The Purple Guide to Learning Pickleball in 10 Days
A no-fluff day-by-day plan to hit your first successful pickleball rally in 10 days
by Alumigogo Books
non-fiction
Ten days. Thirty minutes a day. A real rally by day 10—see if pickleball sticks before you buy anything fancy.
About this book
You've seen the courts. Maybe there's one at the community center, or a friend keeps posting about a lunchtime rec league. Pickleball looks simple—paddles, a wiffle ball, a court smaller than tennis—but if you've never played, the barrier to entry feels real. Which paddle? Which court? What's a kitchen? Can you even do this if you're not athletic?
This guide is a no-hype 10-day starter plan for people who want to try pickleball without a big commitment. Each chapter covers one day of focused practice—30 to 45 minutes on average—starting with absolute zero and moving through serving, returning, dinking, and rallying. There's no pressure to buy gear you don't need yet, no assumption you have a partner every single day, and no vague motivational nonsense. Instead, you get checklists, realistic progress milestones, troubleshooting for when it feels impossible, and a final day that helps you decide: do you keep going or not?
If you're curious about pickleball but don't want to sign up for a class, drop hundreds on equipment, or wade through hours of YouTube, this is your off-ramp from maybe to actually trying. By day 10, you'll know exactly what this sport feels like, what it costs, and whether it's for you.
Reader Reviews
Jessica Thompson
★★★★★I bought this because I was 'maybe interested' in pickleball but didn't want to sign up for a class and look silly. Day one was exactly what I needed—it told me to just go to a court and hit a ball against a wall, which took the pressure off completely. The 10-day structure is realistic; I'm not a natural athlete and I was still rallying by day six. Only four stars because I did have to buy a cheap paddle to practice at home, and the book's 'gather a paddle' advice felt a bit obvious by day two. Overall, it got me off the couch, which is more than the hype videos did.
Anna Garcia
★★★★★This guide is the anti-hype book pickleball needs. I've been curious for months but intimidated by the paddles, the kitchen, all the jargon. The day-by-day plan broke everything into 30-minute sessions with real specifics—like how to actually hold the paddle and where to stand for a dink. By day 10 I wasn't a pro, but I could hold a rally, and that's exactly what I wanted. The milestones table in chapter seven was so honest about what's normal that it kept me from quitting after a bad day eight. If you're a beginner, buy this instead of scrolling forums for hours.