When you’re first getting started in tennis, you might be tempted to rush out and buy a racquet—which is completely understandable. You can’t play without one!

But I’d like to make the argument that having the right shoes is just as important.

You may already have a perfectly good pair of walking or running shoes in your closet. Unfortunately, those aren’t necessarily the shoes you want to wear on a tennis court.

I learned that lesson the hard way.

My first introduction to tennis came at age nine, when my parents signed me up for a two-week tennis camp at the Elizabeth Town & Country Club in New Jersey, where I grew up. I absolutely loved it.

A few years later, my family moved to Florida. Our new house happened to have what I considered the perfect “hitting wall” along the back, with enough space around it for me to create my own imaginary tennis court.

One day during my sophomore year of high school, I was chasing down a forehand when I planted my foot the wrong way. The next thing I knew, I was on the ground.

I think I may even have fainted for a moment. I distinctly remember hearing what sounded like the “power coming back on” as I became aware of my surroundings again.

I managed to hobble back inside the house, and the next day I was sitting in an orthopedic doctor’s office. I had badly sprained my ankle and spent the next six weeks in a splint and on crutches. One of my closest friends—then and now—carried my books around school for me.

I also acquired a temporary new nickname: Gimpy.

Years later, when I signed up for my first adult tennis class, something clicked.

My instructor, Ann Moore, noticed my shoes and kindly suggested that I purchase tennis-specific shoes before our next class. I listened—and I’m very glad I did. Looking back, I realized that the shoes I’d worn while playing as a teenager weren’t designed for the kind of movement tennis requires.

Running and walking shoes are generally designed primarily for forward motion. Tennis is different.

On a tennis court, you’re moving forward and backward, but you’re also pushing off, stopping, changing direction, and moving laterally from side to side. Tennis shoes are designed with those movements in mind, providing the stability and support you need when you’re changing direction quickly.

In other words, you need the right tool for the job.

If you’re new to tennis, your racquet will probably feel like the exciting purchase. And yes, you need one! But don’t treat your shoes as an afterthought.

Learn from my mistake: invest in a good pair of tennis shoes from the beginning.

They may help you stay safer on the court—and keep you out there enjoying what just might become your favorite sport.