Vacations, Rest, and Nutrition for Stars During the Off-Season: Inside a Crucial Break
In modern professional tennis, the notion of a season has almost lost its meaning.
Officially, the competitive year stretches over nearly eleven months, punctuated by around thirty major tournaments, exhibitions, team competitions, and an almost uninterrupted succession of intercontinental travel.
For players on the ATP and WTA tours, the schedule imposes constant pressure—physical, mental, and logistical.
In this context, the off-season, reduced to just a few weeks at most, is no longer a simple pause between two competitive campaigns. It has become a central factor in performance, longevity, and injury prevention.
Far from the lax approach of a previous era, this period is now designed, structured, and managed with almost surgical precision. Rest, disconnection, gradual resumption, tailored nutrition: every detail matters.
Through the example of emblematic figures of contemporary and recent tennis—from Roger Federer to Rafael Nadal, from Novak Djokovic to Andy Murray, and up to the new generation embodied by Carlos Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner—this report explores how the off-season is experienced, organized, and leveraged at the highest level.
An exhausting schedule and bodies under constant strain
The professional tour is regularly cited by fitness coaches as one of the most demanding among individual sports.
Matches can last more than four hours, sometimes with several grueling encounters in the same week, on different surfaces and in extreme weather conditions.
On top of that come jet lag, media obligations, and the absence of a true winter break comparable to those in other disciplines.
In this context, specialists in strength and conditioning and sports medicine agree on one point: an off-season that is too short or poorly managed significantly increases the risk of injuries, chronic fatigue, and performance decline.
Studies devoted to recovery in elite athletes highlight the importance of genuine rest—both muscular and nervous—after a long, intense season. It is precisely for this reason that most players now structure their off-season in several distinct phases.
Switching off to restart better: disconnection as the first step
The first is often an almost total break, which can last from ten days to two weeks. During this time, the racket is put aside, intensive training sessions are suspended, and the main goal is to break away from competition routines.
This disconnection is not only physical: it is also meant to free the mind from permanent stress, made up of points to defend, rankings to protect, and expectations to meet.
Next comes a phase of gradual resumption, where physical work increases step by step, with an emphasis on rebuilding endurance, strength, and athletic foundations before returning to tennis-specific training.
Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, Murray: four legends, four visions of rest
For the biggest names on tour, this approach has become obvious over the years. Roger Federer, for example, has often explained that one of the secrets to the longevity of his career lay in his ability to respect these breaks.
During the off-season, the Swiss star willingly embraced a certain loosening of discipline, including on the nutritional side. He has repeatedly said that he used these periods to eat more freely, without obsessing over calories, allowing himself cookies, fondue, or desserts, sometimes for several days in a row.
This letting go, far from being seen as a danger, was an integral part of his personal balance, as long as physical activity was maintained and the return to work was taken seriously.
Andy Murray, for his part, embodied a pragmatic approach forged by experience and physical trials. After several major operations, particularly on his hip, the Briton often stressed the need to listen to his body.
His off-season alternated complete rest, medical treatment, and tailored training resumption, with the main goal of preserving his long-term health. While his vacation destinations were less publicized, his principles for managing the off-season were well documented through his many interviews.
As for Rafael Nadal, he has always cultivated the image of a hard worker. Yet he too places great importance on off-season recovery. Based in Mallorca, he takes advantage of the off-season to stay in a familiar environment, far from the frenzy of the tour.
While his strength and conditioning and nutrition remained structured, with a protein- and carbohydrate-rich diet designed to repair muscle tissue and replenish energy stores, Nadal has never hidden his taste for certain simple pleasures.
Chocolate, in particular, has often been mentioned by the Spaniard as a treat he does not completely give up, even during rest periods.
Rest as a life philosophy: Djokovic’s holistic vision
Finally, Novak Djokovic is something of an outlier in the professional tennis landscape. His approach to the off-season goes far beyond the simple notion of physical rest.
Nutritionally, he has followed for many years a predominantly gluten-free diet, often plant-based, designed to reduce inflammation, improve digestion, and optimize recovery, according to the professionals around him.
