat to get answers on how to improve your game. While we often perform film breakdowns for those who have it, the primary goal is an open forum where any player can get technical advice on winning more pickleball games. Join the next session to get your questions answered and understand the "why" behind improving in pickleball.

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In our debut episode, Josh Mackens and Elliott Kindred dive deep into the fastest ways to level up your game, whether you're a 2.0 beginner or pushing for that 5.0 pro-level proficiency. We break down grips, why the "First 4 Balls" are the most critical steps to improve, and much more

In this episode, we cover:

- The "First 4 Balls"
- The Power of the Drive: How mastering one specific swing can fix your serve, return, 3rd shot and more all at once.
- Grip Secrets: When to use Eastern vs. Continental, and why Ben Johns' childhood attic might be the reason he has the best backhand in the world.
- The "Choking Up" Trend: Is holding your paddle higher the secret to faster hands at the kitchen?

Timestamps:
00:00 - Intro: Meet Josh and Elliott
02:18 - The fastest way to level up your game
03:45 - Why the first 4 balls are the most important
06:50 - Why you MUST drill your returns and serves
11:25 - Pickleball Grips: Eastern, Western, and Continental explained
15:14 - The Ben Johns "Attic" Story
16:39 - Should you "choke up" on your paddle?
21:55 - How to get your questions answered

Join the Community:
Have a question you want us to answer on the next pod? Drop it in the comments below or join us over at https://thepickleballlab.co/the-pickleball-lab/ and post it there!

Level up your game with The Lab, the only pickleball community that combines structured video lessons, specific practice plans, and direct coaching feedback to help you truly get better at the game: https://thepickleballlab.co/the-pickleball-lab/

Listen on the go:
Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all major platforms. Search "The Pickleball Lab" to subscribe.

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Are you making the #1 beginner mistake in pickleball? This video breaks down the most common error new players make and shows you exactly how to fix it to improve your game fast! Stop losing points and start winning more games.

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The 4 Phases of Pickleball is an important concept to understand to help you breakdown the game into manageable chunks so you can get better faster!

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Once you’ve mastered the Cooperative Volley Drill, it’s time to level up with the Aggressive Volley Drill! This drill simulates real game-speed exchanges and is designed to sharpen your reflexes and develop lightning-fast hands at the net.

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The return is EVERYTHING. Let's watch some pro pickleball film together and break down everything they're doing at the pro level to hit solid returns.

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Footwork is SUPER important. Going to look at kitchen footwork that the pros use and also how footwork happens with the pros after a 3rd shot drive into a 5th shot drop! A viewer asked about a good paddle at the end of the stream which I answer.

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Going to breakdown some student pickleball film today in the 3.0 - 3.5 range. Topics covered: return and run, transition, top spin and a whole lot more.

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Going to go through some matches from the PPA Red Rock Open and learn from the pros!

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Volleys at the Kitchen in Pickleball is an incredibly important skill. Being able to hit the ball with control, aiming the ball, and generally placing the ball where you intend to can be the difference between winning and losing your game. With this Cooperative Volley Drill you'll be developing that all important control so you can start winning more hand battles and therefore, more pickleball games.

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The Dinking Game is a great pickleball drill. It emphasizes dinking and volleys and helps you focus on those 2 phases of your pickleball game. Whether you're working on dinking consistency, speed ups, counters or just general volleys, The Dinking Game puts you in a real live pickleball situation so you can grind out the technical and strategic aspects of kitchen play in Pickleball.

0:00 - Intro
0:26 - Drill Setup
0:45 - The Feed
1:10 - The Dinking Game Example
3:08 - Are Lobs Allowed?
3:39 - Summary
3:56 - Outro

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Struggling to get dinking down? Hitting high balls, balls into the net, balls out of bounds, or not hitting aggressive enough dinks to cause the other team errors? Then do this drill! Do this drill once a day and you'll skyrocket your dinks to the next level and you'll start to hear more and more, "dang, your dinking has gotten ridiculously good!"

0:00 - Intro
0:21 - Drill Setup
0:36 - 3 Things to Focus On
1:17 - Positions & Length of Drill
2:35 - Summary
2:53 - Outro

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If you're looking to improve your 3rd shot drops, this is the main drill you will likely use throughout your pickleball journey. It's a mainstay of any professional drilling routine and you should add it to your drill program to watch your quality and consistency of 3rd shot drops go through the roof!

Chapters:
0:00 - Intro
0:28 - Drill Setup
1:12 - Drill Example
2:17 - Summary
2:23 - Outro

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When we baby our shots in pickleball it can lead to us making bad decisions and compromising parts of the point like transition distance. This bonus video will show you what I’m talking about.

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Holding your paddle correctly in Pickleball is uber important. Hold it too far this way, too high, too far out, etc. and you'll get beat almost every time. Having your paddle in the right position will give you faster hands and faster hands means more points. But what is the right position to hold your paddle? In this video Josh dives into how to hold your paddle in Pickleball correctly. How high to hold your paddle, what depth, rotation, position, etc. And at the end of this video, you'll be able to be confident that you have the paddle in the exact right position when you're out playing to give yourself the best opportunity to hit a quality ball.

Chapters:
0:00 - Intro
0:32 - Topics Covered
0:46 - Paddle Position
1:05 - Paddle Rotation
3:10 - Paddle Height
3:27 - Paddle Depth
4:13 - Paddle Ready
5:48 - Ball Tap & Hold Drill
7:09 - Advanced Tip: Film!
7:30 - Outro
8:12 - Bloopers

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Want to learn the bare bones basics of Pickleball? In this video, Josh explains how to play Pickleball in under 2 minutes! Get out there and playing immediately!

Chapters:
0:00 - Intro
0:24 - The Pickleball Court Explained
0:35 - Serving
0:54 - Faults
1:04 - The Two Bounce Rule
1:31 - Non-Volley Zone (or "The Kitchen")
2:00 - Clean Up Rules
2:10 - Outro/Bloopers

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In this video we talk about Skinny Singles, one of Pickleball's BEST drills to get better and improve your game. There's a reason the pros play this game/drill all the time. Learn how to play and why you should be playing skinny singles all the time.

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Welcome to The Pickleball Lab YouTube Channel! In this video we dive into the why behind The Pickleball Lab and how we'll use YouTube to accomplish these goals. You'll also learn more about what our plans are with YouTube and the types of content you can expect from us. Welcome to The Lab!

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