Bryant McKinnie taking a swing at tennis

As part of his offseason goal to slim down, Vikings left tackle Bryant McKinnie is frequently getting tennis lessons from friend and nine-time Grand Slam tennis champion Venus Williams in South Florida.

McKinnie played at around 360 pounds last season, and his goal is to get below 340. His current weight is about 355.

As part of his offseason training, McKinnie is using tennis to improve his lateral quickness. He is pleased with his backhand. The hobby has turned into a passion.

"It's so amazing how much you can improve," McKinnie said this week.

McKinnie jokes that he prefers working with Venus instead of her sister Serena, owner of 13 Grand Slams, because "she's a better teacher."
The two have worked together for the past few weeks.

"One thing I learned with Venus, you have to be ready to work for a long lesson," McKinnie said. "She tires you out."

McKinnie, who made a 10-day trip to Uganda and Rwanda in March as part of Pros for Africa and the Starkey Hearing Foundation, said he's been motivated and humbled by the trip.

"I'm ready to conquer a whole bunch of different things," McKinnie said. "Seeing how they live and how grateful they are for everything they have and doing what they can to survive makes you realize, maybe I'm not working hard enough. That made me think about training camp — sometimes you don't want to do it, but we get to play football for a living."

McKinnie trains in Miami, where Vikings teammates Sidney Rice and Bernard Berrian also have worked out in recent months.

Players from various teams are organizing impromptu minicamps because the NFL lockout prevents contact with coaches, but the Vikings do not appear to have a unified meeting place.

Like many veteran NFL players, McKinnie is due an offseason workout bonus that has been jeopardized by the lockout.

McKinnie said he's hoping for a resolution before worrying about his $250,000 bonus.

"I'm assuming that something should be worked out at least by July," McKinnie said. "People would go crazy if they don't have football."

(twincities.com)