Even during his breaks, Djokovic remains active, favoring low-impact activities such as swimming, cycling, or hiking. Above all, he gives a central place to the mental and spiritual dimension of rest.
He has regularly spoken about his retreats, notably in South America, where meditation, mindfulness, and connection with nature form an integral part of his recovery.
Since 2024, this vision has been further reinforced through his role as global wellness advisor for the Aman resort chain.
Through holistic retreats organized in locations as diverse as Thailand, India, Japan, the United States, or the Caribbean, Djokovic promotes a concept of rest as a global process, combining nutrition, movement, therapeutic treatments, and practices inspired by local traditions.
For him, the off-season is not a simple stop, but an intentional pause aimed at regenerating both body and mind.
The new generation facing an increasingly packed schedule
The new generation, confronted with an ever more crowded calendar, sometimes struggles to find this balance. Carlos Alcaraz, despite his young age, has already publicly expressed his difficulties in giving himself real vacations.
As world number one, constantly in demand, the Spaniard openly advocates for a lighter schedule.
When he manages to take a break, he chooses destinations conducive to mental and social decompression. Ibiza, for example, has become for him a place to switch off after intense stretches, particularly after major victories.
But also El Palmar, back home in Spain, where he enjoys spending time with his family and childhood friends. These stays allow him to reconnect, release the pressure, and come back mentally fresher.
For his part, Jannik Sinner has adopted a more discreet but equally structured approach. Surrounded by a team attentive to workload management, the Italian favors phases of recovery that combine rest, treatment, and gradual resumption rather than long, complete breaks.
He has been spotted several times in the Italian Alps during the off-season, an environment conducive to recovery in nature, far from media hype. But also in Dubai, using the facilities at the performance center created by Patrick Mouratoglou.
Off-season nutrition: controlled leniency or strict discipline?
Nutrition runs through all these rest strategies. Contrary to some misconceptions, the off-season is not synonymous with total slackening.
Research in sports nutrition shows that even outside competition, the basic needs of athletes remain similar.
Carbohydrates remain the main energy source for maintaining glycogen stores, proteins are essential for muscle repair, and quality fats, associated with sufficient micronutrient intake, play a key role in homeostasis and recovery.
The difference lies more in quantities, distribution of intake, and the level of flexibility allowed. Some players allow themselves occasional indulgences, but this freedom is generally reserved for those who know their bodies and reactions extremely well.
For most, the goal remains long-term balance, without extreme deprivation, in order to preserve both physical condition and mental well-being.
Flexible diets tailored to profiles and body types
Player testimonies illustrate this variety of approaches. Djokovic champions an anti-inflammatory, plant-based diet. Federer alternated strict discipline with controlled indulgence.
Nadal remained attached to traditional Mediterranean cuisine, while knowing his limits. Stefanos Tsitsipas summed up this reality with humor on social media, highlighting in his own way the importance of macronutrients in a sport where every detail counts.
Carlos Alcaraz, for his part, has explained that he adjusted his diet without following a rigid plan, increasing his fish consumption, reducing red meat, and sometimes incorporating gluten-free pasta before matches, always under specialist supervision.
Richard Gasquet has often insisted on the need to allow yourself treats in order to preserve psychological balance. Andy Murray, finally, has spoken of extremely high caloric intake during his career, up to several thousand calories per day, while acknowledging that some nutritional experiments, such as going gluten-free, did not suit him.
The off-season, key to sustainable performance
These examples converge on the same conclusion: at the highest level, there is no universal formula. Nutrition, like rest, is a performance tool that must be tailored to the individual, their metabolism, their history, and their workload.
The off-season, long seen as a simple buffer between two campaigns, now stands as a pillar of sustainable performance. In an ever more demanding professional tennis environment, these few weeks of rest often determine the success of the months that follow.
Through the paths of Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, Murray, Sinner, or Alcaraz emerges a complex reality, made up of fragile balances, constant adjustments, and deeply personal choices.
Beyond tennis, this reflection could be extended to other long-season sports such as golf, cycling, or triathlon. Comparing recovery and nutrition strategies in these disciplines would offer valuable insight into the deep links between rest, nutrition, and sustainable performance in elite sport.
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