ANTHONY L. WILKINS
Blog: November 2013
“How Do You Get Your Golf Fitness?”
Importance of Fitness
The sporting world has long since looked to fitness as a way to improve and maintain athletic performance. But it seems as if golf did not really catch on to the importance of fitness until about 15 or so years ago. It used to be looked upon as a bad idea to try to strength train and build muscle while attempting to improve your golf game. It was believed that doing so would inevitably alter your swing in some irreparable way. The belief was that there could not possibly be a way to strength train to become a top notch golfer without looking like a bodybuilder.
But now we are much wiser thanks in large part to many of the younger golfers who have come onto the scene and shown just how beneficial strength training can be. You now see golfers in large numbers touting how adding strength training and conditioning to their daily routines has renewed or extended their golf careers.
The four key ingredients of fitness from a golfing perspective that you NEED to focus on are:
• Flexibility / Mobility
• Balance
• Core Strength
• Endurance
Focusing on the aforementioned elements in a consistent manner will have you well on your way to developing a fitness foundation that can last the rest of your life.
Flexibility / Mobility
If I had to choose the most important of the four key ingredients of fitness then flexibility/mobility would be number one. Your ability to move in some parts of your body as well as your ability to stabilize other parts will determine how well you are capable of performing as a golfer. Keep in mind that some golfers are simply blessed with great mobility and flexibility while most golfers will have to work to keep or create it.
The first thing many golfers may think of when they hear flexibility or mobility is their ability to turn during their backswing. Although you will need to have good mobility in your thoracic spine in order to make a big turn, you will just as importantly need to have mobility in your hips and ankles to use that big turn effectively.
There are many ways to either maintain or increase your mobility/flexibility. The first method is static stretching which most of us are familiar with from most of the other sports that we’ve played in our lives. You get into a stretched position and hold it for 20-30 seconds and then move on to the other side or another body part.
The second method is dynamic stretching. This is similar to static stretching but in dynamic stretching you are continuously moving. There is never a time where you will hold a stretch for more than a second or two and then you move on. In dynamic stretching you will also count repetitions where as static stretching is usually done once and then you are finished with that body part. Also, dynamic stretching will work on raising your core temperature as well as waking your central nervous system up. This is all in an effort to get ready for the movements of your intended sport.
The final method is done on a foam roller or a roller of any semi-hard material. The technical term for what you are doing is Self-Myofascial Release or SMR. You are using a foam roller to apply pressure with your own body weight. You simply apply pressure to places that are tender and release the muscle fascia from its ‘tightened’ state. It is often referred to as the ‘poor man’s massage’ and can be done before physical activity or even as a recovery from your sport.
There are many benefits of SMR as listed below:
• Corrects muscle imbalances
• Improves joint range of motion
• Relieves muscle soreness and joint stress
• Maintains normal functional muscle length
The methods that I’ve listed are not the only options available to you and I encourage you to find something that works for you. The most important message for you to understand is that you should be doing something to work on your flexibility and mobility. Unfortunately, it is true, if you don’t use it you WILL lose it!
Balance
Another important part of any consistently successful golf swing is how balanced the golfer is at all times. You most likely have heard that you must coil and uncoil around your body to create an on plane golf swing. Of course that is a lot easier said than done. From sliding to swaying, golfers use so many swing manifestations as possible to get their club away from and back to the ball in one piece. Having a balanced swing is simply a small part of the equation as inevitably the same golfers will have other physical limitations that contribute to loss of his/her balance.
Even professional golfers are not always in balance as it would be hard to think that the human body could be balanced at all times and especially when we are really looking for it to be balanced the most. The key is to create as stable a platform as you possibly can so when your swing is not as balanced as you would like it to be you can still make consistent contact and play fairly well.
One of the best ways to work on your balance is to use single-legged exercises. They can range from a simple single leg stand for time to a more complex single leg squat. Very seldom in the sporting world are we ever on two legs for an extended period of time and golf is no exception. From shifting your weight to your right leg (right-handed golfer) during your back swing to shifting your weight to your left leg in your follow through, having and maintaining good balance will make both cases much easier.
You can even take balance a step further by adding a dynamic component to your single leg training. Simply move more laterally while completing an exercise and that will force you to quickly adapt to your new positioning just to make sure that you remain standing.
Core Strength
For quite some time the terms ‘core strength’ have been at the forefront of the fitness world. But unfortunately when most people hear those words they only think of how strong or defined they can make their abs. Interestingly enough, the core of your body is essentially the entire trunk of your body and it is not only in the front of your body but it works its way all of the way around your body as well. In order to build complete core strength, you will have to use the entire musculature of your core to make it work.
When it comes to golf, there is NOTHING that you do that does not involve your core muscles. As the main support system for your body’s physical stability your core is always at work. From its obvious use when you swing a club from beginning to end to sinking a 3-foot putt, your core is always doing its job. Your core muscles also help you to maintain balance when shifting your body in any direction as well as when you are trying to execute a shot from an awkward lie.
Building core strength is a lot simpler than you may have ever experienced in any gym or even on television. Sadly, most of the world has bought into the idea that if you would like to increase your core strength or get a flatter stomach that you have to do a ridiculous amount of crunches or crunch-like abdominal exercises. This just isn’t the case as the crunch the way it is often performed does more harm to your back and very little to your core muscles in the first place.
By simply holding the plank position you will work your ENTIRE core musculature while keeping your lower back much safer in the process. Keeping your lower back as safe as possible should be the number one goal for any golfer attempting to increase their core strength through exercise. Finding core exercises in a magazine or on the internet is the easy part. The confusion and injuries come in when the exercises are not applied correctly to the fitness level of anyone trying to do them.
Endurance
When most people hear the word ENDURANCE what comes to mind is someone running a long distance. Although this is true more often than not, golf endurance is not exactly the same thing. When running you usually begin at a specific point and attempt to maintain your ability to complete your entire trip or distance without stopping. You subsequently begin to build your endurance by completing progressively longer distances each time that you run.
Golf endurance is similar in many ways to running endurance. For starters, the there are defined beginning and ending points in both for the athlete to complete. The goal in golf is always to complete each round at as high an energy level as possible. Runners want to finish each race with as much of a push at the end as possible.
Both sports have defined measures at the end of each that give instant feedback to how well the participant was able to accomplish their task. In golf, finishing the round with a good score is similar to a runner finishing a distance with a good time.
In addition, golf and running both become more mentally challenging the longer you participate in each activity. The longer you run and the more holes you play will take a mental toll on your performance. You ability to remain focused for the duration will greatly improve your overall outcome each time.
The one major difference between running and golf is the amount of cardiovascular exertion exhibited during the two sports. Running any distance will inevitably stress your cardiovascular system on a consistent basis. The game of golf on the other hand will come nowhere close to reaching the same amount of consistent cardiovascular exertion.
In conclusion, there is no magic pill for maintaining a golf-healthy body, just simple adherence to a health and fitness protocol on a regular basis. Now it is your turn to get started!
Talk to you again, soon.
Anthony
Anthony L. Wilkins is a national Academy of Sports Medicine & Titleist Performance Institute Certified Personal Trainer an avid golfer from New Jersey who currently resides in the metro Atlanta area with his wife and son.
Send Anthony an Email Message!
AnthonyLWilkins@gmail.com
